It’s clear that the Rich Township community has a lot of pride and optimism around the new, consolidated high school. Or at least the athletic programs do, I didn’t get to talk to any actual community members because the old Rich South gym was basically empty.

But Rich Athletic Director Matthew Shank was literally wearing a red shirt that emblazoned with “Rich Township Pride” and basketball coach Cornelius Crossley was decked out in Raptors gear, including his mask.

Shank said it plainly, he expects the new program to “start putting us on the map with the bigger schools in the area.”

The school’s enrollment is just short of 3,000 now, so it is one of the 20 biggest schools in the entire state. That does not always lead to athletic success. It appears to be pretty much a tossup if you look at the top 20.

Lets be frank: Rich and all of the South Suburban public high schools have been decimated by the Public League powerhouses and, to a lesser extent, some Catholic high schools.

There is an opening now though. It is unlikely that Morgan Park will have the same draw as it did over the past decade. That could help keep some talent home.

Tonight’s Kankakee-Rich game was hard-fought. It was the most intense game I’ve seen so far this season, the kids were going at it tooth and nail. The Raptors lost, but did not give in until the buzzer. That’s a good sign for Crossley.

It’s the first big Friday night of the season, which feels pretty good to type. I am starting to get a little less thankful that basketball is back and more annoyed at not having a crowd. Tonight would have been so much fun with the usual crowd. But I’m going to try and squelch that whining, especially since I’m so lucky to get to see basketball live.

Friday’s top games

Hersey 78, Buffalo Grove 68: A really nice win for Hersey but I do need to mention that Kam Craft finished with 40 points and 11 rebounds in the loss. One of the biggest games I’ve seen so far this season.

Fremd 57, Conant 44: The Vikings are becoming one of the most dependable programs in the entire area. Eli Schoffstall scored 19 and Chris Smyros added 17 points.

No. 16 Bolingbrook 69, Bradley-Bourbonnais 54: Kyonte Thomas had 20 points, Kai Evans scored 16 and Mekhi Cooper added 12 points and eight assists.

Mount Carmel 81, Providence-St. Mel 40: All 10 players scored for the Caravan. Elijah Jointer led the way with 17.

Providence 52, Leo 50: The Celtics pull out a tight win. Hunter Dauparas, a player that emerged earlier this week, had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Jack Wajda scored 15 and James Arentz hit the game-winning three-pointer.

Proviso East 75, Proviso West 53: I didn’t see any highlights from this one, but the Proviso battle is always notebook worthy.

York 64, Willowbrook 37: New coach Mike Dunn picks up his first win. Nick Hesch and Alex Sherman each scored 12.

Marian Catholic 46, Carmel 37: Jeremiah Jones finished with 15 for the Spartans and Asher Jackson led Carmel with 18. Loyola is up next for Marian.

No. 11 Glenbard West 70, Downers Grove South 31: Yikes, the Hilltoppers are posting some scores so far this season. Will anyone stop this juggernaut? I can’t wait to get a look at Glenbard West, considering most of us expected them to maybe be a year away from major success. Braden Huff scored 20.

Lincoln-Way Central 67, Lincoln-Way West 60: I just read Steve Soucie’s story on this one. LWC coach Bob Curran said he isn’t even sure which guys he should be playing yet. That’s kinda scary considering the Knights are already 3-0 and have knocked off both district rivals. James Ogrodnik scored 16 and Frank DeCarlo added 14.

Oak Lawn 47, TF North 20: Beat the Meteors by 27 points and you have my attention. Rodney Washington led the way with 10 points and check out senior Rafael Bou’s line of nine points, eight rebounds and five assists. That’s a game.

Lockport 65, Sandburg 46: The Porters had nine different players score, led by junior Ethan Gallagher’s 12 points. Julius Smith and Matas Deksnys each added 11 points. Lockport had assists on 21 of 27 buckets. I’ll get a look at them tomorrow in Joliet.

No. 15 Glenbrook South 55, Maine South 33: I never seem to see Glenbrook South stats until the next day. I’m starting to think it might be a plan. This is a really nice win, one of the best of the season so far. Both teams were 4-0 heading in. But get this….the teams play each other tomorrow at 2 p.m. That is wacky, but everything seems to be these days.

