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Titans not deceived by sectional opponent Tremont's .500 record
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At first glance, it would appear the Monmouth-Roseville boys' basketball team is set up for a big win tonight and a spot in Friday's Class 2A Farmington Sectional championship game. Tremont, the Titans' opponent in tonight's 7:30 p.m. semifinal game, comes in with an unassuming 14-14 record and its first regional championship in five years, compared to Monmouth-Roseville's 24-4 mark, West Central North co-championship and its second straight 2A regional crown. However, Mon-Rose coach Chuck Grant has been in this business long enough to look beneath the surface. What he sees in the Turks is a team that has won five of its last six games. "Our guys are seasoned enough to know they have to go in and play well to win," said Grant, whose club rides a 14-game winning streak down to Farmington High School. "You've got to be confident, and we feel very confident. At the same time, we still respect Tremont. They'll have a lot of energy coming into (tonight's) game." That keeps any talk of a sectional championship game return on the back burner — not to mention talk of a rematch with either fellow WCC North co-champ Rockridge, which split two meetings with the Titans; or Minonk Fieldcrest, which bested Mon-Rose in double overtime in last year's sectional finals at Princeton. "The kids have talked a bit about playing Rockridge again, and also a rematch with Fieldcrest, but this team has done a good job of keeping the blinders on and taking care of the business at hand," said Grant. "A lot of these guys played in the sectional finals last year, and we've played at Quincy and before big houses at Rockridge and at home, so the 'awe' factor won't be there." Senior guards Connor Gillen and Liam Merritt and junior forward Dalton Hottle have stepped up their contributions down the stretch to augment the Titans' big two of junior point guard Martel Hunter and forward Trayvon Smith. All five starters tallied between eight and 10 points in Mon-Rose's 62-41 regional-final win over Knoxville. Rockets equally focused: Likewise, Rockridge (23-4) isn't thinking about a possible Monmouth-Roseville rematch as it follows up its first regional title in a decade with Wednesday night's 7:30 semifinal against Fieldcrest (24-5). Led by senior guard Brady Sanders, the Heart of Illinois Conference champion Knights won the program's first sectional crown last season and are looking to take the next step beyond that. The Rockets, meantime, hope to match what Fieldcrest did in 2012 and hoist their first sectional trophy. "You can't ever do that, especially when you get to this stage of the tourney," said Rockridge coach Toby Whiteman. "(When) teams start looking ahead to what could possibly come about for them, that's when you're going to get tripped up. We can't do that. We've got to take care of business on Wednesday against a very good Fieldcrest team. "We're at that stage where you're not here if you're not a good team. We're pleased with where we're at, but we'll have our hands full against Fieldcrest." 
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Today is Thursday, May 23, the 143rd day of 2013. There are 222 days left in the year.
1863 — 150 years ago: Messrs. J. and M. Rosenfield have moved their leather and hidestore to the building formerly occupied by Temple Bufords's store. They buy and sellhides, pelts, furs, wool, beeswax, lard, tallow, etc.
1888 -- 125 years ago: The Rock Island Lumber Company has recovered 5,000 of the8,000 logs that were carried away by the Mississippi River flood last week.
1913 -- 100 years ago: John J. Ullemeyer has been awarded the contract to furnish RockIsland fire and police department members with uniforms, at the city's expense.
1938 -- 75 years ago: Work on Aledo's new $38,000 swimming pool was started thismorning at South Park when ground for the pool was broken by Mayor John W. Murphy.
1963 -- 50 years ago: Students and teacher at Moline High School called today "MissLeona Day" day at the school in honor of the government teacher who retires at theend of the school term. Although she's been teaching for 43 years at the school, Miss Dayfound a new way of arriving at the school this morning. At 7:30 a.m., a police squad carpulled up in front of Miss Day's home and escorted her to school. A caravan of students' cars joined the procession along the way.
1988 -- 25 years ago: Barbecue cooking and riverfront antics are planned for Discover the
River Day Saturday in Leach Park, Bettendorf. A 5K run, wind surfing, a canoe race, hogcalling and more will round out the day under the Interstate 74 bridge.
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