2026 Boys Basketball

2026 Class 7-1A Sectional Champions/State Qualifiers

2026 Menu

7-1A   |   7-2A   |   7-3A   |   7-4A   -   8-1A   |   8-2A   |   8-3A   |   8-4A   -  State Pairings Sectional 1 @ Taft School Host: Lockport Taft Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Chicago St. Helen def. Ransom , 55-48 Chicago St. Helen record now 11-2 Sectional 2 @ Annawan High School Host: Annawan Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Annawan def. Mendota Holy Cross , 51-25 Annawan record now 16-1 Sectional 3 @ St. Malachy School Host: Rantoul St. Malachy Wednesday, January 28, 2026,  6:00 PM @ St. Malachy School , 340 E. Belle, Rantoul    Please park busses in the church parking lot west of the school off of RT 45. Piper City Tri-Point vs. Rantoul St. Malachy Sectional 4 @ St. Mary's School Host: Pontiac St. Mary's Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Pontiac St. Mary's def. Delavan , 41-33 Pontiac St. Mary's record now 21-7 Sectional 5 @ Peoria Christian Middle School Host: Peoria Christian Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Peoria Christian def. Peoria Limestone Walters , 49-45 Peoria Christian record now 18-3 Sectional 6 @ Unity Christian Host: Decatur Unity Wednesday, January 28, 2026,  5:30 PM @ Unity Christian , 2001 E Mound Road, Decatur    Decatur Unity vs. Hume Shiloh Sectional 7 @ Routt Catholic High School Host: Jacksonville Our Saviour Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Lincoln West Lincoln-Broadwell def. Kinderhook Western , 41-32 Lincoln West Lincoln-Broadwell record now 23-4 Sectional 8 @ Eye of the Tiger Sports Complex Host: Pana Sacred Heart Date: Monday, January 26, 2026 Pana Sacred Heart def. Carrollton St. John , 35-28 Pana Sacred Heart record now 23-3

Class History

From 1930 to 1972, there were two classes of basketball, Class A (Heavyweight) and Class B (Lightweight). An additional class was added in 1973--Class C (7th Grade). The Heavyweight and Lightweight classes were based on age, height and weight. From 1977-1984, the Heavyweight class was divided into two classes based upon enrollment--(A & AA). From 1985-2006, the Association adopted the format of 7th and 8th grade play based upon a school's enrollment (7A, 7AA, 8A and 8AA). Starting in 2007, the Association adopted a four class system in each grade level (7-1A, 7-2A, 7-3A, 7-4A, 8-1A, 8-2A, 8-3A and 8-4A). The current classification system assigns 25% of the schools to each of the four classes.

How Class Split is Determined