High school basketball: John Marshall is the new No. 1, West Linn jumps to No. 6 in this week's MaxPreps Top 25

By Jordan Divens Jan 3, 2023, 11:00am

Previous No. 1 Duncanville was one of eight top 10 teams that fell victim to holiday upsets.

One of the most unpredictable weeks high school basketball has seen in the past decade saw eight of the top 10 teams in last week's MaxPreps Top 25 fall victim to upsets at holiday events, including previously top-ranked Duncanville (Texas), who fell to West Linn (Ore.) 62-50 in the Les Schwab Invitational title game.

Along with the Panthers, previous No. 2 Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia), No. 3 Columbus (Miami, Fla.), No. 6 Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia), No. 7 Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.), No. 8 Centennial (Corona, Calif.), No. 9 Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.) and No. 10 West Ranch (Valencia, Calif.) each suffered upset losses that resulted in a drop in the rankings.

John Marshall (Richmond, Va.) rises 15 spots to No. 1 in the MaxPreps Top 25 this week after winning the Chick-fil-A Classic American Division title. The Justices took down Greensboro Day School (Greensboro, N.C.) 65-53, previous No. 3 Columbus 50-47 and previous No. 7 Wheeler 68-55 en route to the championship. The Justices received strong contributions from tournament MVP Damon Thompson Jr., North Carolina State pledge Dennis Parker Jr, unsigned senior Jason Rivera and highly-regarded freshman Latrell Allmond throughout the event.

John Marshall slightly edges out Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) for the top spot in the rankings. Defending champions Duncanville drop to No. 3 in the after its shocking setback. West Linn sees the biggest rise in the history of the basketball rankings at MaxPreps as it jumps from outside the top 50 to No. 6.



Previous No. 15 Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.), No. 17 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.), No. 18 Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.), No. 22 American Fork (Utah) and No. 23 Norcross (Ga.) also suffered losses last week to fall out of the rankings.

No. 6 West Linn, No. 13 Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.), No. 21 Beaumont United (Beaumont, Texas), No. 24 Mount St. Joseph (Baltimore) and No. 25 Roman Catholic (Philadelphia) are new entries in the MaxPreps Top 25.
John Marshall celebrates with the trophy after winning the Chick-fil-A Classic American Division title. (Photo: Chick-Fil-A Classic)
John Marshall celebrates with the trophy after winning the Chick-fil-A Classic American Division title. (Photo: Chick-Fil-A Classic)
1. John Marshall (Richmond, Va.)
Record: 10-0 | Last week: 16
Overcame a 10-point third quarter deficit to defeat previous No. 3 Columbus 50-47 in the semifinals before a commanding championship performance to knock off previous No. 7 Wheeler 68-55. Dennis Parker Jr. scored a game-high 23 points in the title game while Jason Rivera made a significant impact with 12 points and 18 rebounds.

Record: 9-1 | Last week: 4
Secured another quality win at Hoophall East, defeating Archbishop Stepinac (White Plains, N.Y.) 84-53 led by 28 points from Duke-bound junior Darren Harris. The Panthers finished in third place at the City of Palms Classic, defeating No. 20 Lake Highlands 64-58 and No. 14 Wheeler 63-51 and losing to No. 11 Columbus 57-55.

Record: 15-1 | Last week: 1
Despite seeing its 35-game win streak dating back to last season snapped, Duncanville still owns one of the strongest resumes in high school basketball. The Panthers are 3-1 against currently-ranked opponents with wins over No. 11 Columbus, No. 16 Centennial and No. 20 Lake Highlands.

Record: 7-0 | Last week: 5
Picked up a win over Panther Creek 67-48 in the semifinals paced by 22 points and 13 rebounds from No. 5-ranked senior Aaron Bradshaw and defeated Northwood 60-35 in the title game led by 22 points and five rebounds from No. 2-ranked senior D.J. Wagner to capture the John Wall Holiday Invitational Coby White Bracket title.

Record: 12-0 | Last week: 13
The Eagles had an impressive showing at the Jordan Holiday Classic, defeating Hudson Catholic (Jersey City, N.J.) 80-51, previous No. 15 Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.) 76-66 and Reading (Pa.) 80-55.



Record: 10-0 | Last week: NR
Claimed the title at the Les Schwab Invitational by defeating Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) 86-69 in the semifinals and previously top-ranked Duncanville 62-50 in the championship game. Oregon signee Jackson Shelstad earned tournament MVP honors after averaging 33 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists across four contests.

Record: 7-2 | Last week: 11
Notched a signature victory over No. 8 Imhotep Charter 65-55 at the Jordan Holiday Classic guided by 24 points, six rebounds, five blocks and four assists from junior V.J. Edgecombe. The Crusaders face Bishop Walsh (Cumberland, Md.) on Thursday and National Top 10 No. 7 La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) on Saturday in NIBC play.

Record: 8-1 | Last week: 2
After capturing the City of Palms Classic title, the Panthers suffered their first loss of the season against No. 7 Long Island Lutheran 65-55 at the Jordan Holiday Classic. The Philadelphia powerhouse looks to rebound this weekend with a showdown against No. 9 Simeon on Saturday at the Highland Shootout.

