Published on February 18, 2026 7:41 am
Last Updated on February 18, 2026 7:44 am
BY MILLIE LANGE
Altamont High School got its revenge on Effingham St. Anthony Tuesday evening in a game heard on 979XFM.
After falling in the National Trail Conference Boys Basketball Tournament championship game on a last second shot, Altamont came back to beat the Bulldogs by a 63-56 tally in a regular season conference game Tuesday evening at the Enlow Center.
Shooting 56.1 percent from the field, the Indians moved ahead by a slight 13-12 first quarter count. Kade Milleville put in six points and Parker Bell knocked down a three-pointer.
Aiden Lauritzen kept the Bulldogs close with six points.
The Indians pressed offensively, outscoring St. Anthony 17-9 in the second quarter to lead 30-21 at halftime. Bell went on a run, scoring a regular basket and two three-pointers while Zaine Miller scored five points.
The Bulldogs were hitting only 38.5 percent for the first half while Altamont was ripping along with 60 percent from the field.
The two teams played to a 13-13 third quarter as Miller added five points. St. Anthony was led by Miles Waldhoff with eight on a regular basket and two three-pointers.
Although St. Anthony mounted a comeback bid with a 22-20 run in the final period, Altamont took advantage of free throws and ended up with the seven-point victory.
The Indians put in 10 of 16 from the gratis stripe with K. Milleville connected on five and scored a regular basket for seven total points. Cooper McManaway hit a basket and three free throws for five and Jacob Johnson scored a basket and was two of two at the line.
Keenan Griffith got hot for the Bulldogs, connecting on three baskets, one a three-pointer, and a free throw for eight in the quarter but it wasn’t enough.
Altamont finished with 56.1 percent from the field and 66.7 percent at the free throw line with 12 of 18. The Indians shot 35.7 percent from three-point range with five.
St. Anthony ended with 46 field goal shooting and 50 percent at the line. They were 33.3 percent from three-point range.
Altamont improved to 6-2 in the conference and 19-10 overall and will finish out conference play Friday hosting Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg.
St. Anthony, suffering its first NTC loss at the Enlow Center since December 19, 2014, is now 7-1 and will head to a showdown at Cumberland Friday. The Pirates also stand at 7-1 in the conference.
In junior varsity play, Altamont was a 59-54 winner. Blake Berg led the way with 20 points while Nate Lurkins added 18 points and Carson Milleville17.
St. Anthony was led by Connor Storm with 26 and Will Vonderheide with nine.
At St. Anthony
ALTAMONT (63)
Co. Pals 4-0 — 8, McManaway 3-3 — 9, Lurkins 0-0 — 0, K. Milleville 4-5 — 13, C. Milleville 0-0 — 0, Bell 5-0 — 13, Johnson 3-4 — 10, Miller 4-0 — 10. TOTALS 23 FG, 12 FT.
ST. ANTHONY (56)
Verdeyen 3-0 — 8, Waldhoff 5-0 — 13, Storm 2-0 — 4, Lauritzen 6-2 — 14, Jansen 2-0 — 4, Griffith 4-2– 11, Gannaway 1-0 — 2, Looman 0-0 — 0. TOTALS 23 FG, 4 FT.
Altamont 13 17 13 20 — 63
St. Anthony 12 9 13 22 — 56
3-point FG — Altamont 5 (Bell 3, Miller 2), St. Anthony 6 (Waldhoff 3, Verdeyen 2, Griffith 1).
Junior Varsity Game
Altamont 14 8 26 11 — 59
St. Anthony 9 14 16 15 — 54
Altamont — Wolff 1, Lurkins 20, Milleville 17, Berg 20, Bridges 1
St. Anthony — Vonderheide 9, Storm 26, Gowin 5, Bierman 3, Mayer 3, Looman 8
At Effingham
Taylorville’s Wyatt Younker connected on a three-pointer with 0.9 seconds left in the game to give the Tornadoes a 51-49 victory over Effingham Tuesday evening.
In a season that’s been tough on the Hearts, another loss was wracked up.
Taylorville moved into a 15-9 opening quarter lead as EHS was led by Jenner Pals with seven points.
The Tornadoes led 25-16 at halftime. Cole Phillips scored five for EHS in the second quarter.
The Hearts then fought back with a 16-10 third period to pull within 35-32. Cannon Bockhorn and Pals hit two three-pointers and a regular basket for eight points each.
EHS continued on, outscoring the Tornadoes by a point in the final period. Pals scored another three-pointer and was three of four at the line for six while Jake Niebrugge scored four. But once again the Hearts fell.
Pals ended with 21 points on seven field goals, four from three-point range, and three of four at the line. Bockhorn tallied 11.
In the junior varsity contest, Effingham was a 58-40 winner.
The Hearts were led by Dagg Thompson with 18 and Maxwell Love with 14.
At Effingham
TAYLORVILLE (51)
Owens 1-0 — 2, Younger 3-0 — 7, Havera 1-1 — 3, Ladage 4-4 — 13, Pearse 2-0 — 4, Brown 7-4 — 22. TOTALS 18 FG, 9 FT.
EFFINGHAM (51)
McDaniel 0-2 — 2, Niebrugge 2-2 — 6, Bockhorn 4-0 — 11, Pals 4-3 — 21, Buzzard 0-0 — 0, Traub 0-0 — 0, Philips 3-1 — 7, Warner 1-0 — 2. TOTALS 14 FG, 8 FT.
Taylorville 15 10 10 16 — 51
Effingham 9 7 16 17 — 49
3-point FG — Taylorville 6 (Brown 4, Ladage 1, Younker 1), Effingham 7 (Pals 4, Bockhorn 3).
Junior Varsity Game
Taylorville 10 6 11 13 — 40
Effingham 17 12 23 6 — 58
Taylorville — Durbin 6, Polley 2, Woodall 5, Clayton 8, Anderson 4, McDowell 7, Reiss 6, Kirk 2
Effingham — Rohr 7, Kinkelaar 7, Moon 0, Loew 0, Richmond 0, Carson 0, Dagg 18, Coen 2, Traub 2, Flack 0, Wendt 2, Maxwell 14, Warner 6