School: Cary-Grove
2018-19 record: 21-8 (11-5 Fox Valley)
Postseason results: Lost to South Elgin in Class 4A regional championship.
Players to watch: Senior center Frank Jakubicek blossomed into a Division I recruit with a monster summer as the 6-foot-8 forward is committed to Belmont. Point guard Beau Frericks, a Lewis commit, is one of the area's top senior floor generals after averaging 19.4 points per game as a junior.
Why they're in the power rankings: In an underrated Fox Valley Conference last season, the junior-led Trojans still won 21 games and had the fourth best season in school history. Jakubicek and Frericks both had strong summers playing against the area's top competition in events like Riverside-Brookfield and Ridgewood. The Trojans look like the early favorites in the Fox Valley.
Did you know? The Trojans are the defending Class 6A state champs in football and had the No. 18 overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft in pitcher Quinn Priester. But basketball success has eluded Cary-Grove. The school only has one basketball regional title (2001) in school history.