MaxPreps High School Top 25 boys basketball national rankings

Video: Top 5 Plays of the Week
Watch LaMelo Ball and Onyeka Okongwu of Chino Hills make some early-season magic.


1. (No. 1 last week) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), 0-0
Season opener Monday vs. Chaminade (West Hills) at Sierra Canyon Invitational.

2. (4) Norcross (Ga.), 6-0
The Blue Devils picked up a pair of wins last week and now must look ahead to No. 14 Cordova (Tenn.) on Saturday at the Memphis vs. Atlanta Roundball Classic.

3. (5) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 6-0
The field at the Diablo Inferno was no match for the Monarchs as they won five games by an average margin of 38.4 points per outing. Next is a matchup against St. Mary's (Phoenix) at Hoophall West.



4. (7) Greensboro Day (Greensboro, N.C.), 10-0
The Bengals are buckling down on defense, surrendering an average of just 44.2 points per game. Calvary Day School (Winston-Salem) and Cary Academy (Cary) could only muster a combined 71 in games over the weekend.

5. (3) Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.), 0-0
Season opener Dec. 16 vs. Sagemont (Weston, Fla.) at City of Palms Classic.

6. (8) New Albany (Ind.), 2-0
After a 65-55 victory over Evansville Harrison on Saturday night, the Bulldogs have won 26 in a row. Big games against North Central (Indianapolis) and Independent Top 10 No. 1 La Lumiere (La Porte) are ahead in the next 10 days.

7. (10) Garfield (Seattle, Wash.), 2-0
Head coach Ed Haskins and the Bulldogs picked up impressive wins over quality opponents in Spanaway Lake (Spanaway) and Cleveland (Seattle) last week.

8. (11) Chino Hills (Calif.), 5-0
It didn't take long for the defending national champs to grab the country's attention once again. UCLA-bound senior LiAngelo Ball went for 72 points in a 128-108 win over Rancho Christian (Temecula) last Wednesday. The Huskies averaged 103.6 points in five outings at the BattleZone Tournament en route to the title. 9. (12) Nathan Hale (Seattle, Wash.), 1-0
Here's a potential dark horse national title contender. After going 3-18 in 2015-16, the Raiders opened with an 89-59 win over West Seattle behind star transfer Michael Porter Jr. – who went for 44 points and 20 rebounds in his Emerald City debut.

10. (16) Wagner (San Antonio, Texas), 12-0
The Thunderbirds have already won two tournaments, including a 32-team extravaganza hosted by South San Antonio High School over the weekend.



11. (2) Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.), 4-1
After a pair of 40-point wins last week, the Mustangs were tamed by Independent Top 10-ranked Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga) 72-64 on Thursday in an ESPN2-televised showdown.

12. (14) Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia), 0-0
Season opener Saturday vs. Constitution (Philadelphia) at Fred Pickett Classic.

13. (15) St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.), 0-0
Season opener Dec. 16 vs. Prestige Prep (New York, N.Y.).

14. (20) Cordova (Tenn.), 6-0
Juniors Tyler Harris and Rodgerick Brown are both averaging over 20 points per game for the Wolves, who have a chance to really shake things up this weekend against No. 2 Norcross.

15. (NR) Curie (Chicago), 4-0
The Condors made an early-season statement over the weekend by picking up wins over East St. Louis and Althoff Catholic (Belleville) on back-to-back nights at separate showcase events.

16. (18) DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 0-0
Season opener Tuesday vs. Cardozo (Washington, D.C.).

17. (19) Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.), 0-0
Season opener Dec. 17 vs. Pope John XXIII (Sparta) at Hoop Group Tip-Off Showcase.



18. (22) Vashon (St. Louis, Mo.), 3-0
The Wolverines dominated Metro (St. Louis) 85-23 in their only outing last week.

19. (23) Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland, Calif.), 1-0
After a big win over then-No. 7 Bishop Montgomery (Torrance) to open the season, O'Dowd doesn't take the floor again until Dec. 16 at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas.

20. (24) Iowa City West (Iowa City, Iowa), 1-0
With so many of our preseason picks going down early, here's one with some promise. The Trojans dismantled Marian Catholic (Chicago Heights, Ill.) 72-42 behind brothers Connor and Patrick McCaffery – the sons of Iowa Hawkeyes head coach Fran McCaffery.

21. (NR) Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach, Fla.), 8-0
Four Tigers are averaging double figures during their 8-0 start, which includes lopsided scores of 66-19, 76-24 and 56-17. Big tests are ahead later this month in tournament play at the Kreul Classic and Arby's Classic.

22. (NR) Simeon (Chicago), 1-0
Last year the Wolverines drubbed Seattle powerhouse Rainier Beach in an early-season showcase event. Saturday at the Chicago Elite Classic, Simeon hammered preseason No. 17 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) 73-58 to tip off its 2016-17 campaign.

23. (NR) Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.), 3-1
The Wildcats return after being left out of the High School Top 25 last week. Perhaps that lit a fire under Wheeler as it pulled away from then-No. 9 Greenforest (Decatur) in the second half for a 53-42 win. Things aren't going to get easier for head coach Doug Lipscomb's team this week with games against No. 14 DeMatha and No. 25 Westlake.



24. (9) Greenforest (Decatur, Ga.), 4-2
Instead of sliding an untested team into the Top 25, Greenforest is rewarded for playing three ranked teams in its first six games. The Eagles will have to take care of business against Bishop McNamara (Forestville, Md.) at the National High School Hoops Festival this weekend to remain.

25. (25) Westlake (Atlanta, Ga.), 3-1
The rest of December will be grueling for the Lions, who face No. 23 Wheeler on Friday and will participate in the Chick-fil-A Classic and Beach Ball Classic later in the month.

Dropped out: No. 6 Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.), No. 13 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.), No. 17 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.), No. 21 McNeil (Austin, Texas)

NOTE: MaxPreps will run separate high school boys basketball rankings for teams that compete for state championships as part of recognized governing body (High School Top 25) and those that do not (Independent Top 10). Look for the first regular season Independent Top 10 later this week.