Top 25 high school basketball rankings

High school basketball's "Showdown Saturday" featured three games pitting nationally-ranked teams against one another.

The results gave this week's Xcellent 25 presented by the Army National Guard a new look, although New Jersey juggernauts St. Patrick (Elizabeth) and St. Anthony (Jersey City) maintained their hold on the top two spots and continue to roar toward a highly-anticipated grudge match.

In Illinois, Benet Academy (Lisle) remained unbeaten with a 58-54 win over then-No. 3 Simeon (Chicago) at the City-Suburban Showdown on Saturday night. For Simeon, the setback was the second in as many games after beginning the season 23-0 and positioning itself for a crack at the No. 1 national ranking.

In Upper Marlboro, Md., Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) did its best to erase memories of a rocky seven-game stretch in late January that resulted in three losses. The Warriors crushed then-No. 15 Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) 103-76 at the Presidential Hoopfest behind 28 points from Duke signee Quinn Cook.

Finally, Lakeview Centennial (Garland, Texas) knocked off then-No. 23 Kimball (Dallas) 76-69 at the Dallas ISD Showcase to finish the regular season 31-1.



Read on for a complete look at how Showdown Saturday impacted this week's Xcellent 25.

Xcellent 25 High School Basketball Rankings presented by the Army National Guard

1. (No. 1 last week) St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) (22-0)
The Celtics opened the Union County Tournament with a 100-62 win over Scotch Plains-Fanwood (Scotch Plains) in their only game of the week. Senior guards Chris Martin and Derrick Gordon stepped up to combine for 45 points as Kentucky-bound forward Michael Gilchrist was hampered by two early fouls. Martin connected on seven 3-pointers in the 38-point thrashing.

2. (2) St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) (22-0)
Bob Hurley's Friars cruised to double-digit wins over Linden, Rancocas Valley (Mt. Holly) and Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) last week. Displaying their tremendous depth and balance, seven different St. Anthony players scored in double figures during the 3-0 stretch.

3. (4) Milton (Ga.) (25-2)
The Eagles begin defense of their 2010 state championship Friday against Central Gwinnett (Lawrenceville) in Georgia's Class AAAAA state playoffs. Milton eased its way to the Region 6-AAAAA title last week with wins over Roswell and Centennial (Roswell).

4. (5) Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas) (32-1)
The Marauders closed out the regular season with a 59-35 win over Flower Mound on Tuesday behind 22 points from star junior Marcus Smart. Unfortunately, that wasn't the only news involving Smart and the program this week. The Dallas Morning News is reporting that Smart's district residency could be in question.

5. (6) Norcom (Portsmouth, Va.) (23-1)
Behind 20 points from Dorian Finney-Smith, Norcom avenged its only loss of the season Saturday night, beating Booker T. Washington (Norfolk) 71-66 in overtime for the Eastern District tournament title. The Greyhounds face Salem (Virginia Beach) on Monday in Eastern Region tournament action.



6. (7) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) (26-1)
The Jackrabbits breezed through the first two rounds of the Southern Section Division 1-AA playoffs, beating Santiago (Corona) 87-63 and Knight (Palmdale) 81-39. Senior Ryan Anderson (21 points, 11 rebounds) and sophomore Roschon Prince (19 points, 11 rebounds) both netted double-doubles against Knight. Poly meets Montebello in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

7. (8) Lincoln (San Diego, Calif.) (25-1)
The Hornets head to the San Diego Section's Division II playoffs on a roll, winners of 15 in a row without a game decided by single digits during that span. Lincoln has won its last eight by an average margin of 34.1 points per game.

8. (14) Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.) (26-0)
The Redwings are this week's biggest riser after knocking off Simeon at the City-Suburban Showdown. Benet Academy received little love in the preseason despite going 22-4 in 2009-10 and returning a pair of Big 10-bound recruits in Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin) and David Sobolewski (Northwestern).

9. (10) Chaminade (St. Louis, Mo.) (24-0)
The Flyers closed out their first undefeated regular season in school history with a 74-44 win over St. Louis University, getting 30 points from Florida-bound star Bradley Beal. The 6-4 guard is a prime candidate for MaxPreps.com's National Player of the Year honor, averaging 32.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game during a dream senior campaign.

10. (11) Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) (21-1)
Montrose followed its statement-making victory over Findlay Prep by rolling Chavez (Washington, D.C.) 72-32 and Takoma Academy (Takoma Park) 69-31. Defense has been the story all year for the Mustangs, who have held 17 of 22 opponents to 50 points or less.

11. (12) Wichita Heights (Wichita, Kan.) (18-0)
The wins continue to pile up for the Falcons, who extended their win streak to 37 games last week with victories over Northwest (Wichita) and Bishop Carroll (Wichita). While junior All-American Perry Ellis (22.3 points, 7.7 rebounds per game) has had another stellar season, senior Evan Wessel (13.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game) and junior Terrence Moore (13.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists per game) have also been huge for Heights.



