There's an argument to be made for a few different teams at No. 1. But who made the cut?
What better way to start the new year than with a fresh batch of statewide girls basketball rankings?
I certainly can't think of anything better.
1. Pike (13-1)
The Red Devils are arguably the deepest team in the state, rolling a 10-girl rotation that’s built to wear down the opposition. Most of their games have been close through the first couple quarters, but by the middle of the fourth, they’re well in control.
In terms of résumé, Pike’s lone loss was a closer-than-it-looks loss to Homestead in the second game of the season. Its wins include Westfield, Lawrence North, Roncalli, Lawrence Central, Jeffersonville and Big Walnut (Ohio).
Plenty of good games left on their schedule, but I’m especially interested in the last two: at Hamilton Southeastern on Jan. 27 and at Lawrence North on Jan. 30.
2. Warsaw (14-1)
I’m not sure we’re talking about the Tigers' status among the state’s elite with as much confidence if they don’t lose to Jennings County in late November. It’s cliché, but that game served as a wake-up call for the defending 4A state runner-up, jolting them back into their game.
Their defense is suffocating, having limited eight straight opponents to fewer than 50 points before Tuesday's 76-58 win over Fairfield. And I’d put their top-3 of Joslyn Bricker, Brooke Zartman and Alexis Neely up against anyone.
Warsaw man-handled both Evansville Central and Norwell at the Hall of Fame Classic, and now has its sights set on rival Homestead on Jan. 20. (We’ll hopefully see them against Pendleton Heights at the Warsaw Tournament this weekend, and the Jan. 10 game vs. Northridge could be interesting, as well.)
3. Homestead (14-2)
The Spartans are fully healthy with the return of Delaney Noll and followed that six-point loss to Hamilton Southeastern with a dominating 4-0 showing at the Interra Classic over the holiday break. Theirs is a deep, power-packed lineup that's heavy on varsity experience.
Homestead should be 17-2 entering that Jan. 16 visit from Fort Wayne Snider, with a resume featuring wins over Northridge, Pike, Norwell, Plainfield, Penn, Franklin Central and Greensburg. Their losses came to Penn and Hamilton Southeastern.
4. Center Grove (14-0)
The Trojans opened the season vs. a full-strength Franklin Central outfit and took care of both Plainfield and Brownsburg in December. But I think their toughest test came against 3A Silver Creek in the Carol Tumey Invite championship game. And they survived, weathering a late charge by the Dragons to escape with a 47-38 win.
Coach Kevin Stuckmeyer's defense is as suffocating as it ever has been, making any sort of CG lead feel at least twice as large as it actually is. Brownsburg managed to piecemeal together an 18-0 run in the second half of Tuesday's Carol Tumey opener, and still never led by more than a couple possessions.
Establishing consistent scoring options beyond Gracyn Gilliard — an emerging contender for Miss Basketball, in my opinion — will be critical for this team's long-term success.
The January slate provides some tougher tests with Bloomington South (Tuesday), Carmel (Thursday), Lawrence North (Jan. 17), Cathedral (Jan. 21) and Hamilton Southeastern (Jan. 24).
5. Hamilton Southeastern (13-2)
We are still awaiting an update on KK Holman's status. The senior Florida commit had to be carried off the floor after suffering a non-contact injury during Monday's win over Valparaiso.
The Royals found ways to win in their game-and-a-quarter-plus without their starting point guard. Stidham has been the primary catalyst, delivering the game-winning 3 at the buzzer vs. Valparaiso, then dropping 30 points in a come-from-behind win over Decatur Central on Tuesday. The way HSE defends will give it a chance vs. most opponents, but there is continued urgency to establish scoring depth.
6. Valparaiso (12-2)
The Vikings went 2-1 through the most difficult stretch of their schedule, picking up wins over Norwell and Fort Wayne Snider before dropping a 3-point decision at the buzzer to Hamilton Southeastern. That's an impressive showing and sets this team up for a strong finish to the regular season with only a couple tests remaining: Lawrence North (Saturday) and McCutcheon (Jan. 13).
The Vikings have their established three with Lilli Barnes, Cadynce Clark and Delilah Kincaid, all of whom are scoring in double figures per game and shooting better than 40% from the field.