Record: 12-0 | Last week: 14
Captured the Pontiac Holiday Tournament title with wins over Curie (Chicago) 67-58 in the semifinals and Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.) 52-49 in the championship game. The Wolverines face a pair of tests this weekend against Cathedral (Indianapolis, Ind.) on Friday and No. 8 Imhotep Charter on Saturday.

Record: 12-0 | Last week: 24
Captured the Torrey Pines Holiday Classic title by defeating Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.) 75-36, St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) 77-67, Eastside Catholic (Sammamish, Wash.) 73-60 and St. Augustine (San Diego, Calif.) 71-65, respectively. The Cadets have a big-time game tonight against National Top 10 No. 3 IMG Academy at the Behan Strong Invitational.

Record: 10-3 | Last week: 3
Finished in third place in the Chick-fil-A Classic American bracket after falling to No. 1 John Marshall (Richmond, Va.) 50-47 in the semifinals. Top-ranked sophomore Cameron Boozer was named Most Outstanding Player after averaging 17.7 points and 13.0 rebounds in three games.



12. Perry (Gilbert, Ariz.)
Record: 15-0 | Last week: 12
The Pumas remain at No. 12 due to having no wins against top 50 opponents. Perry faces Pinnacle (Phoenix, Ariz.) tonight.

Record: 7-0 | Last week: NR
Five-star junior Dylan Harper averaged 28.3 points and seven rebounds at the John Wall Holiday Invitational to lead the Ironmen to the Devonte Graham Bracket championship with wins over Garner (N.C.) 74-52, No. 16 Centennial (Corona, Calif.) 65-63 and Farmville Central (Farmville, N.C.) 79-74.

Record: 8-4 | Last week: 7
Suffered their fourth setback to a highly-ranked opponent at the Chick-fil-A Classic title game, falling to John Marshall 68-55 despite receiving 18 points and nine rebounds from USC signee Arrinten Page. The Wildcats other losses came against No. 2 Paul VI, No. 8 Imhotep Charter and No. 10 Columbus.

Record: 6-1 | Last week: 6
First loss of the season came against Rutgers Prep (Somerset, N.J.) in a 69-55 shocker at the Pete and Jameer Nelson Classic.

Record: 11-3 | Last week: 8
In one of a handful of significant upsets last week, the Huskies fell to No. 14 Don Bosco Prep 65-63 in the John Wall Holiday Invitation Devonte Graham bracket semifinals. Junior Eric Freeny led the way with 22 points and nine rebounds in a bounceback win over Millbrook (Raleigh, N.C.) in the third-place game.

Record: 12-0 | Last week: 19
Captured the Hall of Fame Classic title led by sophomore guard Mark Zackery, who was named tournament MVP after going for 13 points in a 60-42 win over Northwood (Nappanee, Ind.) and scoring 10 points in a 65-53 victory over Penn (Mishawaka, Ind.).



Record: 16-1 | Last week: 9
Dropped their first game of the 2022-23 campaign in the Classic at Damien Platinum Division title game, losing to Liberty (Henderson, Nev.) 59-56. Despite the loss, their resume includes wins over teams from six different states.

Record: 15-1 | Last week: 10
Suffered their first setback of the season against Rancho Christian (Temecula, Calif.) 60-53 in the Classic at Damien Platinum Division quarterfinals. The Wildcats were able to overcome a slow start the following night, falling behind 38-13 at halftime before pulling out a 65-61 overtime win against Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.).

Record: 15-3 | Last week: 20
Defeated Allen (Texas) 81-68 to win the In & Out Tournament behind top-ranked junior Tre Johnson, who finished with 32 points and 14 rebounds in the victory. Junior guard Jaylen Washington also contributed 22 points in the title game.

Record: 17-1 | Last week: NR
Four-star Washington signee Wesley Yates III was named tournament MVP after hitting the game-winning shot as time expired in a 53-52 victory over Pine Bluff (Ark.) in the title game.

Record: 11-1 | Last week: 21
Following a 10-day layoff, the Longhorns return to the court tonight for a showdown against North Springs (Atlanta, Ga.). Kell's lone loss came against No. 19 West Ranch at the Tarkanian Classic.

Record: 10-0 | Last week: 25
Captured the Metro Holiday Tournament championship with wins over Bellevue East (Bellevue, Neb.) 87-37, Elkhorn South (Omaha, Neb.) 98-61, Omaha Westside (Omaha, Neb.) 79-52 and Creighton Prep (Omaha, Neb.) 66-44. Creighton pledge Josiah Dotzler has been leading the charge this season averaging 17.5 points, 6.0 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.4 steals.



Record: 12-2 | Last week: NR
After reaching the title game of the 'Iolani Classic and defeating perennial powerhouse Montverde Academy in one of the biggest upsets of the high school basketball season prior to Christmas, the Gaels secured a pair of wins over Central Catholic (Pittsburgh) 65-48 and St. Stephen's & St. Agnes (Alexandria, Va.) 50-48 at the Governors Classic.

Record: 8-1 | Last week: NR
Captured the Beach Ball Classic Traditional championship by defeating Dorman (Roebuck, S.C.) 56-54 in overtime in the title game paced by 20 points from St. Joseph's commit Xzayvier Brown. The Cahillites blew past Tampa Catholic (Tampa, Fla.) 72-38 in their semifinal showdown.