Michael O'Brien's Super 25 high school basketball rankings for Feb. 1, 2026
It's been a very odd season in the Super 25. Traditionally Sunday is spent analyzing the results of the top teams and trying to decide where each should slot in somewhere in the top 15.
There is typically a list of 10 teams that deserve to be in the rankings but haven't had a chance to crack the list because the established ranked teams didn't do anything to deserve getting dropped.
Everything is different this season.
The top five have been locked in with very little movement at throughout the season. Benet, DePaul Prep, Curie, Kankakee and Warren are clearly the best teams in the area. It's possible Neuqua Valley is right there with them, but there isn't any solid proof of that yet.
That group is followed by ten teams that beat most teams they play but can also lose to just about any respectable team on a given night. And after that it is a total free for all. There is parity all over the area.
Most of Sunday is now spent searching for new, worthy teams to rank. Hersey lost to Rolling Meadows this week and had to be dropped. The Huskies have been given the benefit of the doubt for most of the season. Glenbrook North lost to New Trier in a blowout and to Lake Zurich. Cary-Grove lost to Jacobs.
So, three new teams had to be found. Lockport was an easy choice. The Porters played well all season and beat Homewood-Flossmoor last week. The Vikings had already beaten Lockport twice, but it is still a nice indication of the Porters' upside.
Leo joins for the first time this season. The Lions are very young but have a lot of potential and are on a seven-game winning streak.
Stevenson also cracks the rankings after knocking off Waukegan in the Dog Pound. The Patriots have a very strong backcourt with Rocco Paggliocca and Donovan Williams.
Mike Bailey closes in on 700
St. Patrick’s Mike Bailey picked up his 600th win as the Shamrocks’ coach last week at Marist. He has 698 wins overall heading into St. Patrick’s game at Loyola on Tuesday. Only 26 coaches in state history have cracked the 700-win mark.
One in local 700-win coach is still active. Neuqua Valley coach Todd Sutton currently has 733 wins.
History at Young
Marquis Clark made history at Young this week. The Tennessee recruit scored 51 points in a win against Manley to break the school’s single game scoring record of 46 which was held by Quentin Richardson.
Clark, who has been on varsity since his freshman season, also became the school’s all-time leading scorer. Richardson sent out a congratulatory video to Clark on X.
Super 25 high school basketball rankings for Feb. 1, 2026
With record and last week's ranking
1. Benet (25-1) 1
Dominated DeSmet
2. DePaul Prep (21-3) 2
Beat Brother Rice
3. Curie (20-1) 3
Had the week off
4. Kankakee (19-1) 4
Took down Mount Carmel
5. Warren (21-2) 5
Owning Waukegan
6. Neuqua Valley (24-1) 6
Beat Barrington
7. Homewood-Flossmoor (20-3) 7
Marvin Douglas delivers
8. Bolingbrook (18-6) 9
Watch Mason Williams
9. St. Patrick (19-3) 16
Won at Marist
10. Marist (21-4) 8
Needs to find a spark
11. Evanston (20-4)
Shorthanded in Brook loss
12. Mount Carmel (16-8) 13
Hung in well vs. Kankakee
13. Loyola (19-6) 14
Luke Alvarez is fun to watch
14. Glenbard East (23-2) 15
Beat Yorkville Christian
15. St. Ignatius (21-4) 12
Lost to Joliet Catholic
16. Fremd (20-2) 20
Beat Palatine
17. Palatine (21-4) 17
At Cary-Grove Saturday
18. Young (19-6) 18
Big week for Marquis Clark
19. Kaneland (23-0) 19
Hosts Sycamore Saturday
20. York (22-3) 22
At Libertyville Saturday
21. New Trier (19-6) 25
Elton Jaegerskog can score
22. Lockport (19-4) NR
Beat H-F
23. Leo (17-4) NR
Won seven straight
24. Stevenson (17-6) NR
Won at the Dog Pound
25. Waukegan (17-7) 11
Needs to win a big game