Indian Creek 68, Serena 47: The Timberwolves advance to the Little Ten Tournament title game for the sixth consecutive season. They will face Somonauk, who beat Newark 55-45. Cam Russell led Indian Creek tonight with 21 points, Brennen McNally scored 19 and Drew Gaston added 16.

No. 9 Fenwick 76, De La Salle 53: The Friars are 3-0. Bryce Hopkins scored 27 and Denium Juette added 18.

St. Ignatius 67, St. Laurence 49: The Wolfpack bounces back from last night’s loss at Loyola. Parker Higginbottom led the way with 19 points, sophomore Richard Barron scored 17 and juniors AJ Redd and Kolby Giles each scored 12.

Naperville Central 60, No. 19 Neuqua Valley 40: A ranked team goes down. Better get Naperville Central on the radar and in my scores book.

Joliet West 46, Plainfield East 44: The Tigers squeak one out. They have Bolingbrook tomorrow, which will be a major test.

No. 17 Homewood-Flossmoor 75, Lincoln-Way East 60: I’m hearing raves about the Vikings so far this season.

Lyons 69, Morton 61: Very nice win for Lyons, I’m high on Morton this season.

Timothy Christian 57, St. Edward 25: There are too many teams I need to see and not enough nights of the season. It’s starting to stress me out. Ben VanderWal had another big game with 14 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Josh Harris had seven points and four assists and Ben Jones added nine points and four assists.

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A new era began on Friday in Richton Park. Rich East has closed and Rich South and Rich Central’s buildings are now the two campuses of Rich Township. Suddenly, three high school basketball teams have become one. 

Rich East, Rich South and Rich Central each had a proud basketball history.

South hosted the South Suburbs’ premier high school basketball event, the Big Dipper Holiday Tournament. NBA and Illinois star Kendall Gill is a Rich Central graduate and Rich East produced former Bull Craig Hodges and was once coached by Steve Fisher.

But a new era began on Friday in Richton Park. Rich East has closed and Rich South and Rich Central’s buildings are now the two campuses of Rich Township. Suddenly, three high school basketball teams have become one.

“Rich East has to trust Rich South and Rich South has to trust Rich Central,” Raptors senior Gary Clay said. “We are going to get there. We played against them for three years so it is just a process of getting everybody together and getting the chemistry together.”

Clay scored 20 points in Rich’s first-ever game, a 65-58 loss to No. 24 Kankakee.

Every team in the area is struggling after being off for 11 months and only having a week of practice before starting up games. But the challenge is unique at Rich. Raptors coach Cornelius Crossley, formerly the coach at Rich Central, has to mold together an entirely new team of former rivals.

“Yeah, it is challenging to bring three teams together,” Crossley said. “But I’m focused on trying to build a culture. That’s the big thing. We’ve got a month to really determine how we are going to move forward. Because we can’t go backwards.”

If not for COVID-19, Rich’s first game would have been a major event in the South Suburbs. Instead, there were no fans at all.

“It really put a damper on us,” Rich Township Athletic Director Matthew Shank said. “A lot of the things we had planned to bring our teams together just couldn’t happen. But the consolidation has been great. I’m a Rich East graduate and an employee of the district for almost 20 years. The experiences we are going to be able to offer our athletes now is something we wouldn’t have been able to do if we had remained separate.”

The Raptors (0-1, 0-1 Southland) fell in an early hole but fought back and led Kankakee (1-0, 1-0) by two at halftime. Kays senior Amarion Osbourne, a Vocational transfer, made three three-pointers in the first few minutes of the third quarter and that turned the tide permanently.

“I had to get on him at halftime,” Kankakee coach Chris Pickett said. “We rely on his high IQ and his playmaking and he just wasn’t attacking in the first half. Those threes got us going. If he and the other guys come with intensity for 32 minutes we can be as good as we’ve been the last three years.”

Osbourne and Willie Strickland each scored 14 for the Kays and Rashard Harris added 13 points and eight rebounds.

Rich is led by Clay and fellow seniors Devonta Blevins (12 points, seven rebounds) and Semaj Greer, who missed the game due to a family emergency.

Junior Jeremiah Dunklin scored the first basket in Rich history, although it may not be remembered as long as the first one that fans actually see in Rich South’s redone gym.

