Illinois Girls HS Hoops Rankings (12/6)

BENTON - We’re back for Week 2 of girls basketball rankings like we never left. Some pivotal shootout and regularly scheduled games today could shake some things up. Let’s get right down to business.

1A

1.  Okawville (5-1) 

2.  Elgin St. Edward (3-3)

3.  Abingdon-Avon (7-1)

4.  Brownstown/St.Elmo (6-1)

5.  Lanark (Eastland) (7-1)

6.  Deer Creek-Mackinaw (4-0)

7.  Illini Bluffs (7-1)

8.  Heyworth (7-1)

9.  Cissna Park (6-1)

10.  Woodlawn (4-2)

The 1A girls basketball postseason is going to be a fun one this year as I don’t see anyone dominating this class like Nashville has in 2A. It’s a pretty even playing field amongst the top 15 teams. Okawville still remains ahead of the pack however as they knocked off two really solid 1A teams this week in both #10 Woodlawn and #13 Carrollton. They’re still the team to beat in 1A. Right behind them at #2 is Elgin St. Edward. Don’t let their 3-3 record fool you as they’ve played some much bigger schools. They’re off today but will pick back up with a home game against Chicago Christian. Coming in at #3 is Abingdon-Avon who is off to a hot start at 7-1. Lady Tornadoes will be off today after a solid win against Knoxville on Wednesday. At #4 is Brownstown/St. Elmo who is 6-1 so far this season. They have some big wins against teams like 3A Mattoon, 3A Lincoln and 2A Pana. Only loss thus far has come to 3A Highland. #5 on the 1A list goes to Lanark Eastland. They’ve opened up the year with a 7-1 record, their one blemish coming against 2A #6 Stillman Valley in a competitive contest. Coming in at #6 is Deer-Creek Mackinaw who is undefeated this far at 4-0. They’re currently taking on a tough 2A Clinton team. Right behind them at #7 is Illini Bluffs who currently holds a record of 7-1. They beat up on ROWVA earlier today, winning that one 64-25. Coming in at #8 in 1A is Heyworth. The Lady Hornets have beaten some bigger schools and their only loss came at the hands of 2A Maroa-Forsyth. At #9 in 1A we have the Cissna Park Lady Timberwolves who are out to a 6-1 start. Their lone loss came to 1A #6 Dee-Mack. Rounding out our 1A list at #10 is Woodlawn. The Lady Cardinals have played some good basketball so far. Their only two losses have come to 1A #1 Okawville in a tight battle and 2A Pinckneyville who is making their case for a 2A Top 10 ranking. Woodlawn will take on 2A Flora later on this evening.

2A

1.  Nashville (5-0)

2.  Pleasant Plains (4-0)

3.  Aurora Central Catholic (8-1)

4.  Breese Mater Dei (5-1)

5.  Byron (5-0)

6.  Teutopolis (7-0)

7.  Princeton (5-0)

8.  Breese Central (5-1)

9.  Chicago (Phillips) (2-6)

10.  Stillman Valley (5-0)

Unless something extremely crazy happens, Nashville might as well put their name in concrete at the #1 spot in 2A. The Hornettes are 5-1 after their first loss came today to Missouri powerhouse Principia out of St. Louis. The loss to a national power doesn’t change a thing on this list for Nashville. Pleasant Plains comes in at #2 after a 5-0 start with nothing but blowout wins over bigger schools. They will be a problem in February. Breese Mater Dei retains the #4 spot in 2A as they didn’t play at all this week. Monday should be next week’s girls game of the week as the Lady Knights will take on crosstown rival #8 Breese Central in what should be a coin flip. Coming in at #5 is Byron who is quickly making their case for a top 3 spot. They are 5-0 to start the year including an impressive 12-point win over Bloomington Central Catholic. They knocked off Rock Falls today 54-22. Teutopolis comes in at #6 as they’ve started the season at a flawless 7-0. The Lady Shoes are currently taking on Olney who they’ve already beaten once this season. At #7, Princeton enters the 2A list as they’ve had a very impressive 5-0 start with a big win over Illinois Valley Central. They’ll take on Morris later tonight. Breese Central sits at #8 on our 2A list after a hot 5-1 start. Their lone loss came to 4A Alton. They’ll face a big test in crosstown rival #4 Breese Mater Dei on Monday. At #9 we’ve got Chicago Phillips. Don’t let their record fool you as they’re in a conference of 3A and 4A Chicago schools. The record may not be pretty, but it won’t matter come March. Rounding out our 2A list is Stillman Valley who is still holding onto an unblemished record at 5-0. The Lady Cardinals will take on Rochelle on Monday. 