7. Norwell (13-4)
In terms of competition, coach Eric Thornton branded this past week as the most difficult stretch in program history. Plainfield and Warsaw at the Hall of Fame Classic followed by Valparaiso and Fort Wayne Snider as part of a retooled round robin last Saturday.
That's an insane stretch and while the Knights came away 1-3, there were positives to be gleaned from how they responded vs. Valparaiso following a blowout loss to Warsaw at the Hall of Fame Classic.
I'll go more in-depth on the Knights in my weekly wrap column.
8. Lawrence Central (10-3)
The Bears have lost three of their past four, but those L's all came against high-quality opponents and while they'll be heavily favored Saturday vs. Merrillville, I am interested to see how they look following a 10-day break (the extra practice time figures to have done them well as they reconfigure their lineup and get everyone comfortable following Riley Schellhammer's departure).
9. Pendleton Heights (11-2)
The Arabians are quietly putting together a very nice résumé with wins over Westfield, Hamilton Southeastern and Delta, plus losses to Lawrence Central and Brownsburg.
Winners of seven straight, they should get a shot at Warsaw on Saturday. With regards to that potential matchup, the Arabians will of course have their hands full with the Tigers' athleticism, but they will have a significant size advantage inside with the 6-3 Adah Hupfer, who's averaging a double-double (19.7 points, 12.5 rebounds).
10. Floyd Central (13-2)
The Highlanders close out the calendar year on a 10-game win streak that's seen them take out 4A McCutcheon, 2A Heritage Christian, 2A Lapel and 3A Connersville over their past four outings. That's a string of high-quality smaller-class teams, and Floyd Central will continue that run with Saturday's visit from Borden.
Coach Jerry Hickey's bunch hosts Jennings County on Jan. 13.
11. Fort Wayne Snider (12-5)
Janaya Cooper is back and healthy for the Panthers, whose seven-game win streak was snapped by Valparaiso last weekend. Cooper went for 33 points on 14-of-20 shooting against Norwell, with freshman teammate McKenzie White adding 20 (8-for-9 FG) and Izzie Eke logging 12.
Snider, which is shooting 44% as a team, has four players averaging at least eight points per game and a couple others contributing around 7 ppg.
Homestead on Jan. 16 looms as this team's next major test.
12. Roncalli (12-3)
The Royals own one of the best wins in 3A having upset Lawrence Central in the Marion County semifinals in mid-December. They came up short in the championship game vs. Pike, but bounced back with decisive wins over Danville and Bishop Chatard.
Elliot Leffler continues to bolster her Junior Indiana All-Star case, averaging nearly 19 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals per game, and senior Brennah Cerny is pouring in around nine points per game on a career-best 38% FG. Roncalli is really good defensively, but establishing scoring options beyond those two will be critical to a deep postseason run.
13. Plainfield (11-5)
I wrote about the Quakers' struggles following their 0-2 showing at the Hall of Fame Classic. They got back on track with an expectedly decisive win over Zionsville and a come-from-behind win over a rapidly rebuilding Lawrence North outfit. Hamilton Southeastern on Saturday serves as a prelude to the Hendricks County tournament, which will likely route the defending champion Quakers through rival Brownsburg in the championship game.
14. Westfield (13-5)
The Rocks split their games at the Interra Classic earlier this week, beating Northridge and Class A power Marquette Catholic, and losing to Penn and 3A Greensburg. That event was preceded by a seven-game win streak highlighted by Carmel, and Franklin Central.
Westfield's January slate is highlighted by Bishop Chatard, Hamilton Heights, HSE and Brownsburg.
15. Silver Creek (9-4)
The Dragons gave themselves a chance Tuesday night vs. Center Grove, clawing their way back to within seven down the stretch — an impressive showing against the toughest team on their schedule.
Emily Robison and Joslyn Chesser are both beginning to take advantage of the opportunities created as defenses key in on stopping Brooklynn Renn and Emma Schoen, and their continued development will make Silver Creek even more formidable come February.
16. Northridge (13-4)
The Raiders picked up three really nice wins over the break, taking out Marquette Catholic, Greensburg and Franklin Central. They have a very potent scoring attack with Lily Scholl, Alli Ambers, Cam Conley and Zoe Yeater, and are shooting 47% as a team while also averaging over 15 steals per game.
But we won't have a full gauge on this team until mid-January when it plays at sectional foe Warsaw (Jan. 10) and at Penn (Jan. 14).
