Teams from upside, outside NYC flex muscles in MaxPreps' New York boys basketball rankings

Video: Isaiah Whitehead high school highlights
Former Lincoln (Brooklyn) standout led Seton Hall to NCAA tournament.

New York City is known as the mecca of basketball.

So it may come as a surprise to some that most of the Top 25-ranked in MaxPreps' High School Basketball Rankings Central for the Empire State come from outside the city.

State championships were won by: Aquinas Institute (Class AA), Elmont Memorial (Class A), Olean (Class B), Middle Early College (Buffalo) (Class C) and Oriskany (Class D).



State finalists were: Middletown (Class AA), Troy (Class A), Marlboro Central (Class B), Haldane (Cold Spring) (Class C) and Moriah (Port Henry) (Class D).

Aquinas (25-3) is the No. 1-ranked team in MaxPreps' New York rankings. Seventeen of the top 25 are teams from outside of New York City.


1. Aquinas Institute (Rochester)
Overall: 25-3
Rating: 32.4
Strength of schedule: 17.6

2. Canisius (Buffalo)
26-3
28.9
15.9

3. Shenendehowa (Clifton Park)
28-1
28.8
12.0

4. Long Island Lutheran (Brookville)
22-4
27.3
14.8



5. Albany Academy for Boys
18-4
26.9
16.0
+1 in rankings

6. The Park School of Buffalo
20-4
26.0
14.5
-1

7. Jefferson (Brooklyn)
22-9
25.2
18.8
+2

8. Lincoln (Brooklyn)
20-8
25.0
17.7

9. Bishop Loughlin (Brooklyn)
9-3
25.0
18.3
-2

10. Olean
28-0
23.4
5.2



11. Middletown
20-5
22.6
12.2
+1

12. Bishop Kearney (Rochester)
16-6
22.3
14.3
+1

13. Greece Athena (Rochester)
17-0
22.3
5.4
+1

14. Norwich
22-2
22.2
7.4
+2

15. Archbishop Molloy (Queens)
7-4
22.1
20.6

16. Green Tech (Albany)
16-4
22.1
11.2
+2



17. Henninger (Syracuse)
20-4
22.0
10.6

18. Xaverian (Brooklyn)
9-4
22.0
17.1
-7

19. Wings Academy (Bronx)
22-4
21.9
9.7

20. Fox Lane (Bedford)
9-1
21.5
9.1

21. Liverpool
20-6
21.5
11.7

22. Westinghouse (Brooklyn)
14-5
21.5
14.5
+1



23. Kellenberg Memorial (Uniondale)
16-3
21.3
10.6
-1

24. Cardozo (Bayside)
21-3
21.3
8.2

25. Baldwin
15-2
21.2
7.9

Multimedia news and sports editor and producer Joe Lombardi is director of media initiatives and managing editor of the DailyVoice.com, as well as the primary author of the most recent edition of "Lacrosse for Dummies." Follow Joe on Twitter @Joe_Lombardi.