%% RK TEAM REC CL PR
1. Marshall 32-4 3A 3
%%
Overcame controversial firing of coach Lamont Bryant and player suspensions during the sectionals to win state championship on 50th anniversary of first title.
%% 2. Richards 30-4 4A 17
%%
Overlooked Bulldogs made a run at the right time to capture first state title behind stellar play of Carl Richard, Shaun Pratl and guard Tommie Thomas.
%% 3. Simeon 29-4 3A 2
%%
Came within one game of capturing its third straight state title, falling to Marshall despite 28 points, nine rebounds and six blocks from Stanley Simpson.
More Top Picks Autism And Light Sensitivity Why Bright Lights Overwhelm
%% 4. North Lawndale 30-4 2A NR
%%
“Team Adversity” battled through injuries and academic ineligibility to capture the school’s first state title with a roster that had only one senior.
%% 5. Zion-Benton 32-4 4A 11
%%
Zee-Bees may have fallen short in title quest but produced an instant classic when Ronald Steward’s 43-foot buzzer-beater stunned Evanston in the semifinals.
%% 6. Evanston 30-4 4A 7
%%
Team with no big stars finished third in the state behind unassuming but potent backcourt of Zachary Morton and Stephen Rudnicki.
%% 7. Lockport 24-8 4A NR
%%
Shrugged off regular-season losses and made another patented Porters’ postseason push, upsetting Thornton, Bloom and O’Fallon en route to fourth-place finish.
%% 8. Mt. Carmel 22-10 4A NR
%%
Biggest surprise in all four classes, Cinderella Caravan shocked four ranked teams — St. Ignatius, Farragut, De La Salle, Young — before succumbing to Evanston.
%% 9. Young 25-6 4A 1
%%
Ridiculously deep Dolphins never could find the right mix of talent in their 12-player rotation and fell victim to Mt. Carmel’s playoff magic.
%% 10. Bloom 23-7 4A 16
%%
Blazing Trojans put so much into an emotional sectional victory over top-ranked Homewood-Flossmoor that they may have taken Lockport for granted.
%% 11. Homewood-Flossmoor 27-2 4A 6
%%
Vikings were No. 1 at end of regular season and had beaten Marshall at the Proviso West holiday tournament but fell short of their goal to get Downstate.
%% 12. Elgin 20-10 4A NR
%%
Came into the playoffs with a 16-9 record, and then caught fire, including back-to-back sectional upsets of Rockton Hononegah and Rockford Boylan.
%% 13. Neuqua Valley 25-8 4A NR
%%
Dan Pawelski, Derek Raridon & Co. peaked at the right time in knocking off West Aurora, Waubonsie Valley and Bartlett to reach the supersectionals.
%% 14. Englewood 24-4 2A NR
%%
What a memorable run for this all-senior program with the high school closing in June. Almost beat North Lawndale in the sectional final.
More Top Picks Best Japanese Paring Knives
%% 15. Thornton Fractional N. 18-11 3A NR
%%
Nobody gave them much of a shot against two-time defending champion Simeon, but Meteors came up just short (43-40) in the supersectional.
%% 16. North Chicago 25-5 3A NR
%%
Coach Gerald Coleman has done a magnificent job bringing back the Warhawks to their glory days of the 1970s, when they were among the area’s best.
%% 17. Bartlett 23-6 4A NR
%%
The potential had been there all season, and this Upstate Eight program finally lived up to it in a big way with a stunning regional final upset of Batavia.
%% 18. Oak Park 24-6 4A 5
%%
Iman Shumpert rose to the occasion late in the season when Daniel Barnes went down with a hamstring injury as the Huskies advanced to the sectionals.
%% 19. De La Salle 24-4 4A NR
%%
Elliott Brown, Derek Needham and freshman Michael Shaw led Meteors to the Catholic League title and a berth in the Proviso East sectional.
%% 20. Lyons 24-5 4A NR
%%
After knocking off a talented Curie ballclub in the sectional finals, the Lions couldn’t match Richards’ athleticism in the supersectional.
PR-preseason rank