The first week of the basketball season brought three major results: Loyola winning at New Trier, Benet losing at St. Ignatius and Cary-Grove upsetting Waukegan.
The Ramblers’ big win in Wilmette was the least surprising of the three games overall, but it was impressive that they pulled it off without Sam Golden, one of the best players on the team. Golden missed the game with an injury but returned for Loyola’s win against Lake Zurich on Saturday.
Trey Williams (17 points) and Charles Ellis (16 points) led the Ramblers but the key to the victory was holding New Trier’s Christopher Kirkpatrick, a preseason All-State pick, to five points.
St. Ignatius’ 69-65 win against visiting Benet on Sunday says a lot more about the Wolfpack than the defending Class 4A state champs. Benet is going to be fine. Jayden Wright was excellent in the defeat and 7-0 senior Colin Stack made one move where he covered about 12 feet with one step and dunked the ball.
“[Stack] is fantastic,” St. Ignatius coach Matt Monroe said. “He’s a matchup nightmare becuase of his size and skill. He just knows how to play.”
Stack had 14 points and five rebounds in the game. He was 7 of 7 shooting in the post with four dunks. But St. Ignatius limited him to just four points in the second half.
“We increased the pressure on the ball handlers, trying to make those post entries a little harder,” Monroe said. “We took a few of our matchups off the ball and sagged more into the paint to help. We did that more in the second half and it was helpful. They did a nice job of team guarding Stack.”
Chris Bolte, St. Ignatius’ 6-5 Yale-bound senior, was expected to be one of the best players in the area this season. He had 14 points and seven rebounds in the win.
But the Wolfpack’s backcourt of senior Napoleon Harris IV and sophomore Amir Tucker was a revelation. Harris scored 14 and Tucker had 18 points. He scored 26 in a win against Yorkville Christian earlier int he week.
“Amir is really hard worker,” Monroe said. “He trains a ton on his own and always puts in the extra time. So the success he is having is no surprise.”
St. Ignatius shot 12 of 23 from three-point range in the win.
“Just about everyone on the team is an effective outside shooter,” Monroe said. “But the fist three games we didn’t shoot that well. We scored in different ways, which was encouraging. We were just waiting for a breakout game from beyond the arc. We expect to be a really strong outside shooting team all year.
Waukegan’s loss to Cary-Grove was the biggest surprise of the opening week. The Trojans are clearly a team to keep an eye on this season. The Bulldogs drop to No. 15. Waukegan beat Barrington earlier in the week and returned the core of a team that nearly knocked off Warren in the sectional last season.
With no teams dropping out, there wasn’t room for any new teams, which is unusual after the first week of the season.
Leo, Thornwood, Homewood-Flossmoor, Lyons, Lockport, Hersey and Palatine all started the season off strong and are right outside the Super. 25.
Super 25 high school basketball rankings for Nov. 30, 2025
With record and last week’s ranking
1. DePaul Prep (4-0) 1
Rashaun Porter is dominating
2. Warren (1-0) 3
Faces Curie Saturday
3. Marist (3-0) 4
Earning rave reviews
4. Kankakee (0-0) 5
One to watch at CEC
5. Loyola (4-0) 12
Impressed a man short
6. Bolingbrook (2-0) 6
Challenging week ahead
7. St. Ignatius (4-0) 22
Amir Tucker has arrived
8. Benet (3-1) 2
Lost at St. Ignatius
9. Curie (0-0) 9
Opens at Crane Thursday
10. New Trier (3-1) 8
Lost to Loyola
11. Fremd (3-0) 11
Smashed Romeoville
12. Evanston (3-0) 13
Faces Fremd Monday
13. Lincoln Park (3-0) 14
Survived vs. Downers South
14. Oswego East (3-0) 19
Strong start for Mason Lockett
15. Waukegan (3-1) 7
Lost to Cary-Grove
16. Glenbard East (3-0) 21
More than Michael Nee
17. Simeon (3-0) 10
Handled Manley
18. Kenwood (1-0) 16
Hosts Farragut Tuesday
19. Young (3-0) 18
Faces Kenwood at CEC
20. Barrington (3-1) 17
Lost to Waukegan
21. Neuqua Valley (2-1) 15
Lost to Oswego East
22. Kaneland (1-0) 20
Faces West Aurora Saturday
23. St. Laurence (4-0) 23
Handled Richards
24. Geneva (3-0) 24
Smooth start
25. Deerfield (4-0) 25
Beat McHenry