“You need your crowd, you need your student body,” Crossley said. “We are happy to be playing but we are missing the stuff that really energizes you.”

Watch the final minute of Kankakee at Rich:

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All the scores from around the area

Please send scores and corrections to [email protected]

Friday, February 12, 2021

BIG NORTHERN

Byron at Mendota, 7:00

Genoa-Kingston at Oregon, 7:00

Rock Falls at Dixon, 7:00

Rockford Lutheran at Rockford Christian, 7:00

Winnebago at North Boone, 7:00

CATHOLIC – CROSSOVER

DePaul at Montini, 2-28 PPD

Fenwick at De La Salle, 7:00

Leo at Providence, 7:00

Loyola at St. Joseph, PPD

Mount Carmel at Providence-St. Mel, 7:00

St. Laurence at St. Ignatius, 7:00

St. Rita at Marmion, PPD

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – NORTH

Deerfield at Maine East, 5:30

Highland Park at Niles North, CNL

Vernon Hills at Maine West, 5:30

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – SOUTH

Evanston at Niles West, 5:30

Glenbrook South at Maine South, 6:00

New Trier at Glenbrook North, 5:30

DU PAGE VALLEY

DeKalb at Naperville North, 7:00

Neuqua Valley at Naperville Central, 7:00

Waubonsie Valley at Metea Valley, 3-6 PPD

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC

Carmel at Marian Catholic, 7:00

Joliet Catholic at Notre Dame, 7:00

Marist at Marian Central, 7:00

Nazareth at St. Patrick, 7:00

St. Viator at Benet, 7:00

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Huntley, 7:00

Cary-Grove at Jacobs, 7:00

Crystal Lake Central at Hampshire, 7:00

Crystal Lake South at Dundee-Crown, 7:00

McHenry at Prairie Ridge, 7:00

ILLINOIS CENTRAL EIGHT

Herscher at Lisle, 7:00

Peotone at Coal City, 7:00

Reed-Custer at Streator, 6:45

Wilmington at Manteno, 7:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

LaSalle-Peru at Rochelle, 6:00

Morris at Kaneland, 6:00

Ottawa at Sycamore, 6:00

Plano at Sandwich, 6:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Harvard at Woodstock North, 7:30

Johnsburg at Marengo, 7:30

Richmond-Burton at Woodstock, 7:30

METRO SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Aurora Christian at Elmwood Park, 6:00

Chicago Christian at McNamara, 7:30

IC Catholic at Aurora Central, 7:30

St. Francis at Westmont, 7:30

Timothy Christian at St. Edward, 7:30

Wheaton Academy at Ridgewood, CNL

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Buffalo Grove at Prospect, PPD

Hersey at Elk Grove, PPD

Wheeling at Rolling Meadows, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – WEST

Fremd at Conant, 7:30

Hoffman Estates at Schaumburg, 7:30

Palatine at Barrington, 7:30

NORTHEASTERN ATHLETIC

Schaumburg Christian at Alden-Hebron, 7:30

RIVER VALLEY

Donovan at St. Anne, 7:00

Grace Christian at Gardner-So. Wilmington, 7:00

SANGAMON VALLEY

Clifton Central at Cissna Park, 7:00

Dwight at Iroquois West, 7:30

Paxton-Buckley-Loda at Momence, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Thornton Fr. North at Oak Lawn, 6:30

SOUTHLAND

Kankakee at Rich, 5:00

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – EAST

Joliet Central at Romeoville, 7:00

Plainfield East at Joliet West, 7:00

Plainfield South at Plainfield Central, 7:00

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – WEST

Plainfield North at Minooka, 7:00

West Aurora at Oswego, 7:00

Yorkville at Oswego East, 7:00

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – BLUE

Lincoln-Way East at Homewood-Flossmoor, 6:30

Sandburg at Lockport, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – RED

Andrew at Stagg, 6:30

Lincoln-Way West at Lincoln-Way Central, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Bradley-Bourbonnais at Bolingbrook, 6:45

