The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) announced several significant changes on Tuesday, the most notable being the implementation of a 35-second shot clock for both boys’ and girls’ basketball, starting with the 2026-27 season.
“The IHSA has allowed the shot clock to be used in tournaments and shootouts the past two seasons, and the overwhelming feedback we have received from coaches is that it is time to embrace the shot clock in all varsity contests,” said IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson. “We believe the two-season lead time will provide our schools with ample opportunity to install the shot clocks and get comfortable with them from both a coaching and game administration perspective.”
This change will be mandatory at the varsity level, while the use of the shot clock for lower-level games (freshman, sophomore, and junior varsity) will be determined by conferences and through mutual agreements in nonconference games.
Additionally, the IHSA announced a revised state tournament schedule starting with the 2025 tournaments. The boys’ basketball state tournament, held at State Farm Center in Champaign for the past three years, will retain its three-day, 16-game format. However, instead of six games each on Thursday and Friday followed by four state championship games on Saturday, the new schedule will feature six games on Thursday, five on Friday, and five on Saturday.
The revamped schedule aims to provide teams a two-day experience at the state tournament. Previously, teams losing a state semifinal game had to play a third-place game later the same night.
The new schedule breakdown is as follows:
– **Thursday:** Two state semifinal games each in Class 1A, 2A, and 3A. The 1A games start at 9:30 a.m., 2A games at 2 p.m., and 3A games at 6 p.m.
– **Friday:** Third-place games in Class 1A, 2A, and 3A begin at 9:30 a.m., followed by the two Class 4A state semifinal games starting at 6 p.m.
– **Saturday:** The remaining five games, including the four state championship games, will be played.
These changes reflect the IHSA’s commitment to enhancing the high school basketball experience for players, coaches, and fans alike.
On Saturday, the day will start at 9:30 a.m. with the Class 4A third-place game before the four state title games take place in the afternoon and evening. The schedule for the state title games is as follows:
– 1A state title game at 1 p.m.
– 2A state title game following the 1A game
– 3A state championship game at 6 p.m.
– 4A state championship game following the 3A game.
The IHSA girls’ basketball state tournament at CEFCU Arena in Normal, on the Illinois State University campus, will follow a similar format. The only difference will be on Friday, when the two Class 4A state semifinal games will take place late Friday morning and into Friday afternoon. This adjustment allows schools competing in both the girls’ basketball state tournament and boys’ sectional championship games that night to attend both events.
“It’s been fairly unanimous in the Illinois high school basketball community that moving the state tournament to a single-weekend format has been a success,” said IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson. “Our coaches believe this new schedule will provide an even better experience for all the student-athletes, coaches, and fans. We look forward to seeing it play out when we celebrate America’s Original March Madness next winter.”