The holidays are behind us, and school is back in session — and with it, the 2025-26 Maine high school boys basketball season is officially in full swing.

From here on out, the season proceeds uninterrupted until we gather in Augusta, Bangor and Portland in February. Here are five storylines to look out for as the season approaches the midway point.

Turnaround teams

Every year, a few teams go from also-rans to contenders. The 2025-26 season has been no exception.

That list starts with Sanford. After a 6-13 campaign last year, the Spartans were atop the Class A South Heal point standings at 7-0 entering Tuesday’s games. They have recorded impressive wins over Windham (7-1), Scarborough (5-2) and Kennebunk (5-2).

Gardiner was expected to make a big jump in Class B North, but a 7-1 start is still noteworthy for the Tigers, who haven’t won a postseason game since 2016. Elsewhere in B North, Erskine Academy, which hasn’t had a winning season since 2007-08, is 6-2.

Two Class C North teams, Foxcroft Academy and Sumner, have started 7-1 after having sub-.500 seasons a year ago. The Ponies boast one of the state’s most impressive victories, 72-58 over Caribou on Dec. 30. It was the Vikings’ first loss since Dec. 20, 2024.

New-look regional races unfolding

Reclassification changed every region in the state. Some, though, have seen more changes than others — and the playoff races in three regions have been particularly transformed.

A year ago, Camden Hills (A North), Edward Little (AA North) and Brunswick (A South) were in different regions. Now, they’re the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 teams in Class A North at 8-0, 6-3 and 6-2, respectively.

B North is another region with a completely different outlook. The current playoff field features Hermon (first place, 7-1), Mount Desert Island (third, 8-1), Belfast (fifth, 4-4), Ellsworth (sixth, 7-2) and Erskine Academy (seventh, 6-2) from the old B North, and Gardiner (second, 7-1), Cony (fourth, 7-1), Nokomis (eighth, 3-6) and Lawrence (ninth, 1-7) from the former A North.

Wilder still is the new C South. The region features an old C South team at the top in 7-0 Hall-Dale, but Maranacook (6-3, second) from B North and Spruce Mountain (6-2, third) from B South follow. Add in Mount View (5-3, sixth) from C North, and the current C South has contenders from four different regions of old.

Who’s still undefeated?

It’s been three years since Southern Aroostook won the Class D title with a 22-0 record — the last Maine boys basketball team to post an undefeated season.

Can anyone do it this year? Well, the number of perfect teams has dwindled fast, and with a little over half the season still to go, only six remain: Camden Hills, Hall-Dale, Sanford (7-0), York (8-0), Machias (9-0) and Fort Fairfield (7-0).

The odds are against Camden Hills and Sanford, as going undefeated in the top class hasn’t happened since Hampden Academy in 2012-13. Hall-Dale would be the first Class C West/South team to do it since Winthrop in 1992-93.

Although York’s schedule looks manageable, the state final has been a bogeyman for Class B South, which has only beaten the North once since 2016 (Yarmouth, 2022). It could, then, come down to Machias or Fort Fairfield in D North, though Madawaska is also a contender.

Crossover games provide a change of pace

Speaking of York, the Wildcats have two big wins under their belt thus far. The Western Maine Conference squad defeated the KVAC’s Edward Little twice, 61-41 on Dec. 9 and 63-48 on Friday.

In Class S, Valley has a similar profile. The East/West Cavaliers beat Dirigo (Mountain Valley Conference, Class C) 69-58 on Dec. 19 before falling to Monmouth Academy (MVC, D) 64-39 on Dec. 31. They will face Hall-Dale twice this year and Old Orchard Beach (WMC, D) once.

Other notable crossovers in the first month of the season include Cony (KVAC, B) defeating Maranacook (MVC, C) 96-74 on Friday, Brunswick (KVAC, A) beating Greely (WMC, B) 79-36 on Dec. 4, and Mount Desert Island (Big East, B) defeating Bangor (KVAC, A) 63-51 on Dec. 11.

Major tilts ahead this week

A big week of basketball is highlighted by a pair of appetizing Class A South clashes Tuesday. Thornton Academy (7-1) hosts South Portland (6-2), while Scarborough entertains back-to-back Class AA state champ Windham.

Thornton is back in action with another huge game Thursday when it hosts Sanford. The Trojans are at home again Saturday against Kennebunk, while Sanford returns home to face another potent A South squad in Bonny Eagle (4-2), also on Saturday.

Friday night, meanwhile, is a big one in Class B. Hermon travels to Gardiner in a battle of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the North, while Cony hosts Medomak Valley (6-1) in a cross-region showdown.