Crown Point Ranks No. 11 in Preseason Poll
The Indiana Basketball Coaches Association released its 2026-27 preseason girls basketball poll, with Crown Point as the lone Northwest Indiana team in the top 20.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Basketball
The Indiana Basketball Coaches Association released its 2026-27 preseason girls basketball poll, ranking Crown Point No. 11 with 214 points. Crown Point finished the 2025-26 season 23-5 and advanced to Class 4A's Northern semistate semifinals.
Why it matters
The preseason ranking gives Northwest Indiana a prominent place in the statewide girls basketball picture heading into the new season. Chesterton, Marquette Catholic and Valparaiso also received votes but did not crack the top 20.
Crown Point, which finished 2025-26 at 23-5, received 214 points in the 22-member panel's vote. Chesterton (15-8), Marquette Catholic (23-4) and Valparaiso (23-3) received votes but did not make the top 20.
The players
Indiana Basketball Coaches Association
The IBCA is the statewide organization of Indiana basketball coaches that produces the annual girls and boys preseason and weekly polls.
Indiana High School Athletic Association
The IHSAA is the governing body that oversees interscholastic athletics, including girls basketball, across Indiana public and member schools.
The details
The poll panel includes one voter from each of the 16 regionals and six at-large voters, with two from each of the IHSAA's three districts. Highland coach Eric Kundich serves as Class 3A's regional representative, and Andrean coach Tony Scheub submits a vote for Class 2A. Polls will be released every Sunday through Jan. 31, 2027.
Timeline
Sunday evening: IBCA releases preseason girls basketball poll
Monday: 2026-27 IHSAA girls basketball season officially tips off
Every Sunday through Jan. 31, 2027: Subsequent IBCA polls released weekly
Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2027: IHSAA sectional play begins
Season Trajectory
The IBCA's regional-and-at-large voting structure, which spans all 16 regionals plus six at-large voters, produces the statewide rankings that shape how Indiana girls teams are seeded and seen each winter. Crown Point's No. 11 placement follows a season in which it advanced to the Class 4A Northern semistate semifinals.
Fans tracking Northwest Indiana girls basketball can follow Crown Point's progress in the weekly polls through the season. The ranking gives local families a benchmark for how the region's top programs compare statewide as sectional play approaches.
The takeaway
A top-20 preseason placement signals that Northwest Indiana girls basketball is competing at a high statewide level heading into the new season. Watching how ranked teams perform in the weekly polls will show which programs keep their momentum through sectional play.
What happens next
Weekly IBCA polls will be released every Sunday through Jan. 31, 2027, and IHSAA sectional play begins Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2027.
Further reading
For more on the season ahead, explore Indiana basketball coverage on Wisevoter.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Nwitimes.