3A

1.  Washington (6-0)

2.  DePaul College Prep (7-0)

3.  St. Ignatius (4-2)

4.  Quincy Notre Dame (3-0)

5.  Morton (2-0)

6.  Montini Catholic (1-4)

7.  Sterling (1-1)

8.  Peoria Notre Dame (5-0)

9.  Galesburg (6-1)

10.  River Forest (Trinity) (4-1)

The 3A rankings will continue to start off with Washington at #1 if these ladies don’t lose a basketball game. The Panthers have rattled off 6-straight to start the year at 6-0. Big game next weekend as they’ll find out what they’re made of against 4A #1 Loyola Academy. Coming in behind them at #2 is DePaul College Prep. They’re off to an impressive 7-0 start including wins over #7 Montini Catholic and Timothy Christian. They’ll take on Bolingbrook and Trinity next week. Coming in at #3 is St. Ignatius. The Wolfpack are 4-2 on the season so far and take on 4A #3 Benet Academy tonight. At #4 we have Quincy Notre Dame who is off to a 4-0 start. They’ll take on Highland tonight at 4:30. Morton comes in at #5 after starting the year off 3-0. They’ve got 4A Metamora on the schedule next week. At #6, Montini Catholic is 1-4 to start the year but for good reason as they’ve only played against 4A competition so far. Coming in at #7 is Sterling who has started the year off at 1-1. Impressive win over Galesburg. Their loan loss came to 4A Rock Island. Behind them at #8 is Peoria Notre Dame who makes the jump from 2A to 3A this year. They’re off to a 6-0 start with wins against some 4A schools. At #9 we’ve got the Galesburg Silver Streaks. They’ve had a strong start to the year as they hold a 6-1 start. Their only loss came to Sterling on Thursday. Rounding out the list at #10 we have Trinity who has dominated thus far. They’re 5-1 with their lone loss coming to 4A Mother McAuley

4A

1.  Loyola Academy (7-0)

2.  Lyons Township (6-0)

3.  Benet Academy (5-1)

4.  Nazareth Academy (5-0)

5.  Waubonsie Valley (6-0)

6.  Naperville Central (4-1)

7.  Chicago Kenwood (5-1)

8.  Palatine (Fremd) (6-0)

9.  Mundelein (Carmel) (5-1)

10.  Glenbard West (7-0)

As another week has come and gone, Loyola still rules the roost of girls 4A basketball. The Lady Ramblers are 7-0 with no signs of stopping. They’ll get #6 Kenwood on Tuesday in what should be a good ball game. At #2 is Lyons Township who is off to a 7-0 start as well. They’ll take on Huntley tonight looking for win number 8. At #3 is Benet Academy. The Lady Redwings are 5-1 on the year and take on 3A #3 St. Ignatius tonight. Nazareth Academy comes in at #4 on the list after starting the year out 5-0. They’ll have a big one tonight against #10 Glenbard West. At #5, Waubonsie Valley has done some climbing up the list this week. They’ve started the year at 7-0 and take on a competitive Homewood-Flossmoor team tonight. Naperville Central is our #6 spot as the Lady Redhawks are off to a 4-1 start. Their lone loss came to Benet Academy. Right behind them is Chicago Kenwood at #7 who is 6-1 on the year. Their only loss came to #6 Naperville Central in a 72-71 thriller. The Broncos hope to get another shot at the Redhawks later on down the road. Coming in at #8 is Fremd who has started the year out at 6-0. They’re currently in the middle of a game with 4A Neuqua Valley. At #9 we have Mundelein Carmel. The Lady Corsairs are off to a 5-1 start with their only loss coming to #1 Loyola Academy. They’ll take on #14 Maine South tonight in what should be a very competitive game. Rounding out the 4A rankings at #10 is Glenbard West. They’ve started out the year 7-0 and will face a big test tonight against #4 Nazareth Academy.