Xcellent 25 high school boys basketball rankings

It's not too early to get excited about this weekend's Cancer Research Classic in West Virginia.

The annual event in Wheeling will feature five of the teams in this week's Xcellent 25 High School Basketball Rankings presented by the Army National Guard. Wheeling Jesuit University will once again play host Friday and Saturday.

The Saturday lineup includes new No. 1 Simeon (Chicago) taking on a Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) squad hungry to reclaim its season, No. 3 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) facing No. 10 Neumann & Goretti (Philadelphia) and No. 5 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) squaring off against Gill St. Bernard's (Gladstone, N.J.). No. 8 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) is also in action against Whitney Young (Chicago), a program that had a major impact on this week's rankings without actually being included.

All five ranked teams in the field are coming off tournament victories – a prominent theme in this week's rankings. Read on for a look at how the holiday madness played out.

Xcellent 25 High School Basketball Rankings presented by the Army National Guard

1. (2) Simeon (Chicago) (12-0)
After surviving a scare in the semifinals against Manual (Peoria), the Wolverines took care of Curie 44-27 to win the 81st annual Pontiac Holiday Tournament. Jabari Parker earned tournament MVP honors as Simeon captured the event for the 10th time.

2. (3) St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) (7-0)
After dominating their first six opponents, the Friars got a test Sunday night from St. Benedict's Prep (Newark). St. Anthony trailed by six at the end of the third quarter but rallied for a 51-50 win. Head coach Bob Hurley's bunch also notched a 57-35 win over Roman Catholic (Philadelphia) and 68-25 victory New Mission (Boston) as part of the Shooting Touch Shootout last week.

3. (4) DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) (9-0)
Syracuse-bound Jerami Grant earned MVP honors as the Stags handled four solid California programs to win The Holiday Classic in San Diego. A potential showdown with nationally-ranked Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) was nixed when Windward (Los Angeles) knocked off the Aaron Gordon-led squad in the quarterfinals. Windward advanced to meet DeMatha in the championship game.

4. (6) Grace Prep (Arlington, Texas) (10-2)
The Lions have not played since losing to No. 13 Prestonwood Christian (Plano) in the final of the City of Palms Classic on Dec. 21.

5. (7) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) (12-1)
The Monarchs made an impressive run through the MaxPreps Holiday Classic, beating then-No. 19 Lincoln (Brooklyn) in the final 76-69. Mater Dei won its first three games in Palm Springs by an average of 36.3 points per game, finishing a tough eight-game holiday stretch with a 7-1 record.