The 2025-26 boys basketball postseason begins Monday across Illinois and will eventually crown champions in the IHSA State Finals in Champaign’s State Farm Center the second weekend of March.

Through Thursday’s games, the Times area features a pair of teams that have reached the 20-win mark, but only five of the 13 programs have registered a winning record. That said, there are a number of interesting matchups and storylines as the second season readies to start.

Ottawa (13-12) has received the No. 3 seed in its half of the Class 3A Ottawa Sectional and will take on a longtime rival in No. 5 seed Streator (13-16) on Wednesday in the La Salle-Peru Regional. The Pirates used a fourth-quarter burst to top the Bulldogs 64-51 on Feb. 14. The winner will play advancer from the night’s opening semifinal between No. 2 L-P and No. 7 Dixon on Friday.

“It’s going to come down to execution and shot-making,” Ottawa coach Mark Cooper said. “Neither team is going to change anything about what they are about. There may be a wrinkle thrown in here or there, but both sides are going to stick to what they do well.”

In their meeting a week ago at Kingman Gym, the two were tied 47-all a minute into the fourth before the hosts closed the contest on a 17-4 run.

“In our matchup with Ottawa, it comes down to execution and fixing some of the details that got us beat in the fourth quarter last weekend,” Streator coach Beau Doty said. “We have to be more efficient on the offensive end and keep them out of the lane on our defensive end.

“Obviously, both teams are familiar with each other’s systems and personnel, so it will come down to who can execute at a higher level down the stretch.”

In Class 1A, Marquette (22-7) is the top seed in its half of the Amboy Sectional and will play the winner of Monday’s game between No. 9 Midland (14-15) and No. 8 Serena (14-15) on Wednesday in the semifinals of the Serena Regional. The Crusaders have a pair of wins this season over both the Timberwolves and Huskers.

Woodland (21-9) earned the No. 2 seed in the other side of the Amboy Sectional bracket and will open on Monday in their own regional against visiting No. 15 Earlville (1-28), which the Warriors topped 90-46 on Thursday. The winner will play either No. 10 Leland (12-16) or No. 7 Henry-Senachwine (15-12) in Wednesday’s semifinals.

“In my mind, to advance and make a postseason run, we need to continue to defend with urgency and discipline, finishing possessions with one-shot rebounds,” Woodland coach Connor Kaminke said. “Offensively we need to spread the floor and share the ball. We have some guys that can really score the ball, but we also have multiple guys that can hurt you in different ways.

“This is a competitive group coming off the program’s first regular-season conference championship in 47 years and their second consecutive 20-win season, but most importantly, they are still hungry for a regional championship on our home floor at the Warrior Dome.”

On the other side of the Woodland Regional bracket, No. 3 Newark (15-15) hosts No. 14 LaMoille on Monday, and with a victory will play the winner of No. 6 Gardner-South Wilmington (16-13) and No. 11 Amboy (10-20) in the semifinals at Woodland.

“Our two seniors (Cody Kulbartz and Reggie Chapman) have played great for us all year and led us on both ends of the court, and I’m looking forward to seeing which players will step up as our next options in our games,” Newark coach Kyle Anderson said.

“Our road will most likely have to go through two teams we’ve seen before, and if we’re able to have the ball bounce our way and play well enough to make it to the regional final, we’d probably see a very well-coached Woodland that can really shoot it on their home court. Excited to see how we step up this postseason, but we have our work cut out for us.”

Also in 1A, No. 7 Somonauk (8-22) plays No. 9 Lombard College Prep (7-14) on Monday in the opening round of the Somonauk Regional. At the Hoopeston Regional, No. 9 Flanagan-Cornell (8-22) plays the host Cornjerkers (15-13) in the quarterfinals on Monday. In the Knoxville Regional, No. 3 Fieldcrest (15-13) opens plays taking on No. 14 Lowpoint-Washburn (8-19).

While in 2A, No. 6 Seneca (13-16) opens Monday against No. 3 Peotone (15-12) in the semifinals of the Wilmington Regional, while No. 7 Sandwich (10-20) hosts No. 10 Stillman Valley (11-15) on Monday in the opening round of the Aurora Christina Regional.