Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.) continues its ascension in this week's MaxPreps Top 25 high school basketball rankings following a run to the Hoophall West traditional bracket championship. The Vikings bump up five spots to No. 4 after capturing their second consecutive major championship.
Four newcomers enter the MaxPreps Top 25 this week. No. 20
Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.) is in after taking the title at the storied Proviso West tournament along with No. 23
Lakota West (West Chester, Ohio), No. 24
Bartow (Fla.) and No. 25
Gainesville (Ga.).
Top 60 junior Dylan Jones has helped lead Bartlett of Tennessee into the top 10. The 6-foot-7 small forward is averaging 18.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. (PHOTO: Francis Fedor)
Record: 11-1 | Last week: 1
Top 10 senior
Jordan Smith continued his impressive season with 29 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals in a 61-49 victory over St. John's (Washington, D.C.).
Record: 10-1 | Last week: 2
Notched another quality out-of-state victory over the weekend, knocking off Houston (Germantown, Tenn.) 72-59. A challenging stretch awaits the Panthers over the new few weeks, including a showdown with East St. Louis (Ill.) on Saturday.
Record: 13-1 | Last week: 3
Top 10 senior
Brandon McCoy led the way with game-highs of 18 points and eight rebounds in a 77-45 blowout of St. Mary's (Phoenix, Ariz.) at Hoophall West.
Record: 16-1 | Last week: 9
Captured the Hoophall West traditional bracket championship with a 61-59 victory over No. 8 Wheeler in the title game. Four-star junior post
Darius Wabbington earned tournament MVP honors after averaging 21.0 points, 9.7
rebounds and 2.7 assists across three games.
Record: 10-1 | Last week: 4
Following a 15-day layoff, the Eagles return to the court Thursday for a matchup with Sagemont Prep (Weston).
Record: 13-2 | Last week: 11
Ascend into the top 10 for the first time this season following a signature 68-62 triumph over Southeastern Prep Academy (Orlando, Fla.) powered by a game-high 25 points from four-star junior
Dylan Jones.
Record: 22-0 | Last week: 7
Cruised to a 75-48 win over Tompkins (Katy) behind a team-high 21 points from three-star junior
Isaiah Santos. The Spartans have 11 games remaining to complete an unbeaten regular season run.
Record: 11-3 | Last week: 5
The Wildcats knocked off Salesian (Richmond, Calif.) 60-53 in the opening round at Hoophall West before taking down No. 10 Millennium 56-51 in the semifinals.
Record: 12-3 | Last week: 8
Play their first game of the New Year tonight when they battle defending Class 6A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale).
Record: 14-2 | Last week: 6
Bounced back from the Wheeler loss with a 70-62 win against DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) to take third place at Hoophall West. The Tigers may be without Arizona signee
Cameron Holmes for an extended period after he went down with an injury in the fourth quarter in the loss to Wheeler.
Record: 7-4 | Last week: 10
Top 30 USC signee
Darius Ratliff produced 19 points and 12 rebounds to guide the Crusaders to a 59-50 win against Iona Prep (New Rochelle).
Record: 17-2 | Last week: 22
Alabama-Huntsville pledge
Owen Lentz earned tournament MVP honors as the Spartans became the first Tennessee team to capture the Classic at Tennessee high school title with a 61-59 win over No. 15 Bishop O'Connell.
Record: 9-0 | Last week: 13
Host Nicolet (Glendale) tonight in their first game of the New Year. The Vikings are on the heels of a run to the Beach Ball Classic traditional bracket championship.
Record: 16-3 | Last week: 15
Bounced back from a loss to No. 4 Sunnyslope in the Classic at Damien title game with a pair of lopsided wins over Santa Barbara 89-54 and Bakersfield Christian (Bakersfield) 76-41.
Record: 12-2 | Last week: 12
Drop three spots after falling in the Classic at Tennessee championship game. The Knights look to bounce back with a pair of tough challenges this week against Archbishop Carroll (Washington, D.C.) tonight and DePaul College Prep (Chicago, Ill.) on Saturday.
Record: 12-1 | Last week: 16
Blew past Juan Diego Catholic (Draper) 80-43 led by 27 points, nine rebounds and five steals from top 100 BYU signee
Dean Rueckert.
Record: 22-2 | Last week: 17
Big in-state showdown against undefeated Forsyth County Day (Lewisville) looms tonight for the Bengals. Greensboro Day owns strong out-of-state victories over IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) and Tennessee Collegiate Academy (Millington, Tenn.).
Record: 8-0 | Last week: 18
Return to action for the first time in nine days tonight with a matchup against DeWitt.
Record: 19-2 | Last week: 19
Topped Fairfax (Los Angeles) 72-41 behind 21 points from Washington State signee
Brayden Kyman along with 17 points, five rebounds and five assists from Georgia Tech signee
Kaiden Bailey. A league showdown with St. John Bosco (Bellflower) awaits Friday.
Record: 17-1 | Last week: NR
Captured the Proviso West title with a pair of impressive wins on New Year's Eve, dispatching Curie (Chicago) 74-41 in the semifinals before downing previous No. 23 DePaul College Prep (Chicago) 52-43 in the championship game.
Record: 10-0 | Last week: 20
Secured the Fishers Holiday Hoops Classic title with an 81-60 blowout of New Albany in the title game. Junior guard
Cooper Zachary earned tournament MVP honors with averages of 17 points and five assists per game across three contests.
Record: 9-0 | Last week: 24
Record: 10-0 | Last week: NR
Make their debut in the rankings after escaping with a 68-66 road win over Lima Senior (Lima) behind a game-high 22 points from top 125 junior
Bryce Curry.
Record: 14-1 | Last week: NR
Won the Battle at the Villages championship with a 72-70 win against then-No. 14 The Villages Charter (The Villages, Fla.) in the title game. Senior
Ja'kylen Crossley and sophomore
Syrus Sinfort each chipped in a game-high 18 points apiece in the win.
Record: 16-0 | Last week: NR
Overcame
an eight-point, fourth-quarter deficit to remain unbeaten with a 51-46
victory over Cedar Grove. Senior
Charlie Gersmehl had a team-high 18
points in the win while the Red Elephants closed the game on an 18-5
run.
Next 25
Record: 18-0
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Record: 11-1
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Record: 8-1
Record: 18-2
Record: 11-4
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Record: 14-3
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Record: 10-1
Record: 17-1
