DePaul Prep beats Glenwood in 3A semis, will try for a three-peat on Saturday
CHAMPAIGN—DePaul Prep will play for its third consecutive state championship on Saturday.
The Rams knocked off Glenwood 39-25 in the Class 3A semifinals on Thursday at State Farm Center.
DePaul Prep led 12-8 at halftime.
“That’s the way we wanted to play,” Glenwood coach Todd Blakeman said. "I was happy with where we were."
The teams combined to shoot 8 for 39 in the first half. The shooting improved in the second half, at least when a team was trying to score.
Rashaun Porter Jr., DePaul Prep’s 6-7 junior, finished with 17 points. Junior guard Rykan Woo added 12 points and five assists for the Rams (32-4).
DePaul Prep focused on getting Porter going in the second half.
“When Rashaun is drawing more attention of the defense we are going to have open cuts and lanes to finish in,” DePaul guard Makai Kvamme said.
Cameron Appenzeller led Glenwood with eight points. The Titans (24-10) lost three of their last seven regular season games but heated up in the playoffs.
“We just caught a wave at the right time,” Blakeman said.
DePaul Prep, which beat Mount Carmel in the Class 3A state title game last season, will face Brother Rice in the championship game on Saturday at 6 p.m. The Rams won the Class 2A state title in 2023.