A wild week of high school basketball upsets and six teams fall from the Top 25 rankings as the calendar flips to March and state playoffs advance deeper.
Three Golden State teams fell from the rankings as previous No. 5 Salesian College Preparatory (Richmond, Calif.), No. 9 Fairfax (Los Angeles) and No. 11 Rancho Christian (Temecula) all lost in CIF Open Division state tournament play.
Replacing them, and three others, are Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash.), Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.), Roman Catholic (Philadelphia), Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.), Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and Duncanville (Texas).
No. 5 Mountain Brook (Birmingham, Ala) wrapped up its third consecutive state title, Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) captured its eighth consecutive Nevada state crown and Gonzaga Prep completed their journey to repeat as each team bolster their national resume immensely.
Expect the upsets to continue this week as Texas, California, Florida and Georgia, among others, wrap up state tournament play in a highly anticipated week of high school hoops.
Top 25 High School Basketball Rankings
1. (Last week 1) McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.), 31-0
Avenged their state quarterfinal loss from a season ago, knocking off Norcross 66-62 in an overtime thriller that may go down as the biggest game in the state of Georgia this season. The Indians face defending GHSA 7A state champion Meadowcreek (Norcross) on Saturday for a chance at their first state title.
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 a 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.
5. (6) Mountain Brook (Birmingham, Ala.), 31-3Finished a run to a third consecutive AHSAA 7A state title with a convincing 61-42 victory over Baker in the title game. The Spartans showed a lot of heart in their semifinal win over Lee (Montgomery), overcoming an early deficit to battle their way back and take control down the stretch.
6. (7) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), 30-3Advanced to the CIF Open Division state semifinals with an easy 82-38 opening round win over Torrey Pines (San Diego), followed by a hard-fought 65-60 triumph against Westchester (Los Angeles). The Trailblazers have an opportunity to complete their title defense with a Tuesday semifinal showdown vs. Mater Dei (Santa Ana) looming, followed by a potential championship game Saturday.
7. (8) Curie (Chicago), 30-1
Advanced to the Proviso West sectional semifinals with a dominant 76-51 win over Fenwick (Oak Park, Ill.). The Condors take on Riverside-Brookfield on Thursday for an opportunity to advance to the sectional title game.
8. (10) Nicolet (Glendale, Wis.), 23-1
Began state tournament play last week with a pair of victories over Slinger 69-31 and Milwaukee Madison (Milwaukee) 67-55. The Knights face a Port Washington group this week that they've had their way with this season, outscoring the Pirates by 39.5 points per contest over their two meetings.
Although the Buffaloes have five losses on the season, wins
over No. 12 University, No. 25 Duncanville, Findlay Prep (Henderson,
Nev.), Guyer (Denton, Texas), Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia), Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.) and Rainer Beach (Seattle) bolster a strong resume for a group that sits squarely on the GEICO Nationals bubble.
11. (12) Shadow Mountain (Phoenix), 26-3
Jovan Blacksher and
Jaelen House have combined to go 105-26 over their four year career at Shadow Mountain and just wrapped up their fourth straight state title. One question remains
— did the Matadors do enough to earn an invite to their third consecutive GEICO Nationals?
12. (15) University (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), 25-4
Escaped an upset in a hostile environment at Westminster Christian (Miami), taking down the Warriors 39-36 in their state quarterfinal showdown. The win came without their star
Vernon Carey Jr. in the second half after an injury kept him sidelined for the final 16 minutes. The Sharks face The Villages Charter (The Villages) in their state semifinal showdown Wednesday, followed by a potential title game the following afternoon.
13. (16) Ranney (Tinton Falls, N.J.), 26-3After a pair of wins last week, the Panthers take on Rutgers Prep in the NJSIAA Non-Public, South B tournament semifinals Monday night. A win advances Ranney to the title game with a potential showdown with one-loss Wildwood Catholic (Wildwood) looming on Wednesday.
Defending
OHSAA Division I state champions took down Colerain (Cincinnati) 67-51 to advance to District Finals where the Fighting Crusaders face Winton Woods (Cincinnati) on Saturday with an opportunity to extend their winning streak to 44 games.
15. (19) DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.), 28-5Coming off two losses in their previous three games, the Stags have been impressive in Maryland Private School state championship play. DeMatha knocked off St. Andrew's Episcopal (Potomac) 67-53 and Riverdale Baptist (Upper Marlboro) 96-75 last week. The Stags' Monday opponent is Rock Creek Christian Academy before traveling to the Alhambra Catholic Invitational on Thursday.
16. (22) Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 30-4The
perennial powerhouse hit the 30-win mark for the eighth consecutive season last week with a trio of home wins to close out the regular 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.
Completed their run to an eighth
consecutive state championship last week, defeating Clark (Las Vegas) 68-60 in the title game. This talented young group is right on the fringe of receiving a GEICO Nationals invite in their first year of eligibility.
18. (23) Carmel (Ind.), 22-1
Captured sectional championship with a 45-39 win over Hamilton Southeastern. The Greyhounds advance to the regional semifinals where they draw Fort Wayne Northrop (Fort Wayne) on Saturday.
19. (NR) Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash.), 25-2
Jumps back into the Top 25 after knocking off previous No. 17 Federal Way 61-53 in the state semifinals and then taking down Mount Si (Snoqualmie) 69-43 to complete the repeat as WIAA 4A state champions.
20. (NR) Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.), 23-2
After a disappointing finish to last season, the Crusaders hope to capture the New York state federation Tournament of Champions as they enter postseason play as favorites to capture their first title since 2012.
21. (NR) Roman Catholic (Philadelphia), 22-4Notched a pair of quality wins last week, capturing the Philadelphia Catholic League title with a win over La Salle College (Wyndmoor) 64-50 and taking down Boys' Latin Charter (Philadelphia) 94-72 in the District 12 6A title game. The Cahillites open their quest to repeat as PIAA 6A state champions this week with Spring Ford on Saturday.
22. (24) South Central (Winterville, N.C.), 27-1
Began state tournament play last week with a pair of blowout wins over Rolesville 83-50 and Pinecrest (Southern Pines) 69-44. The Falcons face Wakefield (Raleigh) on Tuesday with a chance to advance to the NCHSAA 4A semifinals.
23. (NR) Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.), 26-3
Advanced to the NJSIAA Non-Public, North B tournament semifinals with a 82-62 victory over Marist (Bayonne). The Lions take on Hudson Catholic (Jersey City) in their Monday semifinal showdown.
24. (NR) Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, Tenn.), 34-4
Notched quality wins over Bartlett, Bearden (Knoxville), Huntington St. Joseph Prep (Huntington, W. Va.), Legacy Early College (Greenville, S.C.) and Memphis East to jump back into the rankings.
25. (NR) Duncanville (Texas), 30-7
Jump into the rankings for the first time this season after taking down previous No. 20 Guyer 66-62 in overtime. The Panthers are riding a 23-game winning streak dating back to Dec. 14.
Dropped out: No. 5 Salesian College Preparatory (Richmond, Calif.), No. 9 Fairfax (Los Angeles), No. 11 Rancho Christian (Temecula, Calif.), No. 17 Federal Way (Wash.), No. 20 Guyer (Denton, Texas), No. 21 Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia).
Isaiah Cottrell, Bishop Gorman
Photo by Jann Hendry
