CHAMPAIGN — The Illinois High School Association announced on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, that the boys and girls IHSA State Basketball Tournament will return to the format used from 2022 through 2024, with games scheduled over three days in Champaign.
Under the reinstated schedule, six state tournament games will be played Thursday, six more on Friday, and all four State Championship games will take place Saturday. Specifically, Thursday will feature the Class 1A and 2A state semifinal games along with the third-place games for those classes. Friday will mirror that schedule for Class 3A and 4A, including both semifinals and third-place contests.
IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said the decision to revert to the previous format reflects feedback from participants.
“The single-weekend state final format is still in its relative infancy, and we’ve been very transparent about our willingness to tweak the time and game schedule until we get it right,” Anderson said. “We tried a different variation last year and the immediate feedback from nearly everyone involved was that the schedule we utilized from 2022-2024 was far superior. As a result, we are making some slight changes to that original schedule for 2026.”
Some coaches and athletic directors have expressed concerns about the format, noting that the third-place game being played on the same day as the semifinals can result in a team’s entire State Tournament experience ending in a single day.
