MaxPreps Boys Basketball Xcellent 25

Compiled By Dave Krider

MaxPreps.com

About the Rankings: MaxPreps already provides the most comprehensive high school sports ratings with the MaxPreps National Rankings presented by the National Guard, a computer model developed by Ned Freeman. Now, it’s time to get the human element involved.

Each Monday, senior writer Dave Krider will run down the top 25 boys basketball teams in the country – weighing record, quality wins and losses and other factors to determine the best of the best.

MaxPreps Xcellent 25

1. Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 24-0. Last week: 1. The mighty Monarchs rolled past then No. 3-ranked St. Benedict’s (Newark, N.J.), 73-61, before a capacity crowd of 3,200. David Wear led the way with 18 points, Tyler Lamb added 17 and Travis Wear 13. Volleyball standout Connor Hughes filled in ably for injured Andy Brown with 12 points. David Wear, Hughes and Lamb each had seven rebounds as the Monarchs controlled the boards, 34-17. Earlier in the week they routed Santa Margarita, 73-46.

2. Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) 32-0. Last week: 2. Senior Glenn Bryant came up big last week during two lopsided victories. He had 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocks in a 78-55 victory over Blue Ridge (Dyke, Va.). Bryon Allen also had 18 points. Bryant then produced 27 points, nine blocks and nine rebounds during a 112-60 rout of Sound Doctrine Academy (LaGrange, Ga.). Junior guard Doron Lamb added 19 points and five assists. Big game: Saturday vs. No. 3-ranked Elizabeth St. Patrick at Trenton, N.J.

3. St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) 18-2. Last week: 7. The Celtics knocked New Jersey rival Newark St. Benedict’s out of its No. 3-ranking with a decisive 88-62 victory before a crowd of 4,000 at Rutgers University. They drilled 26-of-44 shots from the field and 31-of-35 free throws. Senior guard Dexter Strickland and junior running mate Kyrie Irving each scored 21 points. Strickland shot 7-of-8 from the field, while Irving was a perfect 11-of-11 from the free throw line. Sophomore Michael Gilchrist was high with 14 points during a 69-50 victory over the Hun School and Irving took game honors with 15 points in a tight 39-35 victory over talented Pennsbury (Fairless Hills, Pa.). Big games: Friday vs. Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Saturday vs. No. 2 Oak Hill.

4. Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) 16-1. Last week: 4. The Mustangs defeated Stuart (Falls Church, Va.), 60-47, behind the scoring of Mouphtaou Yarou (27) and Terrence Ross (24).

5. Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) 24-0. Last week: 5. The Pilots did not play last week.

6. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) 21-1. Last week: 10. The Spartans snapped Compton Dominguez’s 14-game winning streak with an impressive 64-38 victory while running their own winning streak to 17. They shot .545 from the field and drilled 9-of-15 3-pointers, in addition to playing their usual great defense. John McArthur paced four players in double figures with 12 points and senior point guard Brandon Smith dominated with 11 assists. Smith had 12 points and seven assists during a 59-22 victory over Pleasanton Foothill. Beau Levesque sparked a 65-26 rout of Granada with 17 points and 11 rebounds and Smith handed out eight assists.

7. Strake Jesuit (Houston, Texas) 29-0. Last week: 8. Joey Brooks averaged 28.5 points during victories over Alief opponents Elsik (76-59) and Taylor (54-38). Tim Frazier scored 20 points against Elsik.

8. LeFlore (Mobile, Ala.) 25-2. Last week: 9. Kentarie Nettles had 14 points and eight rebounds to spark an 84-32 rout of Mobile Citronelle in the Class 5A Area Tournament semifinals.

9. Detroit Country Day (Beverly Hills, Mich.) 16-0. Last week: 13. The Yellowjackets won three times, including an 80-71 victory over talented Saginaw Arthur Hill. Donnavan Kirk scored 23 points and Ray McCallum 17 to help overcome an early 14-0 deficit. DaShonte Riley contributed 14 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks. McCallum scored 22 points during a 61-52 victory over Detroit Community.

10. Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) 17-0. Last week: 14. The Royals routed previously unbeaten New Hope Robbinsdale Cooper, 100-78, before a capacity crowd of 2,400. Trent Lockett set the pace with 23 points, while Mike Broghamer added 17 points and 10 rebounds. Royce White also had 10 rebounds. White scored 22 points and Raymond Cowels 18 during a 90-53 rout of Edina.

11. Northland (Columbus, Ohio) 16-1. Last week: 11. The Vikings rebounded from their first loss to win three times. Juniors Jared Sullinger and J.D. Weatherspoon averaged 23.5 points and 17.5 points, respectively, in victories over Columbus opponents Beechcroft (80-73) and Whetstone (55-40). Dimonde Hale had 17 points and Trey Burke 16 during a 76-35 rout of city foe Linden-McKinley.

