Top 25 high school basketball rankings

Upcoming state championships in California, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Ohio, plus the National High School Invitational, will give the nation's elite a final opportunity over the next two weeks to improve their standing in MaxPreps.com's Xcellent 25 presented by the Army National Guard.
But the intrigue surrounding the No. 1 ranking and mythical national title could end Monday night as St. Anthony (Jersey City) faces Plainfield in the final of New Jersey's Tournament of Champions. The Friars (31-0) commandeered the top spot after beating St. Patrick (Elizabeth) decisively in a highly-anticipated showdown between the nation's top two teams at that time.

Outside of St. Anthony, the highest-ranked team with games remaining is No. 5 Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.), who is expected to compete in the National High School Invitational in North Bethesda, Md., March 31-April 1. Other ranked independents likely to participate include No. 11 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), No. 17 Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) and No. 18 Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) – the event's two-time defending champion.

Six other ranked teams will attempt to close out their respective seasons with a state title this weekend; No. 9 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), No. 15 Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.), No. 20 Chester (Chester, Pa.), No. 21 Bloomington South (Bloomington, Ind.), No. 23 Romulus (Romulus, Mich.) and No. 24 Garfield Heights (Garfield Heights, Ohio).

Read on for a complete look at this week's rankings.



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

1. (No. 1 last week) St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) (31-0)
An already-memorable season could get even better Monday night with a win over Plainfield in the Tournament of Champions final. Head coach Bob Hurley – who won his 1,000th career game in early February – will be looking for his 11th TOC title and second national title in the past four years.

2. (2) Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas) (39-1)
Season complete. Class 5A state champions.

3. (3) Norcom (Portsmouth, Va.) (30-1)
Season complete. Group AAA state champions.

4. (4) St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) (27-1)
Season complete.

5. (6) Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) (22-1)
Regular season complete.



6. (7) Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) (32-1)
Season complete. Class 5A state champions.

7. (8) Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) (32-1)
Season complete. Class AAAA state champions.

8. (11) Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) (30-2)
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.

9. (13) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) (31-3)
Freshman Stanley Johnson keyed Saturday night's victory 76-64 victory over Centennial (Corona) that sent the Monarchs to next weekend's Division I championship game against De La Salle (Concord). Johnson, a 6-foot-5 forward, scored 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to bring Mater Dei a step closer to its first state title since 2008 and eighth overall under head coach Gary McKnight.

10. (9) Wichita Heights (Wichita, Kan.) (25-0)
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.

11. (10) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) (27-3)
Regular season complete.

12. (12) Linn-Mar (Marion, Iowa) (26-0)
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.



13. (15) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) (31-2)
Season complete. Southern Section Division I-AA champion.

14. (16) Milton (Ga.) (29-3)
Season complete.

15. (17) Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) (28-1)
After dominating Wayzata (Plymouth) 85-65 in the Section 6AAAA final, the Royals will enter the Class AAAA state tournament as the No. 1 seed. Hopkins faces Owatonna in opening-round action Wednesday at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

16. (18) Lakeview Centennial (Garland, Texas) (37-2)
Season complete. Class 5A runner-up.

17. (19) Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) (21-2)
Regular season complete.

18. (20) Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) (28-3)
Regular season complete.



19. (21) Kimball (Dallas, Texas) (38-3)
Season complete. Class 4A state champions.

20. (22) Chester (Pa.) (29-1)
Maurice Nelson and Lamon Church combined for 34 points to lead the Clippers past La Salle College (Wyndmoor) in the Class AAAA quarterfinals Saturday. Chester meets defending champion Plymouth Whitemarsh (Plymouth Meeting) in the semifinals Wednesday.

21. (NR) Bloomington South (Bloomington, Ind.) (25-2)
Despite winning 74 of their last 77 games dating back to 2008, the Panthers have flown under the radar from a national perspective this season. That changed Saturday when South knocked off defending state champion North Central (Indianapolis), advancing to face Kokomo for the 4A title next weekend at the Conseco Fieldhouse.

22. (NR) McCluer North (Florissant, Mo.) (29-4)
Season complete. Class 5 state champions.

23. (NR) Romulus (Mich.) (23-1)
This is the second year in a row the Eagles have made a late-season appearance in the Xcellent 25. Romulus won its 22nd-straight game over the weekend to advance to Michigan's Class A quarterfinals Tuesday against Michigan State signee Brandan Kearney and Southeastern (Detroit).

24. (NR) Garfield Heights (Ohio) (23-1)
Behind 32 points from Penn State-bound guard Trey Lewis, the Bulldogs blew past a dangerous Mentor team 85-68 in a regional final game Saturday night. A state semifinal showdown with 25-1 Northland (Columbus) is set for Friday with the winner moving to Saturday's championship game.



25. (NR) Lincoln (San Diego, Calif.) (31-2)
Season complete. San Diego Section Division II champions.