CHAMPAIGN — The Illinois High School Association boys basketball state championships were Saturday inside State Farm Center on the University of Illinois campus.
Here is a game-by-game look at each championship:
2026 IHSA boys basketball championship game coverage
Class 1A: Chicago Marshall 52, Goreville 44
Marshall rallied from being down 10 in the fourth quarter to win its first state championship since the 2008 Class 3A crown. The unranked Commandos (24-10) outscored Goreville 21-5 in the final eight minutes. This included a 15-0 Marshall run where sixth-ranked Goreville went over five minutes without scoring.
However, a corner 3-pointer by Goreville’s Zech Green made it 46-44 with 2:34 to play. But that would be Goreville’s last points of the game, turning it over nine times in the final frame and 23 for the game.
Sophomore Darrin Laye scored a game-high 30 points and added seven rebounds and six steals for Marshall, which had 18 steals. Goreville (34-5) was paced by Green’s 13 points with Lawson Land adding 10, Nick King 10, Garrett Church 6 (9 rebs).
Class 2A: Peoria Manual 60, Quincy Notre Dame 55
Manual completed its quest for a sixth state championship by beating Quincy Notre Dame. This is the sixth state title for the Rams and first since 1997. The No. 5 Rams held off a furious rally from second-ranked QND (32-2), which trailed by 13 late in the third quarter.
A 16-0 Manual run, spanning two quarters and over eight minutes put the Rams ahead for good. No. 2 QND (32-2) had built a six-point, second-quarter lead before Josh Humbles’ baseline jumper started the scoring burst.
Twice the Raiders had go-ahead 3-pointers miss in the final 30 seconds before Humbles made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 20 seconds to seal the victory. Jaquan Brown scored a game-high 23 points for the Rams (25-9), who shot 63.4 percent and forced 17 turnovers off 12 steals. Jace Allensworth led QND with 21 points.
Class 3A: East St. Louis 52, Deerfield 46
Top-ranked East St. Louis held off upstart Deerfield for the program’s second state title since 2019 and third state trophy in the last eight seasons. ESL (33-4) ends its season on an eight-game winning streak, losing just to just one Illinois team all season.
Deerfield (25-12), which was making its first-ever state finals appearance, pulled within 47-46 with 42 seconds to play. However, the Warriors weren’t able to score the rest of the way.
Penn State commit Jamison White posted a double-double with 19 points and 17 rebounds for the Flyers, who won the rebounding battle, 32-20. Jake Pollack (15 points, five rebounds, four assists), Evan Nagler (13 points) and Tommy Donahue (10 points, six rebounds) paced three double-figure scorers for Deerfield.
Class 4A: Chicago Marist 44, Lisle Benet Academy 28
Ninth-ranked Marist ended reigning state champ Benet’s 33-game win streak with a stellar defensive effort. The RedHawks shutout No. 1 Benet in the second quarter, building a 10-point halftime advantage.
Benet (36-2) cut the deficit in half just a few minutes into the third quarter, but wasn’t able to keep up with Marist’s defensive pressure. Colin Stack scored nine points to lead Benet.
Eastern Illinois commit Charles Barnes Jr. scored 13 points, while Stephen Brown added eight points and eight rebounds for Marist (33-5), which committed just two turnovers in the game. Prior to this postseason run, Marist had not won a sectional since 1981.
(This story was updated with new information.)
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: 2026 IHSA boys basketball state championship recap: Illinois crowns four state champions
Reporting by Adam Duvall, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
