Paul VI completes impressive postseason run with title at Alhambra Catholic Invitational; Callaway, Germantown win state titles; Whitney Young, Stevenson on collision course in Illinois.
Top-ranked Mater Dei will face a familiar playoff foe Tuesday in Etiwanda. The Monarchs and Eagles split a pair of postseason contests a year ago.
Photo by Louis Lopez
MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Basketball Rankings presented by the Army National Guard
1. (No. 1 last week) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 32-0The Monarchs handled St. Augustine (San Diego) 65-38 on Friday night in the first round of Open Division state tournament action. Joining Mater Dei in the SoCal final four is Tuesday's opponent Etiwanda along with Redondo Union and Westchester (Los Angeles) on the opposite side of the bracket.
2. (2) Montverde Academy (Fla.), 25-0 *Montverde Academy is the top seed for the Dick's Sporting Goods High School National Tournament scheduled for April 3-5 in New York City. The Eagles face No. 4 Sagemont in the opening round.
3. (3) Rainier Beach (Seattle), 29-0Also headed to Dick's Nationals, the Vikings will meet No. 15 Findlay Prep in quarterfinal play.
4. (4) Sagemont (Weston, Fla.), 33-0In a bit of a bracketing oddity considering both teams are from Florida, Sagemont opens at Dick's Nationals against No. 1 Montverde Academy. The Lions are pegged No. 18 nationally by USA Today, the rankings favored by organizers and used to help seed bracket.
5. (5) Northside Christian Academy (Charlotte, N.C.), 28-1Another program headed the Dick's Nationals, the Knights will play against storied No. 10 Oak Hill Academy.{PAGEBREAK}
Jeremie Tyler scored 23 points in the first game of Arsenal Tech's Saturday state playoff doubleheader.
File photo by Randy Sartin
Tech survived a competitive twist in Indiana's state playoffs that requires contenders to win two games in one day in the regional semifinals and regional final rounds. The Titans beat Richmond 80-55 on Saturday morning then gutted one out against Pike (Indianapolis) 60-52 in the evening. Arsenal faces Bloomington North on Saturday in the state semifinals.
7. (7) La Lumiere (LaPorte, Ind.), 23-2The Lakers earned an invite to Dick's Nationals and will meet No. 12 Huntington St. Joseph Prep in the tournament opener April 3.
8. (8) Greater Atlanta Christian (Norcross, Ga.), 32-0Season complete. Class AA state champions.
9. (9) Corona del Sol (Tempe, Ariz.), 33-1Season complete. Division I state champions.
10. (10) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 39-3The Warriors will attempt to slow down high-scoring Northside Christian Academy in the opening round at Dick's Nationals.{PAGEBREAK}
Junior Joshua Reaves emerged as a leader for a young Paul VI squad this season. Expect the Panthers to figure prominently in the 2014-15 preseason rankings.
Photo by Mike Braca
The Panthers closed the season with an impressive 10-game win streak, capturing the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference tournament title, the VISAA Division 1 state crown and the Alhambra Catholic Invitational. Paul VI's resume includes wins over teams from nine states and the District of Columbia.
12. (11) Huntington St. Joseph Prep (W.Va.), 27-4Making their first appearance at Dick's Nationals (formerly known as the National High School Invitational), the Irish take on No. 7 La Lumiere in opening-round play.
13. (12) Whitney Young (Chicago), 26-5 *Jahlil Okafor and the Dolphin seniors need three more wins to close their careers out with a state title. It won't be easy as No. 18 Stevenson is a potential opponent in the semifinals and Benet Academy (Lisle), Edwardsville and Marian Catholic (Chicago Heights) are looming on the opposite side of the bracket.
14. (13) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 30-3 *Season complete. Division I state champions.
15. (14) Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.), 30-4Looking for their fourth Dick's Nationals crown, the Pilots open in NYC against No. 3 Rainier Beach.{PAGEBREAK}
Cheick Diallo and Our Savior New American narrowly missed an invite to Dick's Nationals.
Photo by Nick Koza
The Big Reds are three wins away from the Class A title. Next up is Skyline (Ann Arbor) on Tuesday in the quarterfinals.
17. (17) Our Savior New American (Centereach, N.Y.), 28-3Season complete.
18. (18) Stevenson (Lincolnshire, Ill.), 30-1The Patriots need to beat Auburn (Rockford) on Tuesday to set up a potential showdown with No. 13 Whitney Young in the 4A state semifinals. All-American candidate
Jalen Brunson put up 27 points Friday in a 63-48 sectional final win over Fremd (Palatine).
19. (19) North Shore (Houston), 35-3Season complete. Class 5A state champions.
20. (20) Orlando Christian Prep (Fla.), 30-1Season complete. Class 2A state champions.{PAGEBREAK}
Head coach Steve Showalter and Germantown hit a rough patch this season but regrouped to win their third state title in a row.
File photo by Allen Fredrickson
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.
22. (22) Callaway (Jackson, Miss.), 31-1Top junior prospect
Malik Newman led the Chargers to their third state title in a row Friday night with 25 points in a 49-33 win over Vicksburg. Newman, a 6-foot-3 guard, averaged 29.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in 2013-14.
23. (24) Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia), 25-4The Saints are two wins away from their fourth state title in five years after beating Allentown Central Catholic 60-50 over the weekend.
24. (NR) Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.), 26-4After beating No. 14 Bishop Gorman and taking No. 1 Mater Dei to overtime at the Tarkanian Classic in December, the Dragons climbed to as high as No. 13 in the Xcellent 25. But a three-game losing streak the following week at the Under Armour Holiday Classic knocked the Dragons out of the rankings. O'Dowd's response has been remarkable, winning 21 in a row with 15 of those coming by 20 points or more.
25. (NR) Germantown (Wis.), 26-2There was some adversity along the way this season for Germantown, but when it was all said and done the Warhawks came away with their third-consecutive Division 1 state title – going 82-2 during that span. Head coach Steve Showalter saw his team's 69-game win streak end in mid-January and shortly after two starters and a key reserve were suspended, leading to a second loss to eventual Division 2 state champion Wisconsin Lutheran (Milwaukee).
Dropped out: No. 23 last week
Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati); No. 25
Hamilton Southeastern (Fishers, Ind.)
* Record includes forfeit victory
