LASALLE — Senior members of the Rochelle boys basketball team haven’t defeated the Sterling Golden Warriors since entering high school roughly four years ago. The Hubs will have their chance to exact the ultimate revenge when they square off against the Golden Warriors in the semifinal round of the IHSA 3A Sterling Regional next Wednesday at 7 p.m.

Rochelle closed out its regular season and conference schedule Friday night, topping the 80-point mark for the second straight game in an 82-70 victory over LaSalle-Peru. Garrett Burdin and Landan Martin each totaled 24 points for the Hubs (19-11, 9-5 Interstate 8), who enter regionals as the No. 5 seed having won 15 of their last 17 games.

“I think the boys are really excited to play Sterling in their home gym,” head coach Tim Thompson said. “They’re due for a win against them and they’re excited about the matchup… Not only do we have to shoot the ball well, but we have to do the little things like boxing out on defense and getting offensive rebounds. We need to make sure we’re diving on the floor for loose balls, taking charges and limiting them to one-and-out possessions.”

The Hubs closed Friday’s first quarter against L-P on a 10-1 run, taking a 20-10 lead into the second quarter after three players including seniors Austin Brown, Ben Hickey and the junior guard Burdin knocked down 3-pointers. Leading 39-27 entering the third quarter, Rochelle continued to fire from beyond the arc, with sophomore Ryan Simmons hitting back-to-back corner triples to extend the advantage. Simmons scored 12 points on four 3-pointers Friday.

“Ryan’s come so far this season,” Thompson said. “There were times earlier in the season where he’d shoot the ball once and not shoot again for the remainder of the game. His confidence is growing, and he was huge for us tonight with those four 3-pointers. He’s shooting with confidence, and he’s going to play a big role because the teams that scout us will probably play him as our fourth or fifth option, and that’s dangerous because he can knock down shots.”

Rochelle led by as many as 24 points in the second half before LaSalle-Peru’s Drake Weber caught fire from the 3-point line, hitting four triples over the third and fourth quarters and ending the game with a team-high 18 points. The Hubs maintained a 63-50 lead entering the fourth quarter, but the Cavaliers came within five points with less than two minutes to play.

Despite Brown and senior Seth Gould fouling out of the game, Rochelle managed to close the victory out at the line, with Burdin sinking three free throws in the final seconds. The winner of the regional semifinal game Wednesday night will advance and play for the title Friday night, likely against No. 2 seed Geneseo, another former Northern Illinois Big 12 rival for the Hubs.

“I think our shooting is the X-factor,” Thompson said. “We’re going to have to shoot like we did against Ottawa, and we’re also going to need some offense inside.”