The Hillcrest Academy Raven boys and girls basketball teams will seek a Southeast Iowa Superconference sweep of the Pekin Panthers on Alumni Night tonight in the Area Game of the Week.

The Hillcrest girls are 3-4, 1-4 in conference play after a 45-19 loss on the road at WACO Tuesday. The Ravens were outscored 22-12 after the first half. Niva Helmuth was the leader in the clubhouse with 12 points. This season, Hillcrest scores 39 points per game and gives up 45, shooting 33% from the field, 28% from three and 40% at the line, with 30 rebounds, 11 assists, 10 steals, two blocks, and 24 turnovers a game. Individually, Claire Withrow tops the scoring heap for Hillcrest with 14 points per outing.

Pekin sits mid-pack in the SEISC-North after a loss to Lone Tree Tuesday 53-36. Anna Hadley, averaging 15 points per game, scored 20 and added 18 rebounds. This year, the Panthers score 44 points per game and give up 43, shooting 35% from the floor, 24% from three and 46% from the stripe, with 33 rebounds, 11 assists, 15 steals, three blocks, and 29 turnovers a night. Individually, Hadley joins fellow senior Abby Guise with 10 boards per game, both good for top five in the Superconference North.

Hillcrest head coach Chris Nachtigall joined KCII Sports live on the Area Game of the Week postgame show Tuesday to preview the matchup with the Panthers.

“ They’ll be a tough test for us. We can match up. Anybody on any night can beat anybody else at the same time. So, I mean, I think we’ve got to get up and be ready to go on Friday. It’s a game we can definitely play in. We’ve got to be ready, have that mentality going in,” Nachtigall said.

Pekin leads the all-time series with Hillcrest by a wide 29-3 margin dating back to 2008. However, it is the Ravens that have won the last two, the most recent by a 40-32 final tally.

The Hillcrest boys moved to 5-0 on the year with a 55-44 win in Wayland Tuesday. Gibson Scott paced the Ravens with a double-double of 17 points and 10 boards. Rowan Miller and Kale Bailey followed with 14 and 12 points, respectively. This season, Hillcrest scores 62 points per game and gives up 44, shooting 45% from the field, 32% from three and 61% from the line, with 32 rebounds, 16 dimes, 14 takeaways, one block, and 14 turnovers per game. Individually, Bailey, Miller and Scott lead Hillcrest, scoring in double-digits a game at 19, 14 and 11 points, respectively.

The Panthers collected win No. 4 on the year Tuesday at Lone Tree 72-37. Pekin began the game on a 25-6 run that pushed their advantage to a 46-22 halftime lead. In 2025, Pekin scores 62 points per game and gives up 53, shooting 40% from the field, 34% from deep and 53% from the charity stripe, with 34 rebounds, 11 assists, 14 steals, two blocks, and 12 turnovers per game. The individual leader is the leader in the Superconference North in Cole Millikin. The senior paces the division with 23 points a game.

Hillcrest head coach Stephen Bender also joined KCII Sports postgame Tuesday after the WACO win to break down the Panthers.

“ We’re going to have to bring our best game. It’ll be a big game. It’s Alumni Night, so it’ll be a great crowd. And we’ve got some momentum. And these are great kids. They’re very coachable, and I think they’re gonna come out ready to go,” Bender said.

In the Varsity Bound era, Hillcrest leads the all-time series with Pekin 22-14 after the sides split last season at one win apiece.

You can catch all of the Alumni Night action between Hillcrest and Pekin on the KCII3 app and streaming online at KCIIRadio.com, beginning with the Area Game of the Week girls pregame show at 5:30, tip at 6 with the boys to follow from Kalona.