12. (16) Lakeview Centennial (Garland, Texas) (31-1)
The Patriots will carry a 30-game win streak into Texas' Class 5A state tournament. Centennial opens against Lake Highlands (Dallas) on Tuesday.

13. (13) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) (24-2)
While both teams will have to get by some dangerous roadblocks, Mater Dei and No. 6 Long Beach Poly appear to be on a collision course in the Southern Section's Division 1-AA playoffs. The Monarchs got 20 points and nine rebounds from 6-7 junior Xavier Johnson in a second-round win over Rancho Verde (Moreno Valley).

14. (17) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) (26-3)
The Warriors face Clarksville Academy (Clarksville, Tenn.) and Milestone Prep (Raleigh, N.C.) to wrap up the regular season this week.

15. (18) Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) (28-1)
The Panthers will be engaged in one of the first big state tournament games nationally Tuesday night against 23-3 Dillard (Fort Lauderdale). Jacoby Brissett scored 20 points while Victor Adams and Montel Williams both added 15 in a 78-54 win over Northeast (Oakland Park) in Dwyer's Class 5A state tournament opener. There was also a win off the court last week as Dr. Krop (Miami) was forced to forfeit a Jan. 8 win over the Panthers.

16. (9) Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) (26-1)
Miller Grove saw its only loss overturned last week when Dr. Krop's (Miami, Fla.) season was wiped out due to the use of an ineligible player, then got bit by Southwest DeKalb (Decatur) 60-56 in the Region 6 AAAA championship game. The Wolverines will still host a first-round Class AAAA state tournament game next Saturday.

17. (3) Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) (23-2)
For a young team that features a number of talented juniors and sophomores in the rotation, last week's losses could be a blessing in disguise as the Wolverines aim for their second-straight 4A state title.



18. (19) Linn-Mar (Marion, Iowa) (22-0)
Playing without two starting posts, Linn-Mar was tested by Jefferson (Cedar Rapids) last Tuesday but the dynamic guard combination of senior Matt Bohannon and Marcus Paige pulled the Lions through by combining for 60 points in a 70-64 win. Injured bigs Josh Montague (6-7) and Ian McBrayer (6-6) are expected back within a week.

19. (20) Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) (22-1)
Like Norcom, Hopkins was able to avenge its only loss of the season, beating Eden Prairie 73-60 Friday night. Minnesota signee Joe Coleman poured in a game-high 25 points in that contest, one of three wins on the week for the Royals.

20. (21) Munster (Ind.) (19-0)
The Mustangs beat Andrean (Merrillville) by 32 points and Chesterton by 31 on back-to-back nights over the weekend. Ricky Carbajal and Joe Crisman each pumped in 22 points against Chesterton. Riley (South Bend) is all that stands in the way of an undefeated regular season for Munster.

21. (22) Taft (Woodland Hills, Calif.) (24-2)
The Toreadors opened Los Angeles City Section Division I play with a 109-29 win over Hollywood (Los Angeles). Taft will meet Cleveland (Reseda) in quarterfinal action Tuesday.

22. (15) Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) (20-2)
After being humbled by Oak Hill Academy, ACD will participate in the Sunshine Independent Athletic Association's postseason tournament this week.

23. (24) Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) (26-3)
The Pilots got a good push from Rise Academy (Philadelphia, Pa.) Friday night, holding on late for a 95-84 victory. Amir Garrett (18 points), Nick Johnson (18), Nigel Williams-Goss (17), Anthony Bennett (15) and Myck Kabongo (14) all finished in double figures for Findlay Prep.



24. (25) Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) (25-5)
The Gaels captured their third-straight Sunset Region championship Friday night with an 84-66 win over Sierra Vista (Las Vegas). Shabazz Muhammad beefed up his All-American resume with 27 of his game-high 31 points in the first half. Bishop Gorman meets Bishop Manogue (Reno) or Eldorado (Las Vegas) in the first round of the Class 4A state tournament Thursday at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

T25. (NR) Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.) (25-2)
The Railsplitters won their 10th straight Saturday night at the Presidential Hoopfest, getting 23 points and eight assists from senior guard Shaquille Stokes in a 67-62 win over Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.). Lincoln has gone about its business with much less fanfare than the Sebastian Telfair- and Lance Stephenson-led teams of the recent past, but is 6-1 against teams outside of New York, picking up wins over programs from Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia and Wisconsin.

T25. (NR) Estacado (Lubbock, Texas) (32-1)
The Matadors represent Texas' 3A classification, but proved they can play with anybody by dominating LeBryan Nash and Lincoln (Dallas) 69-56 at the Dallas ISD Showcase on Saturday night. Clarence Willard led Estacado with 23 points. The Lubbock school captured the Class 3A state title last season and has won 52 of its last 53 games. The only setback this year came against No. 12 Lakeview Centennial.