TRI-COUNTY

Henry-Senachwine at Midland, 7:00

Putnam County at Seneca, 7:00

Roanoke-Benson at Marquette, 7:00

Woodland at Lowpoint-Washburn, 5:30

UPSTATE EIGHT

Glenbard East at Larkin, 7:30

Glenbard South at Bartlett, 7:30

South Elgin at Fenton, 7:30

West Chicago at Streamwood, 7:30

WEST SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Downers Grove North at Addison Trail, 7:00

Glenbard West at Downers Grove South, 7:00

Hinsdale Central at Hinsdale South, 7:00

Lyons at Morton, 7:00

Proviso West at Proviso East, 7:30

York at Willowbrook, 7:00

NON CONFERENCE

Buffalo Grove vs. Hersey, at Prospect, 7:30

Loyola at Glenbrook North, 7:30

LITTLE TEN TOURNAMENT

Serena at Indian Creek, 6:00

Newark at Somonauk, 6:00

---

Many schools livestream games on the NFHS Network, which often charges fans to watch. However, several local schools stream games on their own that are free to watch. Some schools do all the games, some just home games and some select games.

If your school streams games, please send a link to the channel or home page to [email protected]. Here’s a list of all the schools that have submitted links so far.

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These days, it might be hard to pinpoint one single thing that’s stressing you out. If you’re lucky enough to have found someone who is ready to ride out the tough times with you, why not tackle that stress together? If you’ve both been feeling a little tense and you want to relax together, we have compiled a list of the best spas, studios, and wellness centers to book a romantic couples massage in Chicago.

Massage Evolved

118 N Clinton St #205, Chicago IL 60661

Founded by Reiki master and clinical massage therapist Ruby Greenberg, Massage Evolved was named “one of Chicago’s top destinations for couple massage” in 2017 by Chicago Magazine. Options include Swedish, deep tissue, or Himalayan salt stone massage.

Be Well.

2251 W Irving Park Rd, Chicago IL 60618

This Asian wellness center on the north side offers therapeutic and romantic couples massages for 60 minutes and 90 minutes, and even includes dry and steam saunas for the relaxed, happy couple. Their name, “Be Well,” is a their “wish for you,” so make an appointment and be well!

Allyu Spa

600 W Chicago Ave, Chicago IL 60654

Located near River West, Allyu Spa— whose name is “the Quecha word for community”— offers a variety of services from which couples may choose, including couple massage therapy, hot stone massage, and an exfoliating sugar body polish with massage; additionally, Allyu has couples spa packages available.

Verde Holistic Wellness Studio

905 W 18th St, Chicago IL 60608

Licensed massage therapist Crystal Dorado started Verde in 2011, and the studio has been operating in Pilsen ever since. Though there are no specific couples massage packages at here, the studio offers a number of different types of massages, and interested couples can contact Verde directly about booking a couples service.

Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa

3210 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago IL 60657

1130 S Michigan Ave Suite B, Chicago IL 60605

This spa— with locations in Lakeview and South Loop— offers the best specialty massages for couples, including Swedish, hot stone, and Himalayan salt massages. Check out additional upgrades like the peppermint scalp massage or aromatherapy.

Couples Massage Chicago Featured Image by giuseppeblu from Pixabay

The post 5 Best Places to Get a Romantic Couples Massage in Chicago appeared first on UrbanMatter.

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But the comedy games continue online; plus Raven announces a new-play development commission.

When venerable comedy institutions in Chicago get shout-outs, ComedySportz tends not to top the list, not with Second City and the now-gone iO hogging so many of the famous alums. As Reader critic Jack Helbig wrote back in 2003, “Improv purists tend to put ComedySportz at the bottom of the food chain”—probably because of their crowd-pleasing emphasis on fast-paced competitive games, à la Whose Line Is It Anyway.…Read More

From a call center in India to the socially distant confines of video chat, he’s starred in television shows that have defined an era.

The cast of the NBC show Connecting . . .…Read More

Todd Blanken is the second person to plead guilty since then-President Donald Trump pardoned Casey Urlacher, the Mettawa mayor also charged in the case who is now running for reelection.

For the second time since then-President Donald Trump pardoned Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher, one of Urlacher’s co-defendants in a federal sports gambling case has pleaded guilty to a gambling conspiracy and faces time behind bars.

Meanwhile, Lake County officials say Urlacher has filed to run as a write-in candidate for another term as mayor of the northern suburb. He is the brother of Chicago Bears great Brian Urlacher.

