For the second time in four years,
St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) is home to high school basketball's undisputed national champion.
Under the direction of Hall of Fame head coach and 1,000-game winner Bob Hurley, the Friars rolled to a 33-0 campaign capped by a victory in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions. The signature moment came March 9 as St. Anthony steamed past then-No. 1
St. Patrick (Elizabeth) in a playoff showdown to wrestle the top ranking away from its in-state rival.
Kyle Anderson, St. Anthony
Photo by Lonnie Webb
The Friars were also a consensus national champion following the 2007-08 season. That team featured current college standouts Dominic Cheek (Villanova), Jio Fontan (USC), Mike Rosario (Florida), Tyshawn Taylor (Kansas) and Travon Woodall (Pittsburgh). It marks the fourth time the school has been recognized as a national champion under Hurley.
Texas 5A state champion
Marcus (Flower Mound), back-to-back Virginia Group AAA champion
Norcom (Portsmouth), National High School Invitational champion
Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) and St. Patrick round out the top five of the final Xcellent 25.
St. Anthony and St. Patrick were two of the three teams to hold the No. 1 ranking this season. The third was
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), who took top billing into the season and held it through mid-January. The Warriors finish No. 7 after reaching the finals of the National High School Invitational over the weekend.
Today's release of the final Xcellent 25 begins MaxPreps.com's postseason boys basketball honors package. Here is a rundown of the how the rest will roll out over the next month;
Tuesday, April 5 – National Player of the Year
Thursday, April 7 – National Coach of the Year
Tuesday, April 12 – All-American Team
Monday, April 18 – Final 2011 Top 100
Wednesday, April 20 – Junior All-American Team
Friday, April 22 – Sophomore All-American Team
Tuesday, April 26 – Freshmen All-American Team
Monday, May 2 – Updated 2012 Top 100
Wednesday, May 4 – Updated 2013 Top 100
Monday, May 9 – 2014 100 to Watch
Xcellent 25 High School Basketball Rankings presented by the Army National Guard1. (No. 1 last week) St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) (33-0) +National champions; NJSIAA Tournament of Champions winner.
2. (2) Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas) (39-1) +Class 5A state champions.
3. (3) Norcom (Portsmouth, Va.) (30-1) +Group AAA state champions.
4. (5) Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) (25-1)National High School Invitational champions.
5. (4) St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) (27-1) * +6. (7) Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) (32-1) +Class AAAA state champions.
7. (11) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) (29-4) +National High School Invitational runner-up.
8. (6) Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) (33-2)Class 5A state champions. National High School Invitational semifinalists.
9. (8) Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) (30-2) +Class 4A state champions.
10. (9) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) (32-3) *Division I state champions.
11. (10) Wichita Heights (Wichita, Kan.) (25-0) +Class 4A state champions.
12. (12) Linn-Mar (Marion, Iowa) (26-0)Class 4A state champions.
13. (13) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) (31-2) +Southern Section Division I-AA champion.
14. (14) Milton (Ga.) (29-3) * +15. (15) Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) (31-1) +Class AAAA state champions.
16. (16) Lakeview Centennial (Garland, Texas) (37-2)Class 5A runner-up.
17. (17) Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) (21-2)18. (19) Chester (Pa.) (31-1)Class AAAA state champions.
19. (20) Bloomington South (Bloomington, Ind.) (25-2)Class 4A state champions.
20. (18) Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) (28-4) +21. (21) Kimball (Dallas, Texas) (38-3)Class 4A state champions.
22. (22) McCluer North (Florissant, Mo.) (29-4)Class 5 state champions.
23. (23) La Salle (Cincinnati, Ohio) (26-2)Division I state champions.
24. (24) Lincoln (San Diego, Calif.) (31-2) +San Diego Section Division II champions.
25. (25) Kalamazoo Central (Kalamazoo, Mich.) (25-3) *Class A state champions.
+ Appeared in preseason Xcellent 25
* Appeared in final 2009-10 Xcellent 25
