Box Score EAST PEORIA, Ill. – Top-seeded Parkland men's basketball fell to No. 3 seed John Wood in Sunday's Region 24 Championship game, 81-64, ending the Cobras season one win short of a third NJCAA DII Tournament appearance in the last four years. Sophomore guard Yaakema Rose Jr. led the Cobras on Sunday with 19 points, while forward Bruno Williams Jr. contributed 13 points.
 
Following today's Region 24 Championship, Rose Jr. and Williams Jr. were honored with All-Region awards. Sophomore guard Yaakema Rose Jr. was named the Co-Region 24 Player of the Year, sharing the honor with John Wood's Cory Miller Jr. who scored 30 points on Sunday. Also, a member of the All-Region Team, Rose Jr. was joined on the team with freshman teammate Bruno Williams Jr.
 
Falling behind early, the Cobras were never able to dig out of a double-digit hole midway through the first half. Trailing 42-24 at halftime, the Cobras outscored John Wood 40-39 in the second half, but were never able to cut the deficit back to single digits. The Cobras shot 35.2 from the field, while allowing the Blazers to convert 63.6-percent of their attempts including 56.3-percent from three. Keeping the Cobras in the game was a 17-3 advantage in offensive rebounds, but dropped the overall rebounding edge, 35-33.  
 
Shooting just 27.8-percent in the first half, Parkland fell behind early after a pair of John Wood threes put the Cobras in an early 6-0 hole. Six straight points from Rose Jr. brought Parkland to within 8-6, and then a pair of Joey Saracco free throws brought the Cobras back within three, 11-8, early in the half. However, a 13-2 run by John Wood quickly put Parkland behind by double digits midway through the half. Trailing by as much as 20 points, the Cobras cut the lead to as close as 13, but trailed 42-24 at halftime. Rose Jr. led the first half scoring with 11 points.
 
Despite a put-back dunk from Mark Emmanuel Jr. to start the second half, the Cobras were unable to cut into the lead despite improved offensive efficiency. Seven early points from Williams Jr. helped the Cobras trim down some of the halftime deficit, but timely threes kept Parkland from trimming more than a couple possessions off the Blazer lead. Trailing by as much as 21 points, a 13-2 run capped by a Trimble three and Bellinger transition layup cut the deficit to 54-44 with 10 minutes remaining. However, the 10-point deficit would be as close as it would get as John Wood outscored the Cobras 27-20 over the final 10 minutes.
 
Finishing with a 24-4 overall record, the Cobras won their third M-WAC Championship in the last four seasons with a 7-1 record in the conference. Yaakema Rose Jr. led team in 2019 with 16.1 points per game, while Bruno Williams Jr. also averaged double-figure scoring with 11.4 points per game.