EAST PEORIA, Ill. – No. 7 Parkland men's basketball scored an impressive M-WAC road victory over No. 17 Illinois Central, 79-59, on Wednesday night. Snapping the Cougars' eight-game winning streak, the Cobras pushed their own winning streak to six games behind 21 points from guard Yaakema Rose Jr. and 19 points and eight rebounds from forward Bruno Williams Jr. Improving to 19-2 overall, Parkland remained a perfect 4-0 in the M-WAC.
 
Leading from the early going against the ranked Cougars, Parkland delivered the decisive blow with just under 10 minutes remaining in the game. With Illinois Central trimming the lead down to seven points, 59-52, the Cobras went on a 16-2 run to deliver the decisive blow. Started by a fadeaway jumper from Trimble, the run was highlighted by eight points from Williams Jr. and capped off by a second-chance three-pointer from Rose Jr.
 
Giving Parkland a dominant presence in the backcourt and frontcourt, Rose Jr. and Williams Jr. kept the Cougars off balance as the two Cobras combined for 40 points and 13 rebounds. Rose Jr. hit eight shots on the evening, two from deep, while Williams Jr. collected his 19 points off 6-of-8 shooting and a perfect seven free throw attempts. The 21 points for Rose Jr. marks the most by the Springfield, Ill., native since scoring 25 points at St. Louis on December 2, while Williams Jr.'s 19 points is second only to his 24-point output at Rend Lake on January 14.
 
Shooting 48.3 percent from the field as a team, Rose Jr. and Williams Jr. were joined in double figures by forward Darin Bellinger (12 points) and guard Ty'Ohn Trimble (10 points). Both hitting four of their six shot attempts, Bellinger netted three of his four field goals from three-point range. In addition to his 10 points, Trimble also dished out four assists and created two steals on the defensive end.
 
Dropping his highest point total since scoring 25 points at St. Louis back on December 2, Yaakema Rose Jr. collected his fourth 20-point game of the season.
 
Leading for all but a minute of the game, the Cobras took the lead for good early with a jumper by Charles Campbell Jr. to take a 4-3 lead. After a 6-0 run by the Cougars cut a 10-3 Parkland lead down to 10-9, the Cobras went on a 17-2 run midway through the first half to create a double-digit lead capped by three pointers from Tommy Makabu and Darin Bellinger. Another triple – a three from Carter Jeffries rom the top of the key – gave the Cobras their biggest lead of the half, 33-15, before the Cougars drew back to within 13 points, 40-27, heading into halftime.
 
Parkland continued to keep Illinois Central at arm's length to begin the second half. Maintaining the double-digit advantage in the opening minutes of the second half, twice pushing the lead back out to 18 points off transition layups from Ty'Ohn Trimble.
 
Leading by 16 points with 11 minutes remaining, a three pointer by Illinois Central started a 12-3 Cougar run over the course of three minutes to draw back within seven points. However, the Cobras countered the nine-point swing with a game-clinching, 16-2 surge of their own.  Squashing any thoughts of a Cougar comeback, and taking their biggest lead of the game, 75-54, Parkland finished the game on a 20-7 run over the final 7:42 of the game.
 
Up next, Parkland returns home on Monday, February 11, as the Cobras step out of conference play for a 7 p.m. matchup against Wabash Valley JV. The next Parkland conference game is on Saturday, February 16, at Danville Area at 3 p.m.