Intense playoff action continued across the high school boys basketball landscape last week, but the Top 25 saw little movement with one team falling from the rankings.
Previous No. 24 Scott County (Georgetown, Ky.) lost for the second time in its last three game and fell well out of the Top 25, while previous No. 9 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) dropped 10 spots after a pair of losses to WCAC opponents.
No. 12 Shadow Mountain (Phoenix) captured its fourth consecutive state title and No. 5 Salesian College Preparatory (Richmond), No. 7 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) and No. 9 Fairfax (Los Angeles) all captured CIF sectional titles over the weekend.
Playoff action heats up this week as No. 6 Mountain Brook (Birmingham, Ala.), No. 17 Federal Way (Wash.) and No. 25 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) all have opportunities to capture a state title.
Expect this to be a challenging week for a handful of teams in the rankings, including No. 1 McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) which faces a pair of playoff games and a trip to the state title game on the line Saturday assuming the Indians advance. No. 20 Guyer (Denton, Texas) has the potential of playing three times, with a possible regional final matchup with title contender DeSoto, Duncanville or North Crowley looming Saturday.
No. 5 Salesian College Preparatory, No. 7 Sierra Canyon, No 9 Fairfax and No. 11 Rancho Christian (Temecula) will all begin the CIF Open Division state tournament this week.
Read on for a complete look at this week's Top 25 boys high school basketball rankings.
Top 25 High School Basketball Rankings
1. (Last week 1) McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.), 29-0
Dominated first two state tournament contests, blowing by East Coweta
(Sharpsville) 89-54 and Cherokee (Canton, Ga.) 83-51.
The Indians continue their quest for the program's first state championship with a quarterfinal showdown against Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee, Ga.) on Wednesday before a potential state semifinal game Saturday against the winner of Norcross and Roswell.
Wrapped up regular season unbeaten for the first time in school history, with a return trip to the Big Apple imminent in April. The Lakers proved capable of capturing their second GEICO Nationals title in the past three seasons with a pair of signature victories over No. 3 Montverde Academy.
3. (3) Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.), 21-2Completed
regular season with a 10-2 record against Top 25 teams, with both losses coming at
the hands of No. 2 La Lumiere. The Eagles enter GEICO Nationals looking
to repeat as champions after winning their record fourth event
title last season.
The one-loss season matches the success of the
2016-17 group. This Ascenders squad has opportunity to be known as
the greatest team in program history with first win at GEICO Nationals
this season
— a feat the 2016-17 group was unable to accomplish after they were upset in the first round by seven-seed Greensboro Day.
Captured the CIF North Coast Division 3 title with a 64-53 win over Campolindo (Moraga) to enter the CIF Open Division state tournament as the only remaining unbeaten team in the state. The Pride received a first-round bye and draw the winner of the Modesto Christian (Modesto) vs. Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) on Saturday in the Open Division state quarterfinals.
Opened state tournament play with pair of convincing wins over James Clemens (Madison) 62-40 and Vestavia Hills 57-36. Lee (Montgomery) is up next Thursday, with a win providing a chance Saturday to capture third consecutive Alabama Class 7A state title.
7. (7) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), 28-3Capped a run to their first CIF Southern Section Open Division title with a wire-to-wire 64-57 win over Bishop
Montgomery (Torrance). The Trailblazers begin CIF Open Division state title defense this week with Torrey Pines (San Diego) in the opening round of the state tournament.
8. (8) Curie (Chicago), 29-1
Begin Proviso West sectional play this week with a regional semifinal set for Wednesday against the winner of the quarterfinalists Kennedy (Chicago) and Schurz (Chicago). A win advances the Condors to the regional finals on Friday where Fenwick (Oak Park) or Kenwood (Chicago) would be the opponent.
9. (10) Fairfax (Los Angeles), 27-1
Knocked off cross-town rival and former Top 25 foe Westchester (Los Angeles) last week — for the third time this season. The 60-53 triumph gave Fairfax its first CIF Los Angeles City Section crown since 2015 and sets up a first round matchup with Centennial (Corona) in the CIF Open Division state tournament.
