01/26/2026
BY JACK BULLOCK
CARBONDALE - We have reached the final week of the mid-winter tournaments with just conference events for the Little Illini, National Trail and Greater Egyptian, weather permitting, being played this week.

A couple of the tournaments will have to wait for championships to be decided at future dates.

This roller coaster ride of a season heading towards the end, the better teams are looking at fine tuning for the state tournament while others continue to search for answers with less than a month before the regionals start.

As for this week in the ABV Rankings, there is a change at the top in 2A.

The Nashville Hornets are playing great basketball as of right now and have won 14-consecutive games, including championship wins at both the Mater Dei Holiday Tournament and their own NIT.

Coach Stote Reeder, in his fourth season at the helm, has the Hornets looking like the team to beat in a postseason where they get to host one of the 2A sectionals.

The victory over Breese Central on Saturday was dominating and the Hornets have earned the top spot.

Staunton hasn't done anything wrong during its current 16-game winning streak for Coach Ty Laux.

They also have a pair of tournament titles and a sharp 18-1 mark.

The schedule has some obstacles ahead, including seven road games with one of them being against Columbia at the East Alton-Wood River Shootout on February 7th.

The Eagles picked up a tournament championship with a win over rival Wesclin, a team they lost to in the first week of the season.

Coach Sandstrom and his crew have eight-straight victories in its current run and have key Cahokia Conference games upcoming.

Teutopolis, so far, have been the usual Wooden Shoes.

The independent schedule keeps them sharp throughout the season with very few, if any, easy match ups.

Five road games await, with one them their annual rivalry game with Effingham St. Anthony.

Tolono Unity only has two losses this season, both to Teutopolis, but they have handled the rest of the schedule.

The Rockets and head coach Matt Franks will be a major player in the part of the sectional with St. Joseph-Ogden and Warrensburg-Latham all being factors.

St. Joseph-Ogden hosts one of the regionals in that same sub-sectional and the Spartans play one of the tougher non-conference schedules and their conference isn't a day in the park for Coach Kiel Duval.

Carterville has some good wins (Nashville, Goreville) but a couple of clunkers (Waltonville, Massac County) on the resume.

Coach Shane Hawkins has his eyes on a SIRR Ohio Division championship and some postseason hardware.

Roxana got off to a great start to the season for Coach Mark Briggs and finished second at the Litchfield Invitational Tournament.

But six of their final eight are on the road and they will be difficult contests.

Breese Central should still be a factor in the postseason but they will have to regroup following their beating they took on Saturday at Nashville.

Coach Jeremy Shubert knows how to get teams ready for February.

Alton Marquette is one of those teams to keep an eye on in the postseason as they will be in the same sub-sectional as Staunton and Roxana that will head to the Pleasant Plains Sectional.

Coach Steve Medford has a young team that will only get better.

I've seen many more 1A teams this season than I have 2A.

Mainly because overall, the smaller schools have produced better teams as a whole.

Which is a bit astonishing.

The top two teams this week in the rankings are both programs that were 2A a year ago and get what they call in horse racing “class relief.”

Lawrenceville remains the top club and they deserve the lofty spot for Coach Tad Shick.

The Indians have just a loss to Tolono Unity on the manifesto and have added five wins since that December defeat.

They're favorites in the LIC tournament this week that will likely be delayed a day or two.

Sparta took care of home business by winning their own Mid-Winter Classic, taking the measure of Pinckneyville in the title game on Saturday.

Coach Jordan Beckley and the Bulldogs have a nine-game winning streak going and some Cahokia Conference Illinois Division games to take care of in the future.

Goreville will have to wait a few weeks before they can play the Superman Classic Championship game.

Snowed out on Saturday, they will Murray (KY.) on February 17th.

The Blackcats have a current streak of nine wins for Coach Todd Tripp, who continues to get the most out of his kids.

They will get a shot at Lawrenceville on February 7th at the Benton “Rich Herrin” Shootout.

Waltonville got some payback on Saturday with a big win over rival Woodlawn to capture the 95th and final Midland Trail Conference Tournament championship.

The Spartans and head coach Anthony Lowery have won eight-consecutive contests since a one-point loss to Goreville in the Sesser-Valier Holiday Tournament title game.

The Tuscola recent schedule was like a January avalanche for Coach Justin Bozarth.

These kids were truly Road Warriors as they battled four straight teams on the road that are all highly regarded.

The losses to Tolono Unity, Teutopolis, Warrensburg-Latham and Clinton will make them better when it counts.

Altamont and head coach John Niebrugge are right where they want to be heading into the NTC tournament.

The Indians have four-consecutive wins heading into this week and hopefully after a one day delay the league tourney will get underway on Tuesday.

Woodlawn took an embarrassing home loss on Saturday to Waltonville but there is time to get things taken care of the rest of the regular season for Coach Luke Cooper.

With Sparta, Waltonville and Woodlawn all in the same sub-sectional and the Bulldogs hosting one of the regionals, it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Webber Township won't be in that Trico Sectional mix as the Trojans are headed north towards what would be a regional at either Altamont or North Clay.

Coach Jaxon Helm and Company have work to do after a 19-point loss to Woodlawn on Thursday.

Dieterich picked up a bargaining chip type win over Cumberland on Friday night they could cash in with the seedings upcoming.

Coach Brent Bohnhoff and his team are part of a loaded National Trail Conference Tournament this week.

Cumberland only has narrow losses to Casey-Westfield and Dieterich and two tournament championships under their belts for head coach Justin Roedl.

Everyone on this list will have a say in the upcoming postseason.