Muddy River Showcase to bring back Illinois vs. Missouri all-star basketball games

QUINCY — Brad Hoyt remembers fondly going head-to-head with players from the opposite side of the Mississippi River in a summer all-star basketball game while creating long-lasting relationships with rivals he played against during the regular season.

“There are stories from that game that we still share,” Hoyt said.

And it’s been almost 30 years since that happened.

The current athletic director and men’s basketball coach at John Wood Community College, Hoyt participated in the McDonald’s/Herald-Whig Classic after graduating from Quincy Notre Dame in 1993. Now he’s helping revive the tradition of the summer all-star game with JWCC set to be the host site for a new installment of the cross-river rivalry.

Event organizers announced Thursday morning plans for the Muddy River Showcase, which will take place at JWCC’s Student Activity Center on June 11.

The two-game showcase will feature 40 of the region’s top senior basketball players with 10-player teams for both boys and girls in an Illinois vs. Missouri format. The girls game is scheduled to tip at 3 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 5 p.m.

“You get into June and it’s your final area high school event,” Hoyt said. “It’s been a cool thing to watch, a cool thing to be a part of and it will be a really cool thing to continue to host.”

The McDonald’s/Herald-Whig Classic ran for 37 years, starting in 1983 with only a girls game and adding the boys contest a year later. Like most events during the summer of 2020, the Classic fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic. The event did not return in 2021.

“I know for the two years there wasn’t a game we had kids at Clark County who were really disappointed they didn’t get to play in such a game,” said Adam Rung, the Monroe City girls basketball who spent the previous 10 seasons as the boys coach at Clark County.

“They had watched teammates get to play and they had watched other kids in the area get to play. They didn’t get that opportunity. It’s something they missed out on. So the return of a summer all-star game is a great thing.”

Tickets will be $10 for the event and will go on sale May 1. All seats will be general admission. More information about ticket sales will be provided at a later date.

“As a player and a coach and a basketball fan, that all-star game was one I always looked forward to with the Illinois vs. Missouri competition,” said Brad Tomhave, the boys basketball coach at Pittsfield who played in the McDonald’s/Herald-Whig Classic in 1994.

“The players want to represent Illinois to the best of their ability and what this area of basketball in Illinois has stood for for a long time. It’s a pride game. It wasn’t a typical all-star game. Guys got after it. Guys defended. Guys took it seriously. I expect to see the same thing with this game.”

Rosters for both games are expected to be announced in April, according to a press release sent by event organizers Thursday morning.

“I think this game is really important, and I think the kids really look forward to it,” Rung said. “With all of the really good local coverage we get, they see what the kids in Illinois and Missouri do and what the opposite state does. A lot of times, they don’t get to play each other.

“Kids like to compete and they like to see how they stack up against the best players in the area. This provides that opportunity.”