10. (11) Nicolet (Glendale, Wis.), 21-1
Finished up regular season perfect against in-state opponents with a 19-0 record, while outscoring their Badger State opponents by 33.8 points per contest. Nicolet enters postseason play as overwhelming favorites to capture first state title behind the dominant play of their star junior
Jalen Johnson.
11. (12) Rancho Christian (Temecula, Calif.), 26-5A massive week greets the Eagles as they begin CIF Open Division state tournament play against Westchester (Los Angeles) on Wednesday
— with a win setting up a potential Saturday rematch with the defending CIF Open Division state champions No. 7 Sierra Canyon.
12. (13) Shadow Mountain (Phoenix), 26-3
Captured fourth consecutive state title over the weekend, knocking off a Salpointe Catholic (Tucson) 77-71 in a hard fought back-and-forth semifinal contest, before cruising to a 64-38 wire-to-wire victory over Deer Valley (Glendale) in the title game. One question remains — did the Matadors do enough to earn an invite to their third consecutive GEICO Nationals?
Although the Buffaloes have five losses on the season, wins
over No. 15 University, No. 20 Guyer, No. 21 Imhotep Charter, Findlay Prep (Henderson,
Nev.), Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.), Rainer Beach (Seattle) and
Duncanville (Texas) bolster a strong resume.
15. (16) University (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 23-4
Picked up a convincing 87-53 win over Monsignor Pace (Miami) in first round FHSAA Class 5A state tournament game. The Sharks continue their journey for back-to-back state titles with a showdown against Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood) on Tuesday before a potential state quarterfinal contest on Friday.
16. (17) Ranney (Tinton Falls, N.J.), 23-3Wrapped up back-to-back Shore Conference Tournament championships with a 70-60 victory over Manasquan. The Panthers begin journey for the program's first New Jersey Tournament of Champions title this week with an opening-round game of NJSIAA Non-Public, South B tournament play Wednesday against Timothy Christian (Piscataway).
17. (18) Federal Way (Wash.), 24-2After a first-round bye, the Eagles take on the winner of Richland and Mount Rainier (Des Moines) on Thursday in the WIAA Class 4A state quarterfinals. A potential title game rematch from last season against Gonzaga Prep (Spokane) looms Friday in the semifinals — with a champion set to be crowned Saturday in a busy week of hoops.
Defending
OHSAA Division I state champions knocked off Middletown 60-32 to stretch winning streak
to 42 dating back to last season. The Crusaders take on Talawanda (Oxford) in Tuesday's sectional semifinal.
19. (9) DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 27-5An extremely tough week for the Stags as the WCAC regular-season champions lost in their final conference game to Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.) 66-63, before falling 53-52 to St. John's (Washington, D.C.) in the WCAC tournament semifinals.
Wildcats have opportunity to advance farther than last year in the UIL Class 6A state tournament with three games potentially on the docket this week. Lake Ridge (Mansfield) on Monday is first up in the regional quarterfinals.
21. (21) Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia), 19-5Captured third consecutive Philadelphia Public League title last week, knocking off Constitution (Philadelphia) 63-41 in the championship game. The Panthers take on Monsignor Bonner/Archbishop Prendergast (Drexel Hill) this week for state playoff seeding purposes.
22. (22) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 27-4The
perennial power finishes up regular season this week with an opportunity to hit the 30-win mark for the eighth consecutive season. The Warriors sit in an unusual spot this season as the talented group is in danger of missing GEICO Nationals for the first time since 2012 (a year they declined the invite).
23. (23) Carmel (Ind.), 20-1
The
Greyhounds enter IHSA Class 4A postseason play as favorites after knocking off the defending champions, Warren Central (Indianapolis) 69-52 earlier in the month. Carmel earns winner between Fishers and Anderson on March 1.
24. (25) South Central (Winterville, N.C.), 25-1
Begins NCHSAA Class 4A state tournament play Thursday with winner of Rolesville and Cardinal Gibbons (Raleigh). Their lone loss came vs. No. 16 Ranney in the John Wall Holiday Invitational championship game.
The Gaels jump back into the rankings prior to a potential run to an eighth consecutive state championship. Bishop Gorman draws Desert Pines on Monday for a chance to advance to Thursday's state semifinals.
Dropped out: Scott County (Georgetown, Ky.)
Zaon Collins, Bishop Gorman
File photo by Nicholas Koza