17. Cathedral (10-4)
I'm hoping to see the Irish vs. Noblesville next week, but they're among the hottest teams going right now having won eight straight, a run highlighted by Jeffersonville, Ben Davis, Zionsville, Heritage Christian, Eastern Hancock and North Central.
Cathedral averaged 35.5 points through its first six games, a stretch overstuffed with powerhouse programs that included an upset of Jennings County. It is averaging 57 points in the eight games since, led by Precious Anuka and Caroline Wiggins.
18. Franklin Central (9-7)
I'm honestly not entirely sure what to make of the Flashes at this point of the season.
This week's Interra Classic felt like a prime opportunity to make a statement and build some momentum with games against Penn, Homestead and Northridge, but FC lost all three, dropping their record to 3-4 since mid-December, with expected wins over Franklin, Zionsville and Rushville and the additional loss coming to Roncalli in the Marion County semifinals.
Franklin Central is off until Jan. 9 when it travels to Roncalli. And aside from a Jan. 20 home game vs. Plainfield, it should be able to start stacking some wins over the subsequent three weeks.
19. Jennings County (11-3)
The Panthers are 8-2 since losing to Cathedral on Nov. 21. The wins include Warsaw, Carmel and East Central; the losses include defending Class A state champion Borden and 4A Franklin. They have a very interesting matchup Saturday at Greensburg, and their January schedule also includes Floyd Central, North Central (Mollie Ernstes vs. NC's Naja Winston will be a lot of fun to see) and Silver Creek.
20. Washington (12-3)
The Hatchets have wins over South Knox and Borden and overtime losses to North Knox and Evansville Central. The trio of Katie Reed, Shay Hawk and London Gilley is among the best in Southern Indiana.
Washington's lone setback since mid-November came against Evansville Reitz the day after Christmas, and it should be on a seven-game win streak when it travels to Gibson Southern on Jan. 27.
21. Bloomington South (11-2)
The Panthers struggled with Lawrence North's defensive pressure at the Plainfield Winter Classic, then dropped a 67-64 decision to Zionsville in the consolation game. They bounced back with a fairly comfortable win over Warren Central last Tuesday, but there's a significantly larger test ahead next week with Center Grove.
22. South Knox (12-3)
I left Wings and Rings really impressed by South Knox. Kendal Hill is the primary instigator, of course — she's one of the state's best 2027 prospects — but there are a lot of really talented guards surrounding her with Madison Parrish, Grace Detweiler, Kalissa Lavely and Brynley Millspaugh.
Evansville Central on Jan. 24 marks South Knox's next big test.
23. Penn (14-3)
Coach Kristi Ulrich's team is light on seniors, but the underclassmen, specifically freshman Jillian Sanderson and sophomore Alexis Werner, have been tremendous, both averaging over 10 points and multiple steals per game. They're the lynchpins for an offense that's shooting 45% from the field, 35% from 3 and averaging over 56 points per game.
The Kingsmen, whose losses have been to Valpo, Warsaw and Homestead, picked up notable wins earlier this week vs. Franklin Central and Westfield.
24. Greensburg (10-5)
The Pirates beefed up their 2025-26 schedule and acquitted themselves reasonably well, hanging with HSE and dropping a six-point decision to Northridge, and scoring wins over Gibson Southern, Brownsburg, Westfield and Marquette Catholic. They host Jennings County on Saturday and will play Roncalli on Jan. 13.
25. Evansville Reitz (12-1)
The 4A Panthers have established themselves as a potential disruptor within their pocket of the state, boasting a collection of wins that includes Evansville Central, Gibson Southern and, most recently, Washington.
Reitz is headlined by its two sophomores — Rhyan Wagner and Kierstyn Kaiser, a 6-foot guard/forward — who are averaging 15 and 11 points, respectively. That sophomore tandem along with fellow underclassman Keilah Mitchell have provided the perfect complements to 5-11 senior Bailey Hape, who's maintained her well-rounded statline: 9.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3.0 steals per game.
Also considered: Brownsburg, Borden, Evansville Mater Dei, Marquette Catholic, Brownsburg, McCutcheon, East Central
Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen. Get IndyStar's high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA girls basketball: Statewide rankings of Indiana's best high school teams
Category: General Sports