Todd Blanken, 44, pleaded guilty during a brief electronic hearing Friday before U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall, who told him he would likely face six months to a year behind bars. Blanken’s sentencing has been set for May 13.

A 28-page indictment filed in February 2020 accused Blanken of working for Vincent “Uncle Mick” DelGiudice as an agent in the sports bookmaking business DelGiudice ran from 2016 to 2019 in Chicago, Lemont, Frankfort, Orland Park and Woodridge. DelGiudice pleaded guilty in the case Feb. 2.

The indictment alleged that Blanken helped DelGiudice collect and pay cash to gamblers. Blanken’s plea agreement says the two shared winnings and losses “on a 10 to 50% basis.” On Dec. 11, 2018, DelGiudice told Blanken he needed to collect a “dime” — or $1,000 — from a gambler known as “Rock,” according to the plea agreement. A few days later, it said DelGiudice told Blanken he owed $1,880, and Blanken told DelGiudice he would be collecting from “another gambler on Wells Street.”

On Jan. 6, 2019, Blanken complained to DelGiudice about losing money on “parlays” and “teasers,” according to the plea agreement. It said DelGiudice told Blanken he had more than 1,000 gamblers and complained that he had only made $100,000 from them. They also discussed a gambler who lost $22,000 that week, according to the document.

DelGiudice’s father, Eugene “Geno” DelGiudice, also pleaded guilty in July to conspiring to conduct an illegal gambling business. In October, Kendall gave Eugene DelGiudice three months of home detention.

She also recently put another defendant in the case, Chicago Police Officer Nicholas Stella, in jail after prosecutors said Stella “violently assaulted his girlfriend” and argued he should be locked up pending trial.

Meanwhile, Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Kinney this month linked the DelGiudice case to the prosecution of Gregory Paloian, a man with purported mob ties who pleaded guilty last month to running an illegal sports gambling operation. Kinney has said the evidence in both cases include several secret recordings.

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Todd Blanken is the second person to plead guilty since then-President Donald Trump pardoned Casey Urlacher, the Mettawa mayor also charged in the case who is now running for reelection.

For the second time since then-President Donald Trump pardoned Mettawa Mayor Casey Urlacher, one of Urlacher’s co-defendants in a federal sports gambling case has pleaded guilty to a gambling conspiracy and faces time behind bars.

Meanwhile, Lake County officials say Urlacher has filed to run as a write-in candidate for another term as mayor of the northern suburb. He is the brother of Chicago Bears great Brian Urlacher.

Todd Blanken, 44, pleaded guilty during a brief electronic hearing Friday before U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall, who told him he would likely face six months to a year behind bars. Blanken’s sentencing has been set for May 13.

A 28-page indictment filed in February 2020 accused Blanken of working for Vincent “Uncle Mick” DelGiudice as an agent in the sports bookmaking business DelGiudice ran from 2016 to 2019 in Chicago, Lemont, Frankfort, Orland Park and Woodridge. DelGiudice pleaded guilty in the case Feb. 2.

The indictment alleged that Blanken helped DelGiudice collect and pay cash to gamblers. It said DelGiudice told Blanken by phone on Jan. 6, 2019, that he had 1,006 “customers” and had won $100,000. Five days later, it said Blanken sent multiple text messages to a gambler and set up a meeting to collect a $1,500 payment.

DelGiudice’s father, Eugene “Geno” DelGiudice, also pleaded guilty in July to conspiring to conduct an illegal gambling business. In October, Kendall gave Eugene DelGiudice three months of home detention.

She also recently put another defendant in the case, Chicago Police Officer Nicholas Stella, in jail after prosecutors said Stella “violently assaulted his girlfriend” and argued he should be locked up pending trial.

Meanwhile, Assistant U.S. Attorney Terry Kinney this month linked the DelGiudice case to the prosecution of Gregory Paloian, a man with purported mob ties who pleaded guilty last month to running an illegal sports gambling operation. Kinney has said the evidence in both cases include several secret recordings.

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Boudoir photographers get creative during COVID.

Boudoir photographer Samantha Eppel’s shoot this past October was an intimate affair: just her client, her client’s friend, and a dozen North Shore triathletes.…Read More