See who's in the lead now: Latest NIC-10, Big Northern Rockford area basketball standings

Defending champion Auburn got back in the NIC-10 boys basketball race this week, edging East by a point, 54-53, after trailing by six at the end of three quarters and then holding Boylan to 0-for-12 shooting at the end of the third quarter and eventually leading by as much as 22 in a 74-65 win before a sold-out crowd at Auburn. Auburn is now tied with Guilford in the loss column, a half-game out of first place, with Boylan 1 1/2 games back and East two out.

It should be a relatively quiet week this week. Boylan at Guilford on Feb. 8, Boylan at East on Feb. 11 and Guilford at Auburn on Feb. 15 should be the games that decide the title.

Rockford Christian (22-1, 3-0) and Rockford Lutheran (15-8, 3-0) remain tied atop the Big Northern. Rockford Christian's 76-70 thriller over Lutheran last week was a nonconference game. Their league matchup is their final game of the regular season, Valentine's Day at Lutheran.

Hononegah (23-3, 15-0) leads Boylan by two games with three to play in the NIC-10 girls race, while Byron (24-2, 8-0) leads Dixon by one game in the Big Northern after winning at Dixon by one point, 35-34, on Jan. 24. The Tigers can clinch the title outright with a win Wednesday at North Boone (4-15, 0-7).

Here are the current NIC-10 and Big Northern basketball standings:

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: NIC-10 and Big Northern boys and girls basketball standings