A trio of sophomores led then sixth-ranked Chaminade on a six-game winning streak to end the 2008-09 Missouri high school basketball season, and to the Class 5 boys state basketball title. Now the Flyers find themselves perched atop the state’s big classification rankings.
Bradley Beal led the Flyers during the season by averaging more than 23 points a game, and continued that role during the 2-game Show-Me Showdown a couple of weekends ago, by scoring 49 points.
Fellow sophomores Brandon Hannah and Brendan Kelly, however, may have been the real difference in the title run. Hannah and Kelly combined to score 14.7 points a game during the season, but upped the ante in the post season.
Hannah contributed 14 and 16 points during Chaminade’s 66-65 semifinal win over Columbia-Rock Bridge and its 80-70 state title win over then No. 1 Grandview respectively.
Kelly, on the other hand, led the Flyers with 21 points in the semifinal win and contributed 27 points in the two games collectively.
Top-ranked Teams Take Home Titles
While March Madness took its usual toll on the regular season rankings by drumming up plenty of upsets, four of a possible 10 top-ranked teams battled their way through the brackets and into the end of the season top spot of their respective classification after winning titles.
For the boys, St. Francis Borgia (Class 4) and Maplewood-Richmond Heights (Class 3) were fortunate to come through post-season play unscathed. Sparta, the only boys or girls basketball team in the Show-Me state to conclude a perfect season, and Exeter accomplished the same feat for the girls.
The Portageville and Cardinal Ritter girls surprised their respective fields by climbing out of a group of unranked teams to win state titles.
Of the teams that were ranked during the regular season and then went on to win state titles, Chaminade and the Platte County Girls (Class 4) made the biggest move in the final rankings.
The Flyers rose from No. 6, while Platte County managed to climb by three teams in the final rankings after winning the girls Class 4 trophy.
Below is a look at the final Missouri boys and girls high school basketball rankings
Final Missouri Boys and Girls Basketball Rankings
Class 5 Boys
1. Chaminade (27-4) 6
2. Grandview (29-2) 1
3. Columbia-Rock Bridge (28-3) 3
4. Lee’s Summit West (24-4) 4
5. Branson (27-3) 7
6. Oakville (23-9) –
7. Springfield Central (25-4) 5
8. Hazelwood Central (26-4) 2
9. Liberty (23-6) 9
10. Parkway West (23-7) –
Class 4 Boys
1. St. Francis Borgia (28-3) 1
2. Kearney (21-10) 10
3. Helias (24-6) 6
4. St. Charles West (26-4) 2
5. Sikeston (24-4) 4
6. Aurora (27-2) 3
7. Moberly (23-4) 5
8. Hickman Mills (22-6) 7
9. Pleasant Hill (21-7) 9
10. Miller Career Academy (17-13) –
Class 3 Boys
1. Maplewood-Richmond Heights (30-3) 1
2. Whitfield (20-13) –
3. Lee’s Summit Community Christian (24-8) –
4. Blue Eye (26-5) –
5. Palmyra (27-3) 2
6. Knob Noster (23-6) 9
7. Hogan Prep (19-7) 5
8. Linn (25-5) 3
9. Seneca (23-6) 6
10. Liberty-Mountain View (22-3) 7
Class 2 Boys
1. Portageville (24-5) -
2. Harrisburg (27-5) 2
3. Miller (25-5) -
4. Laquey (28-4) 3
5. Bernie (27-4) 4
6. Adrian (27-3) -
7. Clever (24-6) 5
8. Penney (25-5) 6
9. Santa Fe (25-4) 1
10. South Iron (26-3) -
Class 1 Boys
1. Scott County Central (29-2) 3
2. Newtown-Harris (29-2) 2
3. Glasgow (26-6) 9
4. Eminence (25-3) 4
5. Chadwick (25-6) 5
6. Jefferson (27-2) 1
7. Mound City (22-8) -
8. St. Elizabeth (23-4) 7
9. South Holt (26-5) 6
10. Dadeville (24-5) -
Class 5 Girls
1. Nixa (29-2) 3
2. Blue Springs (28-3) 2
3. Hazelwood Central (26-3) 1
4. Springfield Kickapoo (23-4) 7
5. Columbia-Rock Bridge (24-5) 5
6. Parkway South (25-4) 10
7. Nerinx Hall (23-9) 8
8. St. Joseph’s Academy (19-10) 9
9. Incarnate Word (26-4) 4
10. Parkway North (26-3) 6
Class 4 Girls
1. Platte County (28-2) 5
2. Webb City (26-5) 8
3. Miller Career Academy (24-7) -
4. Dexter (28-2) 1
5. Notre Dame de Sion (22-4) 3
6. St. Joseph Benton (22-5) 10
7. St. Dominic (27-1) 2
8. Sullivan (23-4) 6
9. St. James (27-2) 4
10. Farmington (22-6) 9
Class 3 Girls
1. Cardinal Ritter (22-4) -
2. Skyline (27-5) 4
3. Fair Grove (29-3) 2
4. Maryville (20-8) -
5. Holden (21-5) -
6. Hermann (24-6) 8
7. California (26-6) -
8. Macon (28-1) 1
9. Bishop LeBlond (23-6) 9
10. Bowling Green (25-4) 3
Class 2 Girls
1. Sparta (31-0) 1
2. Canton (29-3) 3
3. New Franklin (29-3) 8
4. Couch (27-5) 5
5. Osceola (27-3) 2
6. Laquey (27-3) 7
7. Miller (24-6) -
8. North Platte (24-3) 6
9. Portageville (26-3) 4
10. Penney (24-6) -
Class 1 Girls
1. Exeter (30-1) 1
2. Montrose (28-2) 3
3. Marion County (27-5) 9
4. Jefferson (26-5) 10
5. Leeton (21-3) 4
6. Southwest (Ludlow) (26-3) 6
7. Bakersfield (20-10) -
8. South Nodaway (27-2) 2
9. Lesterville (22-6) 7
10. Delta (21-6) 8
