MaxPreps Top 25 high school boys basketball rankings

1. (No. 1 last week) Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.), 6-0
The Eagles head to the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla., this week as the defending champion. Montverde opens Thursday against a play-in opponent. Five members of this week's Xcellent 25 will be in the 16-team tournament field at City of Palms.

2. (3) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 5-0
There are questions about Mater Dei's depth, but the Monarchs head to Las Vegas for the Tarkanian Classic next week unbeaten with all five wins coming by 20 points or more. The Monarchs crushed Yates (Houston) 100-57 on Saturday at Hoophall West in Phoenix, Ariz. Head coach Gary McKnight's squad opens Wednesday in Sin City against Foothills Christian (El Cajon).

3. (4) Prime Prep (Dallas, Texas), 8-0
Another program headed to the Tarkanian Classic, Prime Prep will run a treacherous gauntlet in Las Vegas that includes Our Savior New American (Centereach, N.Y.), No. 5 Findlay Prep (Friday on CBS Sports Network) and La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.).

4. (5) Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 5-0
Impressive week for the Panthers with wins over other top local programs in St. John's (Washington, D.C.) and Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.). Paul VI opens play at the City of Palms Classic on Thursday against a dangerous Norland (Miami) squad.



5. (2) Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.), 14-1
Future College Prep (Harbor City, Calif.) handed the Pilots their first home loss ever (program began in 2006) last week. FCP is a post-graduate program with considerable talent this season and a 27-6 record against a schedule that includes junior colleges and other West Coast post-grads. Tough to knock Findlay Prep too much for that setback but a steeper slide will be in order if it doesn't get back on track at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas next week. Meetings with the Atlanta Sports Academy (Ga.), No. 3 Prime Prep and Montrose Christian are on the slate in that event.{PAGEBREAK}

6. (8) Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.), 5-0
The Wildcats did their part in building intrigue at the City of Palms Classic by entering the tourney as one of several unbeatens. Wheeler faces Yates (Houston) in opening round action Thursday.

7. (6) White Station (Memphis, Tenn.), 6-0
The Spartans are headed to the Iolani Classic in Hawaii, where they open Tuesday against Fuxin New Star of China. Other favorites in the field include Hamilton (Milwaukee, Wis.), St. Rita (Chicago), West Linn (Ore.) and Westchester (Los Angeles).

8. (7) Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.), 4-1
The Buffaloes participated in the Hutchinson Classic over the weekend, taking on a pair of junior college programs. Sunrise beat Northeast Community College of Nebraska but lost to Hill College of Texas. Like Findlay Prep, SCA shouldn't and won't be punished too severely in the rankings for this type of loss against an older, more experienced opponent. A trip to the City of Palms Classic is up next for the head coach Kyle Lindsted's squad.

9. (9) Curie (Chicago), 4-0
After a pair of easy wins last week, the Condors face King (Chicago) on Dec. 17 before heading to the Pontiac Holiday Tournament after Christmas.

10. (12) Germantown (Wis.), 6-0
The Warhawks jump a couple of spots after dismantling Diamond Stone and Dominican (Whitefish Bay) 75-29 on Saturday at the NY2LA Sports Classic. The victory extended Germantown's win streak to 62 games, which matches a state record set by Dominican from 1977-80.{PAGEBREAK} 11. (13) Wenonah (Birmingham, Ala.), 9-0
The Dragons continued an impressive early run Saturday by thrashing super sophomore Josh Langford and Madison Academy (Madison) 92-61. Wenonah – three-time defending state champs in Alabama – have won 16 games in a row dating back to last season.



12. (10) Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.), 0-0
Opens Dec. 20 vs. The Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.).

13. (11) St. Joseph (Metuchen, N.J.), 0-0
Opens Dec. 20 at East Brunswick.

14. (14) Northside Christian Academy (Charlotte, N.C.), 8-0
Participating in Challenge (non-tournament) portion of the Chick-fil-A Classic in South Carolina. The Knights take on JaKeenan Gant and Effingham County (Springfield, Ga.) on Saturday.

15. (15) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 15-1
The Warriors posted quality weekend wins over Yates (Houston) and Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) at Hoophall West. After a Monday matchup against Flora Macdonald Academy (Red Springs, N.C.), Oak Hill heads to the Chick-fil-A Classic in South Carolina.{PAGEBREAK} 16. (17) Etiwanda (Calif.), 5-0
The Eagles will be in action at the 24-team Inland Empire Classic next week, opening with Citrus Valley (Redlands) on Monday.

17. (19) Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.), 8-1
The Fighting Pharaohs won't be involved in any tournaments but do have Genesis Academy (Lynchburg, Va.) and United Faith Christian Academy (Charlotte) on the schedule next week.

18. (20) Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park, Kan.), 2-0
The Huskies made a strong statement Saturday at the Ozark Mountain Shootout, blasting Missouri Class 5 contender Kickapoo (Springfield) 80-45. According to Don Abernathy of the News-Leader, BVN connected on 16 of 20 3-point field goal attempts in the lopsided victory.

19. (21) Corona del Sol (Tempe, Ariz.), 7-0
The Aztecs – winners of 16 in a row going back to last season – are clicking offensively in their last four outings, averaging 84 points per game.

20. (22) Providence (Jacksonville, Fla.), 6-1
The Stallions open play Wednesday at the City of Palms Classic with a very dangerous St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) team.{PAGEBREAK}

21. (23) Carlisle (Martinsville, Va.), 9-2
Jason Niblett's team will play at Floyd County (Floyd, Va.) next week before opening at the Chick-fil-A Classic against an Archbishop Carroll (Radnor, Pa.) program with a couple of impressive early wins.

22. (24) Denver East (Colo.), 5-0
Before heading to the City of Palms Classic, the Angels get a rematch with Eaglecrest (Centennial) on Monday. Denver East lost to Eaglecrest in last season's 5A state championship game.

23. (NR) Callaway (Jackson, Miss.), 9-0
National Junior of the Year candidate Malik Newman is averaging 29.9 points per game and the Chargers are winning by an average margin of over 21 points per game.

24. (NR) Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.), 8-1
Several unbeaten teams around the country were in contention to break into the rankings, but none have as many quality wins at Miller Grove. The latest came Saturday as the Wolverines got a late bucket from super sophomore Alterique Gilbert to knock off a talented St. Francis (Alpharetta) squad.



25. (NR) Simeon (Chicago), 4-0
Three of Simeon's four wins came against teams from Tennessee in a bit of a scheduling oddity. Remaining in the rankings will require a win over a hot Bowman Academy (Gary, Ind.) squad on Dec. 21. 

Dropped out: No. 16 last week Apple Valley (Minn.), No. 18 North Little Rock (Ark.), No. 25 Mentor (Ohio)

On the bubble: Arsenal Technical (Indianapolis), Bowman Academy (Gary, Ind.), Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.), Loyola (Los Angeles), Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia), Olympic (Charlotte, N.C.), Our Savior New American (Centereach, N.Y.), Rainier Beach (Seattle), Stevenson (Lincolnshire, Ill.), Whitney Young (Chicago)