Kailee Johnson has helped Central Catholic to a 14-3 record, good for the No. 22 position in the rankings.
File photo by Larry Lawson
Blackman trailed No. 2 Riverdale by 21 in the third quarter, but rallied to get within single digits before losing 55-42. The teams will meet again Feb. 8, though, at Blackman, and the Lady Blaze have to feel they'll shoot better than 23 percent from the field.
22. (22) Central Catholic (Portland, Ore.) 14-3The Rams are coasting through league play, with a 28-point win over St. Mary's Academy the closest so far. But Oregon City and South Medford, among others, will make the 6A playoffs much more challenging.
23. (23) Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro, Md.) 18-3The Crusaders took a quick trip to Las Vegas and disposed of two West Coast opponents. The next test will be against D.C.'s Woodson Saturday.
24. (24) Oakland (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) 14-2The Patriots' last two regular season games are at No. 2 Riverdale and at No. 21 Blackman. When they played the two at home, the closest game was a 17-point loss.
25. (25) Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis) 15-0The Red Knights will take that unbeaten record to Kentucky this weekend, and though they'll be favored, looking past seven-loss Mercy would be a mistake. Mercy has played one of the toughest schedules in the country, and won't be intimidated.
Dropped out: None.
