Hononegah

Hononegah moves on with a thrilling 66-65 win over Rockford Auburn

Senior Carter Freedlund, “We went through stretches of turnovers but fought back, and we continued to play hard and move on.”

Harold Bone

Feb 27, 2025 — 3 min read

evanking_photo on Instagram captures the perfect shot of Big Shot Brayden Olson hitting the go-ahead 3-pointer for Hononegah in their 4A IHSA Boys basketball regional semifinal against Rockford Auburn. Hononegah got the victory 66-65. Machesany Park, IL Harlem High School (Arthur W Anderson Athletic Facility)

Machesney Park, IL, Harlem High School, Wednesday February 25, 2025:

It took double overtime, but Hononegah was able to move on with a 66-65 thrilling win over Rockford Auburn in an IHSA 4A March Madness regional semifinal.

Senior Brayden Olson had 21 points to lead the way for Hononegah. Olson also played the most significant role in Wednesday’s regional semifinal. Somehow, in the 2nd overtime, Brayden was able to get open, rise, and splash down a 3-pointer that gave Hononegah a 66-65 lead over Rockford Auburn with 4.8 seconds on the clock. During the following timeout from Rockford Auburn, the 3-man officiating crew put 7.3 on the game clock. The Indians played great defense and forced an errant pass that went out of bounds. Hononegah then threw the ball inbounds, which was stolen by Rockford Auburn, who took a last-second 3-quarter court desperation shot that was short and to the right. The final buzzer went off, and the Hononegah team celebrated the win.

The fans were giving high-fives and asking when the last time Hononegah hit this bit of a shot in the playoffs. From what I could garner from the Indian Tribe around me, nobody could put a bigger one in front of this shot.

So many factors were at work against Hononegah Wednesday night. Firstly, the crowd was heavily weighted toward the Knights. Secondly, Oba Fasalojo fouled out with 25 seconds left in regulation. Finally, Hononegah was down by 4 points with just 30 seconds left on the 2nd overtime clock. In the end, none of it mattered. Hononegah found a way to win and move on to face 1 seed Dekalb Friday night, February 28, 2025, at 6 p.m. from Harlem High School. Please arrive early as seats fill fast, and they expect a packed Arthur W Anderson Athletic Facility.

Post-game, I asked Hononegah head coach Tom Schmidt how it felt to get the win. Before the game, Coach Schmidt had told his team, “This is what the postseason is about. Play as hard as you can, have fun, and enjoy it. We talk about all the Xs and Os, scouting reports, and all that stuff, but ultimately, they will do that because we discussed it enough. It’s just about playing as hard as possible and having fun with it. We talk about the ups and downs of the games; maybe we could have hung our heads, but we emphasize moving on to the next play, and we get through that. I thought we did a great job moving on to the next play through the 1st and 2nd overtime.

I also caught up with senior Carter Freedlund and asked him about his play down low with key rebounds and tips for his team, plus 12 big points (4 coming in the overtimes) for the Indians. He focuses on the direction of the shot and tries to get on the other side of the rim if it is off. He echoed coach Schmidt's statement about moving on despite mistakes and turnovers. “We went through stretches of turnovers but fought back, and we continued to play hard and move on.”

Thank you to evanking_photo on Instagram for the image used in the story. Check out the evanking_photo on Instagram for more high-quality photos of Hononegah sports.