BENSALEM, Pa. – It was a “white out” here on the East Coast last weekend. Nor’easter named Jonas slammed into the mid-Atlantic and dumped snow quicker than the plows could clear it. Suffice it say the Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings were affected.

Here’s the quick of it.

Last weekend, several Elite 25 teams had games postponed or cancelled.

The power leagues from New York to Philadelphia to Washington were sidelined along with southeastern states in the East Coast was affected one way or another by Jonas. The weather forecasters in the New York predicted 12 inches of the white stuff. Essentially the meteorologists whiffed and more than two feet have choked the region. So, Monday the Big Dig continues. We’ll keep you posted.

Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) is the new No. 1 team in the Elite 25 after No. 4 Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) lost to local rival Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas). Gorman moved back into the regional rankings after a tough run in the national events. OHA and Findlay could meet at the Dick’s Nationals in April for the national championship. Gorman is the favorite to repeat as state champions in Nevada’s large-school classification.

In the meantime, two Midlands schools were added to the Elite 25 rankings—No. 21 Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) and No. 23 Wayne (Huber Heights, Ohio). Hopkins is no stranger to the Elite 25 and is Minnesota’s top-ranked Class 5A team. The Royals’ main in-state competition is regionally ranked Apple Valley. In Ohio, Wayne is the state’s top-ranked Division I team. The Dayton area team is unbeaten in 14 games and has two more this week with the regular season winding down.

In California, prized sophomore recruit Marvin Bagley III was declared ineligible for this season by the CIF-Southern Section after transferring from a school in Arizona to Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, Calif.). Bagley, a 6-11 man-child recruited by Duke, Arizona, North Carolina and Kentucky, won’t be eligible to play for the nationally ranked Trailblazers until Jan. 4, 2017.

That means he misses the first month of the season and won’t be appearing at any of the mega holiday tournaments. Bagley’s eligibility will likely make Sierra Canyon the preseason No. 1 for the 2016-17 season.

The Elite 25 rankings are back next week on February 2. The girls’ rankings appear on Wednesday. Check back to www.bluestarmedia.org for the latest in basketball news and announcements. Until next time I hope to see you at a game soon. –-Christopher Lawlor

 Preseason Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ rankings, Jan. 26, 2016

1. Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va. (26-1)

Previous: rank 2.

Low-down: Saturday’s game with Carlisle School (Carlisle, Va.) was postponed. Earlier in the week, the Warriors crushed then-No. xx Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 74-55, at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass.

2. Chino Hills, Calif. (19-0)

Previous: 3.

Low-down: UCLA-bound Lonzo Ball, a McDonald’s All America, contributed 32 points, 15 rebounds, 15 assists, three steals and three block—a triple double as the Huskies walloped Damien (La Verne), 92-65. Also defeated then-No. 21 High Point (N.C.) Christian, 100-75, at the Hoophall Classic. Next is a matchup with No. 7 Bishop Montgomery (Torrance) Saturday at the Fairfax State Preview Classic at Cerritos College in Norwalk.

3. Montverde (Fla.) Academy (19-1)

Previous: 4.

Low-down: After capturing two wins the Hoophall Classic, the Eagles drilled Tampa (Fla.) Prep, 87-48. Next is the Montverde Academy Invitational Tournament, starting Thursday with the first round and concluding Saturday with the title game.

4. Findlay Prep, Henderson, Nev. (18-1)

Previous: 1.

Low-down: Upset for the second time in three years by Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 77-71. Carlos Johnson scored a game-high 29 points. The Pilots must refocus for the Dick’s Nationals in March.

5. Atascocita, Humble, Texas (26-0)

Previous: 7.

Low-down: The Eagles are unbeaten (6-0) after the first round of district game following a 74-44 blowout of Conroe.

6. St. Anthony, Jersey City, N.J. (11-0)

Previous: 8.

Low-down: The Friars crushed Bentonville (Ark.), 72-50, at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass. R.J. Cole dropped in 23 points. Sunday’s game with Trenton Central was postponed by the blizzard.

7. Bishop Montgomery, Torrance, Calif. (19-0)

Previous: 9.