12. Boyd Anderson (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.) 24-1. Last week: 12. MVP Bryan Bynes scored 17 points as the Cobras defeated Pompano Beach Ely, 61-39, to win their third consecutive BCAA Big Eight Tournament championship. Martavious Irving added 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Tyrone Davis dished out six assists. Bynes had 21 points – including two monster dunks - in an 81-49 quarterfinal victory over South Broward, while Irving tallied 20 points during a 62-44 semifinal win against Parkland Douglas. 

13. Westchester (Los Angeles, Calif.) 23-2. Last week: 6. The Comets’ 10-game winning streak was broken, 49-42, by No. 18 Fairfax. Senior guard Dominique O’Connor was high with 16 points. O’Connor had 21 points and Jordin Mayes 19 as the Comets defeated Rainier Beach (Seattle, Wash.), 75-65, with 50 percent shooting. Mayes set the pace with 17 points, five steals and he took two charges as the Comets defeated Venice, 69-52. Dwayne Polee added 13 points, eight rebounds and had three dunks. Big game: Saturday vs. Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.).

14. St. Benedict’s (Newark, N.J.) 19-2. Last week: 3. The Gray Bees lost twice to nationally-ranked teams. They shot only 19-of-39 from the free throw line during an 88-62 loss to Elizabeth St. Patrick, then ranked No. 7. Junior Tristan Thompson and sophomore Myck Kabongo each scored 13 points. Later they bowed to No. 1 Mater Dei, 73-61, despite 17 points by sophomore Taron Sledge and 14 (all in the second half) by Thompson.

15. Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) 16-2. Last week: 15. The Wildcats gained ample revenge for last year’s 32-point loss by defeating Carmel, 69-58. Junior Dominique Ferguson scored 22 points and senior Stephan Van Treese 15 and the Wildcats forced 16 Carmel turnovers.

16. Thornton (Harvey, Ill.) 20-1. Last week: 16. The Wildcats were idle last week.

17. Olympia (Orlando, Fla.) 22-3. Last week: 17. Senior guard Dexter Fields averaged 19 points during victories over Orlando Cypress Creek (61-52) and Bartow (72-55). Sherwood Brown added 17 points against Bartow, while point guard Martel Buie handed out 10 assists.

18. Fairfax (Los Angeles, Calif.) 21-3. Last week: 18. The Lions avenged a recent78-73 loss by edging then No. 6 Los Angeles Westchester, 49-42, before an overflow crowd. Senior Renardo Sidney dominated with 26 points, 22 rebounds and five blocks. Sidney scored 28 points during an 89-54 victory over Palisades. He also had 19 points and nine rebounds during a 64-57 victory over Whitney Young (Chicago, Ill.), with Solomon Hill contributing 17 rebounds.

19. South Atlanta (Atlanta, Ga.) 20-3. Last week: 19. Derrick Favors averaged 30 points, Andre Malone 26 and Nick Watkins 23 during easy victories over Rutland (100-49) and Spalding (96-67).

20. Franklin (Seattle, Wash.) 17-1. Last week: 20. Senior point guard Peyton Siva averaged 20.6 points as the Quakers defeated city foes Prep (65-53), Cleveland (68-39) and Lakeside (77-46). He also dished out 11 assists against Lakeside. Chris Holmes had 23 points on 11-of-14 shooting against Lakeside.

21. Holmes (Covington, Ky.) 23-1. Last week: 21. The Bulldogs won three times, extending their winning streak to 22 games. Ricardo Johnson and JaMel Riley each scored 17 points in a 69-46 victory over Edgewood Dixie Heights. Elijah Pittman had 22 points, while Riley had 14 points and six assists in a 77-68 triumph over Fort Thomas Highlands. Ricardo Johnson was high with 16 points during a 53-40 win over Hazard.

22. Rice (Manhattan, N.Y.) 14-2. Last week: 22. The Raiders won twice, including a 60-42 verdict against Bronx St. Raymond’s, which had upset them the previous week, 46-45. Senior Durand Scott lit the spark with 19 points and the Raiders forced 24 turnovers.

23. Pershing (Detroit, Mich.) 14-1. Last week: 23. Juniors Keith Appling and Juwan Howard sparked victories over city foes Denby (93-56) and Kettering (72-40). Appling averaged 28 points, while Howard averaged 17.

24. DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) 19-3. Last week: 24. Marcus Rouse and Naji Hibbert each scored 19 points during a 63-49 victory over Saint Mary’s Ryken. Rouse netted 20 points and Jerian Grant 18 as the Stags edged Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 68-63, while Quinn Cook’s 14 points paced a 45-42 victory against St. John’s (Washington, D.C.).

25. St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) 17-3. Last week: 25. Dominic Cheek scored 13 points and Ashton Pankey 12 as the Friars crushed New Brunswick, 76-17.

Dropped out: None.

Past Weeks: Jan. 5 / Jan. 12 / Jan. 20 / Jan. 26 / Feb. 2

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