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Kyle Williams' Super 25 high school girls basketball rankings for Feb. 8, 2026

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Downers Grove North junior guard Campbell Thulin is always moving.

She regularly flies around the court searching for deflections, rebounds or trying to make herself available for her teammates to pass to. As soon as the ball leaves her fingertips, she darts toward the basket to try and get an offensive rebound if she knows it's off. Her relentless motor sets the tone for a Trojans team that, at 26-2, is enjoying one of the best seasons in program history.

After beating Hinsdale Central 48-32 on Friday, Downers Grove North clinched the West Suburban Conference Silver championship. Thulin scored a game-high 18 points. Senior guard Ady Fanta added 12 points and five rebounds, and freshman guard Eva Yerkovich scored seven points.

"It's really important to us," Thulin said of winning the conference. "It's a tribute to how hard we work. This [win] just gets us even more motivated for playoffs and to be ready to play like that."

The Trojans have won 12 straight games and are clicking at the right time.

"I like where we're at," Trojans coach Stephan Bolt said. " Defensively, we're tough and communicative. Offensively, we're starting to make some shots. We're seeing some things. We're executing what we're trying to execute, and it's fun to see them doing that, and it only gives them more confidence, which is, it's the right time to be doing that."

One of the keys for the Trojans is their stifling defense. They're absolutely suffocating and might be the best defense in the area. If a player gets beat off the dribble, there's a Trojan ready in help position.

When the Trojans are guarding drives, everyone does a good job of digging down, trying to dislodge the ball and create a deflection.The team has a freneticism on defense.

"It's our energy," Thulin said. "We play music on the bus. We bring the speaker [into] the locker room. It's kind of like a fun environment. We don't let the energy go down. We have to carry it [throughout the game]. Our coaches do a really good job with the stuff you do for practice. They give us good practice plans, and all we got to do is do what they're telling us to do."

Milestone moments

• Carmel freshman forward Liv Johnson is the best freshman in the state, and that might be underselling her. In Saturday's win against Benet, Johnson set the single-game scoring record after a 39-point performance. It's rare to see a freshman with her mix of shooting, basketball IQ and physicality. Johnson has already received offers from Illinois, Iowa, DePaul, Ohio State and Oklahoma. She's going to be fun to watch during the playoffs.

• Loyola senior guards Marycait Mackie and Clare Weasler became the winningest players in program history (127 wins). Mackie and Weasler are critical to Loyola's success because of their willingness to rebound, defend, and sacrifice individual numbers for team success.

• Maine East guard Arabella Silva scored a career-high 46 points in a win over Niles West. She's already surpassed 2,000 points as a junior.

The Super 25, with record and last week’s ranking:

1. Nazareth (25-3) 1

Beat Marist

2. Loyola Academy (28-2) 2

Won the GCAC Tournament

3. Waubonsie Valley (28-1) 4

Plays Naperville Central Tuesday

4. Kenwood (20-6) 5

Plays Lane Tech Wednesday

5. Benet (22-4) 3

Loss to Carmel

6. Mother McAuley (22-6) 6

Loss to Loyola

7. Downers Grove North (26-2) 8

Beat Hinsdale Central Friday

8. Naperville Central (23-6) 7

Loss to Oswego East

9. Fremd (22-6) 9

Beat Lyons

10. Providence (27-4) 10

Third place in GCAC Tournament

11. Carmel (20-8) 13

Plays Marist Monday

12. Marist (21-8) 11

Loss to Nazareth Saturday

13. Libertyville (22-5) 18

Beat Maine South Saturday

14. DePaul Prep (21-6) 12

Loss to Providence

15. Maine South (21-8) 14

Loss to Libertyville

16. Glenbard West (25-4) 15

Loss to Lyons

17. Glenbrook South (21-8) 17

Plays Libertyville Monday

18. Hersey (18-7) 16

Loss to Prospect

19. Lyons (19-9) 21

Beat Glenbard West

20. Prospect (18-10) 20

Beat Glenbrook North Saturday

21. Bolingbrook (21-4) 21

Plays Minooka Tuesday

22. Lake Zurich (18-9) 22

Plays Mundelein Wednesday

23. Trinity (19-10) 23

Plays Neuqua Valley Thursday

24. Hinsdale Central (18-10) 24

Plays Evanston Thursday

25. St. Charles East (17-11) 25

Plays Geneva Tuesday

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