This donated money will help the Arc of Monroe County in their In the Name of Love Capital Campaign.  This campaign is being used to take the old day program building and expand it into three brand new buildings all connected by pedestrian walk ways.

These three buildings will form the James V.C. and Anita Lambert Enrichment Campus and feature a behavioral services, clinical, and administration building giving 60 men and women ample, appropriate, and accessible space.

The Arc of Monroe County has helped over 3,500 individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities and their families for over 50 years and have 40 locations around Monroe County. For more information on the Arc of Monroe, visit www.arcmonroe.org.

Reserved seat tickets for this Saturday’s RazorSharks game are $10 each and are available at the Blue Cross Arena Box office, which is open from 11am-3pm on non-event days and open until the end of the first intermission on event days. The box office can be reached at (585) 758-5300. For more information on the Rochester RazorSharks please visist www.RazorSharks.com.

The two teams played in Bloomington last Thursday. The Drive won that game 125-81. It started out with both teams trying to be defensively responsible but the Drive were able to step on the gas and take over. Perry Petty had a triple-double in the game with 19 points, 18 rebounds, and 11 assists.

Since that game the Drive defeated the Predators 112-93 at Sauk Valley on Saturday night. In the first, second, and fourth quarters the two teams almost matched each other’s point totals. The third quarter was the game changer for the Drive as they scored 35 points to Sauk Valley’s 11. Rodney Edgerson had 31 points while Perry Petty stayed hot with 28 points.

The Muscle have played twice since last week’s meeting with the Drive last Thursday. On Sunday the Muscle beat the Indiana Diesels 128-102 at Indiana. Chicago had three players with double doubles in the game: Marcel Anderson, Darius Grant, and Rico Hill.

On Monday the Muscle were at home against the St. Louis Phoenix. Chicago won 128-118. Darius Grand scored 30 points with 10 rebounds for a double-double. Marcel Anderson scored 28 points in the game.

After the two straight with Chicago, the Drive continue the road trip to St. Louis to take on the Phoenix. Central Illinois is 3-0 against St. Louis this season. The game is the fourth of five between the two teams this year. For more on the Central Illinois Drive, visit www.drivehoops.com and visit the Premier Basketball League at www.thepbl.com. All games can be heard on WJBC Online.

“When I got the ball, I wanted to take what the defense gave me,” said Giddings. “I threw a pump fake, took a dribble and let it go. Thankfully, I made it.”

Giddings finished the game with 16 points and six rebounds off the bench, but faced some trouble when he picked up his fourth foul with five minutes left in the close game, but he did not let it bother him.

“With this team, anyone can get a chance to prove his worth on any day,” said RazorSharks Head Coach Rod Baker. “Today was Jarhon’s day and he did go out and prove his worth.”

Giddings sank that jumper with 40 seconds left in the game and the shot clock nearly ending to give the RazorSharks a six point lead. After Dayton made one of two free throws on the other end, Giddings was fouled and made both of his, giving the RazorSharks a seven point lead and putting the game away.

The RazorSharks used a big second quarter to take a lead, but the Air Strikers kept chipping back and never went away.

“We are just so familiar with each other that they are going to fight,” said Tasheed Carr, speaking about the number of times the RazorSharks and Air Strikers have met. “We just need to learn how to put the foot on the pedal when we get a lead, which is the last step we need to take in becoming a great team.” Carr finished with 15 points, four rebounds, and three assists.

These two teams have met twice in the last four days, with each getting a home game. The RazorSharks also played one more on the road, making it three games in four days for Rochester, with one being a travel day.

“It’s a little stressful and you really need to be conditioned for a stretch like that,” said Aaron Williams, who finished with nine points and 12 rebounds. “But you have to go out and give it your best, and we did.”

Other offensive leaders for the RazorSharks include Jamaal Davis, who had a team high 18 points to go with six rebounds, and Johnny Mayhane, who continues to improve with 16 points on the day. Jerice Crouch also added 11 points and Todd McCoy finished with eight points, six rebounds, and five assists.

Leading the way for the Air Strikers was Brandon Russ, who had a game-high 23 points to go along with his nine rebounds. Bo Harris completed a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Mark Gomillia and Aaron Perry both finished with 10 points.

