Begeman resigns after highly successful 15-year run as Unity girls basketball coach

Unity girls basketball coach Brad Begeman, right, led the Mustangs to 273 victories and five regional titles over 15 seasons. | Matt Schuckman photo

MENDON, Ill. — Brad Begeman hit pause before he hit send. At the end of last week, Begeman informed the Unity School District’s administration he planned to resign as the varsity girls basketball coach. Sunday night, following his team’s end-of-the-season banquet, Begeman told his players of his decision. All that was left was to email…

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Havana speeds up Unity girls to pull off upset in Class 1A regional championship game

Kyra Carothers scored 16 points for Unity in Thursday night's Class 1A regional championship game at Havana. | File photo by David Adam

HAVANA, Ill. — The style the Unity girls basketball team prefers to play was a mirror image of how they were defended on Thursday. “We speed people up a lot, and tonight, we got sped up,” Mustangs coach Brad Begeman said. Havana, ranked No. 9 in the final Associated Press Class 1A poll, forced 15…

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Blazing start helps top-seeded Unity claim Lady Tiger Classic for first time in school history

Unity's Sophia Shaffer, left, drives on Brown County's Ashlee Markert during the championship game of the Beardstown Lady Tiger Classic on Thursday night in Beardstown, Ill. | David Adam photo

BEARDSTOWN, Ill. — Unity’s Kyra Carothers would have rather been anywhere else this week than the Beardstown Lady Tiger Classic. “If I’m really honest with you, I dread this tournament,” she said. “It’s right after Christmas, and I just I want my break and blah, blah, blah.” Carothers also knows how much Unity coach Brad…

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Spotting top-ranked Brimfield 14-point lead on its home court too much for Unity girls to overcome

Unity's Kyra Carothers goes between Brimfield's Ellie Doe, left, and Sophie Bedell during Thursday night's Class 1A girls basketball sectional championship game at Brimfield High School. Carothers finished with 15 points in the game. | David Adam

BRIMFIELD, Ill. — Unity girls basketball coach Brad Begeman knew his team needed to play well early to prove it belonged on the same court as No. 1-ranked Brimfield and take the home crowd out of the game. The first eight minutes, however, couldn’t have gone any worse. Brimfield forced No. 7 Unity into nine…

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Unity girls pick, roll into sectional championship where No. 1 Brimfield awaits

Unity's Kylee Barry goes up for a shot during Tuesday night's Class 1A sectional semifinal game at Brimfield. Defending the play for Elmwood are Ainsley Faulkner, left, and Liv Meyers. | David Adam

BRIMFIELD, Ill. — Unity’s masterful execution of one of basketball’s simplest plays proved to be too much for Elmwood in the Class 1A girls sectional at Brimfield High School. The Mustangs used the pick-and-roll to perfection in a 49-29 victory on Tuesday night and advanced to the sectional championship game on Thursday against the host…

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Schuckman: Knox, Begeman linked by free throws and unwavering support and belief they both received in crunch time

From left to right, Unity assistant coach Kevin Conry and the Mustangs' Hayden Frankel, Delanee Schulte, Brooklyn Stiefel and Kylee Barry watch as Caroline Knox makes the first of two free throws with 3.7 seconds remaining in regulation Thursday night in the 46-45 victory over Brown County. Matt Schuckman photo

CAMP POINT, Ill. — Brad Begeman calls it his Al Bundy moment. Caroline Knox doesn’t know who Al Bundy is. Yet, the Unity girls basketball coach and his senior guard are forever linked by the memory of the clutch free throws they made in the same gym at the same basket sitting on the same…

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