ROCKFORD, ILL. - The Madison College men's basketball team picked up a key North Central Community College Conference and Region IV win on Wednesday, erasing a nine-point halftime deficit to beat Rock Valley College 78-72 away from home. Jason Williams and Davion Washington netted 21 and 20 points, respectively, to guide the WolfPack to their first win over the Golden Eagles since 2018 and their first win in Rockford in three years. Madison College still trails the all-time series with RVC by a 33-17 count.

An early 9-0 run pushed Rock Valley College (15-10, 6-3) out to an 11-2 lead, which eventually grew to as high as 17 points with just under eight minutes to remaining in the half. The WolfPack responded with eight consecutive points and eventually went to the locker room trailing 41-32. After a RVC three started the second half, Madison College used a Williams bucket inside to ignite a 15-0 surge the ended with five straight points from Washington to tie the game and eventually put the visitors ahead 47-44. Another quick 7-0 swing extended the advantage to eight points, and while the differential eventually reached 12 with 6:44 to play, the 'Pack defensively had held the Golden Eagles to 5 for 19 shooting and forced five turnovers over 13 minutes of action. Madison College finished off the win from the free throw line, converting 6 of 7 attempts in the final 63 seconds.

For the second straight game - and fourth time this season - Williams reached the 20-point plateau. The 6'5" freshman forward went 8 for 15 overall and made 5 of 7 free throws, to go along with a team-best eight rebounds and two blocks.

Washington, a 6'2" second year guard from Madison East High School, was 8 for 12 on the day with three 3-pointers and a free throw as he also recorded his fourth game with at least 20 points. He added a team-leading five assists to a stat line that included three rebounds and two steals.

Freshman shooting guard Marcus Kartes was the only other double-digit scorer, using two 3-pointers in an overall 3-5 night and two free throws to reach ten points. Two others had nine points for the WolfPack, which shot 63% in the second half and finished with its second-best percentage in a game this season at 53.7%.

The WolfPack held a narrow 38-34 edge in points in the paint and were plus-three in second chance scoring. Rock Valley College owned a 15-9 differential in points off turnovers.

Up Next:

Madison College (11-11, 4-5) will bring a two-game win streak back to H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium and open a two-game homestand on Saturday, February 1 against N4C foe Harper College (). The WolfPack downed the Hawks by a 98-59 score on January 8, marking their fourth consecutive win in the series and pushing the all-time tally to 15-10 in favor of the 'Pack. Game time is set for 3:00 p.m.

Saturday will also mark a special afternoon inside H. Douglas Redsten Gymnasium, as the WolfPack women's and men's basketball teams will be coming together to celebrate Play4Kay Pink Day to help fight breast cancer and Black History Month. 

All home Madison College men's basketball games can be streamed live at MadisonCollege.tv.

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