This win increases the RazorSharks lead over the Air Strikers, as Rochester improves to 11-1, while the Air Strikers fall to 4-6 on the year.

Chicago will play the Central Illinois Drive twice this week with the first matchup Thursday February 23 at Harper College in Palatine at 7:05pm followed by a game with the Drive in the Wisconsin Dells at 5pm Saturday February 25.

Monday’s win for the Muscle moves them into a tie for second in the Central Conference with Sauk Valley at 6-4, while Central Illinois remains undefeated.

Sauk Valley started the game in command, taking a ten point advantage into halftime. Sharp shooting and timely defense gave them a 75-59 lead, as it looked like the Predators would coast to a victory. Quite the opposite happened. The Phoenix went on a 10-0 run late in the third and early in the fourth quarter to get within 6, and then clamped down defensively. They outscored the Predators 31-15 in the final frame, using an effective full court press to bewilder their opposition. Kennard Davis had a team high 15 points, and Terry Evans and Corey Hill each added 14. Johnnie Cooper grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the team. Herman Favors scored 17 points to pace Sauk Valley, and Shelton Jackson added 16 points and 11 rebounds off the bench

St. Louis concludes their three game swing tomorrow on the road as they face the Chicago Muscle. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at Palatine High School, located in the northwest suburbs of Chicago.

The Muscle led a tightly contested first quarter 27-24. The halftime showed Chicago pulling ahead 62-51. The lead increased to 20 at 98-78 after three periods. Despite a couple of runs by the Diesels, the Muscle held on for a 128-102 victory.

Chicago was led in scoring by Casey Love with 27 points. Marcel Anderson added 24 points and 10 assists, and Darius Gant had 21 points and 21 rebounds.

The Diesels were led in scoring by Keith Radcliff with 27 points. Derek Huffman added 17, and Billy Pettiford had nine points and 14 rebounds.

The Steamers took a 64-60 lead into intermission led by Kyle Robbins 8 for 8 performance in the first half.  Robbins finished 8 out of 9 from the floor and 16 points overall.

The Air Strikers came out firing in the second half with the hot hand of Bo Harris who connected for 3 of 4 three pointers and Avery Smith’s break away lay ups early in the second  half.  Harris finished with 28 points and 12 rebounds for the game and Smith a game high 31 points and a team high 7 assists.  Dayton outscored Scranton Wilkes Barre 40-27 in the 3^rd period.

The Steamers made a late effort on when Vinny Simpson connected with a Tyler Bullock alley hoop dunk mid-way thru the 4^th. Simpson finished with 20 points and a game high 14 assists and Bullock with 17 points.  Rob Robinson continued his double double streak finishing with a team high 23 points and 11 rebounds and Darrion Griffon  contributed with 17 points and 7 rebounds respectively.

The Scranton Wilkes Barre Steamers will now travel to Dayton Wednesday to take on the Air Strikers at 7:05

When asked if this team can win a championship this season, Drive coach AJ Guyton said that there were two big tests coming up: the defensive style of the Chicago Muscle and the offense of the Sauk Valley Predators. The Predators are one of the few teams that have been able to go basket for basket with the Drive and even threatened to break their unbeaten streak. Every game with Sauk Valley will be a battle of wills. Both teams will be tested in all areas of the game.

As for the defensive style of the Chicago Muscle, the Drive defeated them 125-81 on Thursday night. Perry Petty was the story with a triple-double. He had 19 points, 18 rebounds, and 11 assists. Todd Peterson had 17 points and 5 three-pointers. The game actually started with a somewhat defensive pace. But the Drive kicked into high gear and ran away with it.

The Predators are coming off a 129-111 win over the Indiana Diesels last Sunday at home. Desmond Holloway had 27 points in the game and leads the team with 27.11 points per game. Before they played the Drive this season, the Predators were 3-0, but have gone 3-3 since.

The Drive are off until next Thursday when they play at the Chicago Muscle at 7:05 pm. The game is the third of five between the two teams. For more on the Central Illinois Drive, visit www.drivehoops.com and visit the Premier Basketball League at www.thepbl.com. All games can be heard on WJBC Online.