Low-down: The workload was light with only a 99-67 victory over Cathedral (Lo Angeles) in the Knights’ top offensive output of the campaign. Now it’s a busy week with three games, capped by Saturday’s ballyhooed matchup with No. 2 Chino Hills at the Fairfax State Preview at Cerritos College.

8. U of D Jesuit, Detroit (11-0)

Previous: 10.

Low-down: Michigan State-bound G Cassius Winston flipped in 19 points and Ike Eke added 17 in a 77-56 win over Detroit Catholic Central (Novi).

9. La Lumiere School, La Porte, Ind. (17-3)

Previous: 11.

Low-down: Brian Bowen’s 13 points fueled the Lakers’ 57-48 win over Garfield Heights (Ohio) at Dunk 4 Diabetes in Canton, Ohio. It was a third quality win in as many games for coach Shane Heirman’s crew, who plays twice this week.

10. Morgan Park, Chicago (15-1)

Previous: 12.

Low-down: The Mustangs downed St. Joseph (Westchester), 65-52, as Charlie Moore had 17 points and rebounds. The attention shifts to Thursday’s makeup game with archrivals Simeon (Chicago).

11. DeSoto, Texas (24-1)

Previous: 13.

Low-down: The Eagles rolled over two District 8-6A opponents and now 6-11 senior Marque Bolden is getting the fullcourt press from Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, who along with staff members, were at Tuesday’s 68-33 win over Midlothian.

12. St. John’s College, Washington, D.C. (17-2)

Previous: 14.

Low-down: The Cadets won impressively, stopping league rivals Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 62-57. Three players hit for double digits—Anthony Cowan Jr. with 19 points, Coppin State-recruit Dejuan Clayton 17 (five 3-pointers) and Jeffrey Dowtin Jr. 15. Next monster game is Feb. 2 at No. 16 Gonzaga (Washington).

13. DeMatha, Hyattsville, Md. (16-3)

Previous: 5.

Low-down: In the crazy Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, the Stags lost to No. 22 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.), 73-70. At the Hoophall, Markelle Fultz pumped in 20 points and UAB-bound Nate Daring dropped in six straight free throws down the stretch as the Stags beat then-No. 17 Chaminade (St. Louis), 72-69, in overtime.

14. Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif. (16-3)

Previous: 6.

Low-down: The Trailblazers did not have a great showing at the Hoophall Classic, getting whipped by 14 points (81-67) to No. 4 Montverde (Fla.) Academy but came back to the West Coast to take out two league opponents. This week it’s three more games and only four left before the sectional playoffs.

15. Neumann-Goretti, Philadelphia (15-2)

Previous: 15.

Low-down: Game versus St. Joseph’s Prep (Philadelphia) scheduled for Sunday in South Philly is now Wednesday. The snow really wreaked havoc on the Philadelphia Catholic League slate. The Saints did thump Archbishop Carroll (Radnor, Pa.), 98-75, and edge Archbishop Wood (Warminster, Pa.), 78-72. Zane Martin scored 22 points and Rasheed Browne and Quade Green each had 20 in the win over Carroll.

16. Gonzaga, Washington, D.C. (15-2)

Previous: 22.

Low-down: It was an impactful week for Coach Steve Coach’s squad. Junior PG Chris Lykes scored a team-high 30 points (11 of 14 FT), four rebounds and three assists as the Eagles held off then-No. 5 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.). They also beat Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 73-69, as the 5-foot-8 Lykes had 20 (four 3-pointers). Lykes is being recruiting by programs such as George Mason, Miami, George Washington, Richmond and Villanova. The Eagles will host DeMatha on Sunday at 3:30 p.m.

17. Patrick School, Elizabeth, N.J. (10-3)

Previous: 16.

Low-down: After pair of tough losses over the MLK weekend, the Celtic rebounded to defeat Union County opponents St. Mary’s (Elizabeth), 56-48, Linden, 56-51. The showdown with Roselle Catholic was postponed by heavy snowfall over the weekend creating an odd pairing of games. Two meet twice in four days starting on Wednesday at Rahway High and again at Roselle Catholic on Saturday.

