Final Top 40 of the 2026 season

Leading up to Friday, everyone was hyping up the DePaul vs Benet game as the state championship. But Marist proved them all along as they routed both York and Benet to win it all in 4A.

As mentioned, it was the season Marist was building for with Stephen Brown Stephen Brown 6'7" | PF Marist | 2026 State IL , TJ Tate TJ Tate 5'7" | PG Marist | 2026 State IL , Adoni Vassilakis Adoni Vassilakis 6'0" | PG Marist | 2026 State IL , and Charles Barnes leading the charge. They started the season placed 4th in our rankings. They justifiably will finish at #1.

While it's Marist who ends at thew top, there are several other programs who far exceeded their preseason expectations. One of which was Neuqua Valley, who lost just once before falling to Bolingbrook in the sectional semifinal. The Wildcats began the season ranked 39th and will finish at #10. But more importantly, the core of their team is set to return headlined by Cole Kelly Cole Kelly 6'6" | SF Neuqua Valley | 2028 State #14 Nation IL .

Another program who made an impressive run was Deerfield. Headlined by Dartmouth signee Jake Pollack and Case Western commit Evan Nagler Evan Nagler 6'0" | SG Deerfield | 2026 State IL . They provided Kaneland their lone loss of the season in the 3A semifinals, and gave East St. Louis a real battle in the state championship. Despite a 12-loss season, they played their best basketball at the right time.

13 teams who started the season unranked will find a spot in our final rankings. That includes 1A Champ Marshall and 2A Champ Peoria Manual.

FULL FINAL RANKINGS BELOW