One of Illinois' most storied high school boys basketball programs bookended the decade with Sweet 16 appearances.

In between, the Quincy High School boys basketball program kept the tradition alive with three Western Big Six Conference titles, six more regional crowns and moments that will rank among some of the most memorable in school history.

And here are five players, in alphabetical order who have had a hand in creating those moments:

Zach Forbes averaged only 5.4 points during his sophomore season, content to take on a role as a defensive stopper as Quincy shared the Western Big Six Conference championship.

As a junior, though, he established himself as an offensive force.

During the 2008-09 season, Forbes averaged 16.3 points and scored in double figures in 24 of 25 regular-season games. Although he earned all-tournament honors at the QHS Thanksgiving Tournament, it wasn't until a December game against Springfield that he came into his own.

Forbes, an Illinois Basketball Coaches Association all-state pick, scored 24 points, hitting 9 of 13 field goals and 5 of 7 free throws.

"Everything I shot, everything I released felt good," Forbes said. "It gave me a lot of confidence."

His ability to knock down 15-foot jumpers and get to the basket set him apart.

"He can elevate and knock down the mid-range jumper as well as anyone," Quincy coach Sean Taylor said last season.

Every great player has a signature moment. Jason Kvitle's came in the 2005 Class AA regional championship against Jacksonville at the Jacksonville Bowl.

Kvitle scored a career-high 29 points and hit 4 of 6 free throws in overtime to lift the Blue Devils to a 48-43 victory.

"It's the best performance by a player I've coached in a regional championship by far," QHS coach Sean Taylor said that night. "He put us on his back and took us to victory."

Kvitle, a 2005 QHS graduate, made 8 of 11 field goals, knocked down all four of his 3-point attempts and finished with five rebounds and three steals. He grabbed three rebounds in overtime, including a critical board when Jacksonville's Brian Anderson missed the front end of a one-and-one with 1:30 to play in the extra period.

"I was just saying, 'Give him the ball and let him go,'" Quincy point guard Jeremy Osborne said at the time. "We didn't need to run any plays. Just let Jason take over. He was having one of those nights where everything fell. He played huge, just huge."

He did his entire senior season. Kvitle made 62 3-pointers, the second highest single-season total in school history, while averaging 16.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. He also led the Blue Devils in charges drawn, taking 10.

"He's become a complete player," Taylor said.

Marcus Medsker enjoyed the spoils of being an all-state performer and an NCAA Division I recruit. He ate pancakes with then-Utah coach Rick Majerus. He was mentioned on ESPN Radio. He traveled near and far on recruiting.

Why? He had a knack for scoring.

Medsker, a 2003 QHS graduate, is one of only five players in Quincy High School history to sink 100 or more career 3-pointers. He scored 1,348 career points, the 10th highest total in school history. He averaged 20.8 points per game as a senior, leading the Western Big Six Conference in scoring.

"He's so versatile," Normal West coach Brian Cupples said after Medsker scored 28 points against the Wildcats his senior season. "He can go inside and then swing outside. He's wiry strong and has great touch. He can hurt you in so many ways."

His best performance came when he felt his worst.

Weakened by the flu and not expecting to start, Medsker scored 10 points in overtime and 32 points overall -- his most ever in a WB6 game -- in Quincy's 68-61 victory at East Moline.

His layin gave the Blue Devils a 53-52 lead with 28 seconds left in regulation and his 3-pointer to start overtime gave Quincy the lead for good.

Medsker earned second-team Illinois Basketball Coaches Association all-state honors and third-team all-state honors from the Associated Press.

Jared Summers' name is attached to one of those.

In 2006, trailing state-ranked Alton 59-58 with 6.4 seconds left in regulation of the Class AA regional championship, Summers took an inbounds pass, went the length of the floor and banked in a runner with 1.6 seconds left for an improbable 60-59 Quincy victory.

"It's the best feeling I've ever felt in my life. Seriously," Summers said. "At first, I thought it was long. Then it hit the front rim. Then it bounced in. Wow."

There were plenty of other wow moments in his career.

As a senior in 2007, Summers led Quincy to its first Western Big Six Conference championship since 2001, its 57th regional championship and the third longest winning streak in the last 25 years. He was named the WB6's top player, an honorable mention all-stater and The Herald-Whig's 2007 Player of the Year.

His hustle and passion resulted in 16.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game.

"Jared has a knack for making plays," Quincy coach Sean Taylor said. "You can't always teach that and it doesn't always show up in stats. You watch him and you know he understands the game. He makes plays. He does a great job of that."

Summers scored in double figures in 27 of 29 games and was the only player in the WB6 to finish in the top 10 in each of five statistical categories -- scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and 3-point percentage.

"He's the best player in the conference," Moline coach Jon Nedelcoff said at the time. "He does everything."

Brooks Williams made the sacrifice. Quincy High School reaped the rewards.

Williams, a 6-foot-2 forward, willingly moved from his natural swingman position to the post because of the Blue Devils' lack of height during the 2000-01 season. And there he thrived.

Despite his size disadvantage, Williams led the Western Big Six Conference in rebounding (9.3 rpg), finished second in scoring (17.6 ppg) and helped Quincy finish in a three-way tie for the WB6 championship with Moline and Rock Island Alleman.

For that, he was a unanimous choice to the All-WB6 team.

"He was the glue to the ballclub," Quincy coach Loren Wallace said at the time. "All of our offense started with him or went through him. He was a guard that we made a post player. He accepted the role and excelled at it."

That's because he was like a kid on a pogo stick when rebounding.

"He goes for all rebounds. He's not waiting for the ball to come to him. He goes for every rebound," Wallace said. "He's coming from the outside, the offside. He doesn't wait. That's the mark of a great rebounder."

-- sports@whig.com/221-3365