18. Chaminade, St. Louis (16-4)

Previous: 17.

Low-down: Duke-bound Jayson Tatum collected 40 points and 14 rebound in a 72-69 overtime-loss to then-No. 5 DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.) at the Hoophall Classic. The Red Devils play again Saturday against Saint Louis University High.

19. Stevens Point, Wis. (14-0)

Previous: 18.

Low-down: The Panthers moved to 6-0 with two victories in the Wisconsin Valley Conference. After this upcoming weekend, there are only five games left in the regular season.

20. St. Benedict’s, Newark, N.J. (17-1)

Previous: 20.

Low-down: The Gray Bees avoided the blizzard back home and swept two road games in the Sun Belt last week. George Washington-bound 6-9 Arnaldo Toro netted 20 points and the game Most Valuable Player honors to help beat Bartow (Fla.), 75-51, at ARS National Hoopfest in Tampa, Fla. Also beat Convent Christian Ministries (Marietta, Ga.), 90-49, as Dave Beatty fired in a game-high 28 points and Bourama Sidibe posted a double-double, with 19 points and 15 boards.

21. Hopkins, Minnetonka, Minn. (19-0)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: The Royals are Minnesota’s top-ranked Class 5A team.

22. Garfield, Seattle (14-1)

Previous: 23.

Low-down: The Bulldogs have four games left in the regular season, including a Feb. 2 date with rivals Rainier Beach (Seattle). Last week, Jashaun Agosto (19 points) and Jaylen Noewell (13) teamed for 32 points to help dust Eastside Catholic (Sammamish, Wash.), 84-47.

23. Wayne, Huber Heights, Ohio (14-0)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: Ohio’s top-ranked Division I school defeated locals Centerville, 73-53, and Meadowdale (Dayton), 76-58. Eight games remain in the regular season.

24. Peabody, Alexandria, La. (22-1)

Previous: 25.

Low-down: The Warhorses are winning easy in District 3-3A, improving to 6-0 with blowout wins of 46 and 45 points.

25. Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif. (18-3)

Previous: 19.

Low-down: The Monarchs are 15-0 versus in-state competition and 3-3 outside.

Dropped out: No. 21 High Point (N.C.) Christian and No. 24 Simeon, Chicago.

High-Fives by Region

East

1. Cardozo, Oakland Gardens, N.Y. (19-1)
2. Bishop Loughlin, Brooklyn, N.Y. (13-3)
3. Archbishop Carroll, Radnor, Pa. (15-2)
4. Roman Catholic, Philadelphia (13-4)
5. Sacred Heart, Waterbury, Conn. (9-2)

Geography: Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia.

Midwest

1. Apple Valley, Minn. (17-1)
2. Fenwick, Oak Park, Ill. (17-2)
3. New Albany, Ind. (12-1)
4. Simeon, Chicago (15-3)
5. Omaha (Neb.) South (14-0)

Geography: Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, North Dakota, South Dakota, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

Southland

1. Miller Grove, Lithonia, Ga. (19-2)
2. Hamilton Heights Christian Academy, Chattanooga, Tenn. (17-2)
3. Christian Brothers, Memphis, Tenn. (19-0)
4. Hammond, Columbia, S.C. (19-0)
5. High Point (N.C.) Christian (17-4)

Geography: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.

Far West

1. Foothills Christian, El Cajon, Calif. (13-3)
2. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (15-6)
3. Prolific Prep, Napa, Calif. (16-5)
4. West Linn, Ore. (12-3)
5. Modesto (Calif.) Christian (18-1)

Geography: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

 About: The Blue Star Media Elite 25 High School Boys Basketball Rankings are released weekly from November until the conclusion of the high school season in early April. Criteria considered are the quality of the team and its players, strength of schedule, tradition, and quality of the team’s league, conference, region or district. The rankings are compiled by Blue Star Media’s Christopher Lawlor, who consults with a national network of coaches, talent evaluators, administrators and prep sports writers. Follow him on Twitter at #clawlor.