McLean County Tournament Opens With Execution and Authority
McLean County Tournament Opens With Execution and Authority Photos by Alan Look Photography The opening round of the 2026 McLean County Boys Basketball Tournament offered an early reminder that January basketball is less about promise and more about purpose. Two games, played in different gyms with different energies, underscored that truth as Fieldcrest dispatched Flanagan-Cornell and El Paso–Gridley asserted control over Heyworth. Fieldcrest Knights 66, Flanagan-Cornell Falcons 50 Watching Flanagan-Cornell during shootaround and pregame warmups, it was easy to believe points would come easily. Shots fell cleanly, the ball moved crisply, and confidence appeared abundant. Once the game began, however, the tone shifted. Under pressure, the Falcons struggled to convert opportunities, and the scoreboard quietly documented just how cold the offense became and how vulnerable the defense proved against a disciplined opponent. Fieldcrest, by contrast, played a game rooted in patie...