Rock Falls finishes Elite Eight run in front of electric crowd in Sterling

STERLING — Battling a physical, defensive-minded Chicago Christ the King team, too many turnovers and close missed shots were too much for Rock Falls to overcome in Monday’s Class 2A Sterling Supersectional.

The Rockets fell 58-44 in the Elite Eight matchup in front of a loud and engaged crowd at a Musgrove Fieldhouse filled with black and green.

Rock Falls finishes 25-9 after winning its first sectional title since 2006 as the Gladiators (26-9) advanced to the state semifinals.

Christ the King was dominant on the glass as the Rockets had little answer for 6-foot-6 Aaron McClure, who finished with 15 points and multiple slam dunks inside. Darien Green added 15 more and Mike Thomas had 11 off the bench for the Gladiators.

After trailing just 15-13 after the first quarter, the Rockets went cold after taking a five-point lead, going into halftime down 24-22.

The Gladiators took control with a 19-5 third quarter advantage to lead 43-27. Rock Falls could not get within its deficit under 10 in the second half.

Cole Mulnix led Rock Falls with 11 points and Austin Castaneda had nine points but left the game with an injury in the fourth quarter. Kuitim Heald and Ryken Howard each scored eight as the Rockets went just 4 of 17 from deep.

RF coach Zach Sandrock said the team expected a tough and physical challenge from the Gladiators.

“We knew rebounding was going to be a big part of the game and also keeping our composure,” he said. “I think in the second half, they sped us up, got us out of our game and went on a little run. And it’s tough to come back against a physical team that rebounds so well.”

Constant whistles during such a physical game was also a challenge. A dozen turnovers also made it tough for the Rockets to come back.

“I think there were some times where whistles didn’t go our way and maybe didn’t get whistled at all,” Sandrock said. “But that’s the way basketball goes.”

Rock Falls also had a number of shots go in and out. Heald, Rock Falls' career 3-point and single-season scoring leader, had shots rim out from deep on a few occasions.

“Shots weren’t falling for us,” Heald said. “And shots were falling for them in the second half.”

“We got some open looks and things just didn’t go in,” Sandrock said. “In a supersectional game, a few of those need to fall, and they didn’t. But again, that’s the way the game goes.”

Despite falling behind, the Rock Falls crowd remained deafening at times, trying to will the Rockets back into the game even late.

“Loudest game ever,” Heald said.

“It seemed like a Rock Falls home game,” Sandrock said. “It was wonderful, the excitement and deafening screams at times. Thank you to all the fans, all the community for coming out and supporting us.

“We fought our hearts out all year long.”

The Rockets raised the bar this season after exceeding expectations. It took discipline.

“Last year, we had no discipline. We were goofing around in practice,” Heald said. “This year, we stayed locked in and we didn’t let anything get in our way. We still played with a chip on our shoulder and it feels good to get this far.”

Howard was proud of the team after its best run in decades.

“We left it all on the court,” he said. “I definitely think we did raise the bar. It just shows how far we really can go.

“We can compete with these big schools. It was a great season.”

Sandrock was emotional when talking about the senior class he has coached the last four years.

“They are like sons to me,” he said. “They couldn’t make me more proud. The way they’ve fought, the way they’ve grown as people, I’m excited to see what they do in their future and I’m really sad to see them leave.”

Thinking back to before the season began, Sandrock was confident the team could get to this point.

“We take a trip to Wisconsin over the summer every year and we sat down and did some team building stuff,” he said. “We said listen, we have the talent. We’re going to go through some ups and downs, we’re going to go through adversity, but when it gets to the postseason, we will be ready.

“I think we showed it this year. Even with a loss tonight, we showed who we are as Rock Falls basketball and what it takes to be a Rocket.”

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Rock Falls’ Kuitim Heald hugs Nehemiah Menendez at the end of their loss to Christ the King Monday, March 10, 2025, during the Class 2A boys basketball Supersectional in Sterling. (Alex T. Paschal)