ROXANA — Roxana secured a 42-29 home victory over Breese Central on Thursday night, Dec. 11, 2025, marking a significant win against one of the state’s consistently strong teams.
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The game on Thursday night featured a defensive battle that saw Roxana overcome an early deficit to pull ahead and maintain control through the final quarter.
Breese Central opened the game with an 8-4 lead after the first quarter, but Roxana took the lead in the second quarter and went into halftime ahead 14-12. The third quarter remained close, with Roxana holding a narrow 23-21 advantage heading into the final period. In the fourth quarter, Roxana’s offense found momentum, outscoring Breese Central 19-8 to secure the win.
Roxana Head Coach Mark Briggs praised the defensive effort and overall team performance.
“We have taken our lumps sometimes with Breese Central over the years, but tonight the boys were hungry and played as physically as they could. We allowed only 29 points, and Breese Central is a team known for its offensive and defensive abilities,” Briggs said.
He added, “Our team defense has been great all year long. We are holding teams to under 40 or right at it. Our defensive efforts have been super. I can’t say enough about the whole group, the way they played.”
Briggs also highlighted the team chemistry as a key factor in Roxana’s success.
“Several of the boys played football together and have transitioned right into basketball. They share the ball well, and they all get along off the court. They knew how to win in football, and they are really transitioning together as a group in basketball. Overall, we have been pretty balanced with the efforts each game.”
With the win, Roxana improved to 8-1 overall and is approaching the best start in school history for boys’ basketball. The school’s historical best start is 9-1, a mark Roxana can match with a win against Columbia. Breese Central’s record fell to 5-2 with the loss.
Leading Roxana’s scoring were Sean Maberry with 11 points, Aiden Stemm with 10, and Cohen Dugan with 9.
Breese Central was led by Bryce Wieter with 11 points and Jackson Kampwerth with 10.
Roxana is scheduled to play at Columbia on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, and will host East Alton-Wood River on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025. The Shells could potentially reach 10 wins by the end of that week.
