1968-69 BOYS BASKETBALL TEAM

As the 1968-1969 basketball season approached, Taylorville boys basketball had a new head coach, Taylorville native, Don Williams.   Williams a 1953 graduate of Taylorville High School had previously been an assistant coach at high schools in Dubuque, Rockford (under Dolph Stanley) and Pekin where he assisted Dawdy Hawkins.   This being his first head coaching position, Williams inherited a team that was returning four seniors from a team that went 11-13 in 1968. 

The returning seniors were led by 6’5“ Mark Stephenson who brought an 18.5 point average with him.  Seniors joining Stephenson, were 6’7” Bob Bonn,  6’1” Willie Walker, and guard, 5’8” Wayne Orr.  Joining these returning starters were juniors Andy Lovekamp, and Chuck Martin.  Filling out the roster were juniors Dick Adams, Bob Fleming, Tom James, John Coady, Jim Hurtte and sophomore, Mike Durbin.

The season opened with a strong showing against Springfield High School.  Led by junior Chuck Martin’s 23 points, the Tornadoes dropped the game 74-72, as Springfield hit the winning shot with only two seconds remaining in the game.  Taylorville did pick up their first win the following Friday night as they topped Vandalia in their Mid-State Conference opener 54-43.

After a loss to Lanphier, the Tornadoes made a statement to the rest of the Conference by beating Shelbyville, Effingham and Litchfield in successive games.  With senior Mark Stephenson coming back from a flu illness, Chuck Martin picked up the scoring with 29, 20 and 11 in the three games.  Taylorville was 4-0 in the conference following the wins,

The Tornadoes entered the Pekin Holiday Tournament with moment after three wins to extend their over-all record to 4-2.  Falling to Lincoln 58-43 in the first round, Mark Stephenson stepped up and hit a buzzer beater to top Libertyville 54-52.   The remainder of the tournament saw Taylorville fall to Ottawa and Joliet Central in the consolation bracket.

Returning to regular action in the New Year, the Tornadoes travelled west to play the number five ranked Quincy Blue Devils.  Bob Bonn and Andy Lovekamp led a valiant fourth quarter charge, but the Tornadoes fell short, losing 58-53.

Getting back to conference play, the Tornadoes would take their 4-0 conference record to Greenville, Hillsboro and Pana.  With four players scoring in double digits, Taylorville bested the Comets 65-56.  They then downed Hillsboro 58-56 and closed the week with a 39-32 victory over the Pana Panthers 

The Taylorville Mid-year Classic was next for William’s team and they responded by defeating Bridgeport 

80-55 in the opener and claimed the championship with a 62-39 win over Pontiac.

With their overall record at 11-6,and 7-0 in the conference,  the Tornadoes had seven of their next eight games against conference opponents.   Vandalia was the first to fall as Mark Stephenson scored six of his 12 points in 3 overtimes to lead the Tornadoes to a 56-54 victory.

A non-conference game against Decatur Eisenhower broke the Taylorville six game winning streak with a 63-46 loss to the Panthers.

With the Mid-State Conference Championship within site, the Tornadoes began a six game march through conference foes.  Litchfield fell 68-54 as Chuck Martin led the scoring with 19.   The following night found Bob Bonn matching Martin’s 19 points in a win over Shelbyville. Martin, Stephenson and Lovekamp, all scored double figures to clinch at least a tie for the conference title and 11 consecutive conference wins, as the Tornadoes turned back the Effingham Hearts 70-52.

Mark Stephenson led the Tornadoes to winning the conference outright, by scoring 25 points in a victory over Hillsboro.  Only Greenville and Pana stood in the way of an undefeated conference Championship.  Again, Stephenson scoring 30 points and Martin with 24, the Tornadoes stretched their conference streak to 13.

The final conference game was played at Pana.  The Tornadoes were looking for their first undefeated conference championship since 1952 when Coach Don Williams was a player for Taylorville.   But it was not to be.  The Panthers outscored the Tornadoes in three of the four quarters and handed Taylorville their only conference loss 69-57.

Seeded number one in the Rochester Regional with a 16-7 record, Taylorville opened up with  a 78-53 win over Rochester with Stephenson, Bonn, Martin and Lovekamp all scoring double figures.  Stonington was the next to fall, as Stephenson led all scorers with 26 points in a 61-55 win.   Bob Bonn scored 28 and the Tornadoes won The Regional Title game against Macon and advanced to the Decatur Sectional to meet Lincoln in the opener.

Lincoln proved too good in the opening Sectional game, defeating Taylorville 65-53. The Tornadoes ended their season as Mid-State Conference Champions, Taylorville Mid-Winter Tournament Champions and IHSA Regional Champions with an overall record of 19-8.

Bob Bonn was selected as team MVP, with Mark Stephenson being chosen as team Captain for the second year, and was the team’s leading scorer with 433 points.  Stephenson also ended his career with  1261 total points, second all-time only to Bill Ridley.