CALIFORNIA KINGS: Golden State school re-enters Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings

BENSALEM, Pa. – One of the basketball giants, Dean Smith formerly of the University of North Carolina, died last Saturday. We’d be remiss if he wasn’t mentioned in this column. For many high school coaches, he was the ultimate teacher, innovator and mentor.

Smith treated people of all races with class and dignity. He was helped integrate a restaurant in a segregated south in the turbulent 1960s. He opposed the death penalty and Vietnam War and was a God-fearing man whose good deeds were legendary but largely done without fanfare. Whenever you see a team huddle at the foul line or a player point to a teammate for a great assist, credit that to Smith. His Hall of Fame coaching was only outdone by his humility.

Two national titles, numerous NBA players and 11 Final Fours are impressive but he was most proud of a 96% graduation rate of his lettermen. We can all learn something from Dean Smith.

Getting back to the Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings, there was a lot of shifting but only one team tumbled out. Joining is No. 20 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.)—no stranger to the rankings—after an impressive 13-point win over previously undefeated No. 7 Fairfax (Los Angeles). Coach Gary McKnight, who earlier this season claimed his 1,000^th victory, has the Monarchs primed for another postseason run that starts in the sectionals next week.

Speaking of the postseason, the Dick’s Sporting Goods High School National Tournament is less than two months away. The eight-team bracket will be played from April 2-4 in New York, with the championship decided at the world famous Madison Square Garden.

We’re hearing whispers that No. 1 Oak Hill Academy, No. 2 Montverde Academy and No. 4 Findlay Prep are shoo-ins. The five remaining teams are still a mystery but it’s a safe bet that No. 22 Huntington Prep will be invited.

That leaves four. No. 5 Cape Henry Collegiate is another team under consideration and so is No. 6 Garfield, which must win Washington’s Class 3A state tournament. The same goes for No. 13 Ely, which is the favorite in Florida’s Class 7A. Either No. 14 Wesleyan Christian or No. 16 Greensboro Day—both from North Carolina—will claim a bid. Provided three of those schools win state titles leaving one invite remaining. It may go to No. 19 La Lumiere but there are others still in the mix. It will all play out in the coming weeks and you can be sure we’ll have updates each week.

The next Elite 25 rankings will appear on Feb. 17. In the meantime, please support your local high school teams. There are plenty of great stories and players out there. Drop us an email if there is a story idea or special player in your community that deserves attention. Hope to see you at a game soon. – Christopher Lawlor

Blue Star Media Elite 25 Boys Basketball Rankings, Feb. 10, 2015

1. Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va. (38-0)*

Previous rank: 1.

Low down: The Warriors defeated then-No. 8 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, Calif.), 64-60, and then-No. 9 Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland, Calif,), 63-52, at the Nike Extravaganza in Santa Ana, Calif. : Dwayne Bacon scored 22 points against O’Dowd.

2. Montverde (Fla.) Academy (26-1)

Previous: 2.

Low down: Idle. The Eagles play at New Jersey powers Roselle Catholic on Friday and St. Benedict’s (Newark) on Saturday.

3. DeMatha, Hyattsville, Md. (24-1)

Previous: 4.

Low down: Edged Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 70-64, for their 14th straight victory. The Stags are 15-0 in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, with three games remaining until the playoffs that start next week.

4. Findlay Prep, Henderson, Nev. (20-2)

Previous: 3.

Low down: In one of the shocking upsets, the Pilots lost to Canyon Springs (Las Vegas), 60-59, in overtime. That’s the first loss to a Nevada public school in program history.

5. Cape Henry Collegiate, Virginia Beach, Va. (23-2)

Previous: 6.

Low down: The Dolphins celebrate Senior Night on Tuesday when Bishop O’Sullivan Catholic (Virginia Beach) visits. The TCIS tournament quarterfinals are on Feb. 17.

6. Garfield, Seattle (20-0)

Previous: 7.

Low down: The Bulldogs closed out a perfect regular season with a 79-46 victory over Ballard (Seattle). The closest game all season was a 13-point win over Seattle Prep in December.

7. Fairfax, Los Angeles (25-1)

Previous: 5.

Low down: After a pair of lopsided league wins, the Lions lost at No. 20 Mater Dei (Santa Ana), 47-34, at the Nike Extravaganza.

8. Wheeler, Marietta, Ga. (23-2)

Previous: 10.

Low down: The Wildcats are the top seed in the Region 5-AAAAAA tournament, which gets underway this week. Only the top three finishers move on in the postseason.

9. Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif. (18-3)

Previous: 8.

Low down: Lost to No. 1 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 64-60, at the Nike Extravaganza. The Trailblazers were a down point in the final seconds but OHA made their free throws to ice it. Devearl Ramsey had a team-high 21 points

10. Parkview, Little Rock, Ark. (17-0)*

Previous: 11.

Low down: The Patriots allowed only 63 points in two low scoring victories.

11. Stevenson, Lincolnshire, Ill. (19-2)

Previous: 12.

Low down: After a 10-day layoff, the Patriots drilled Zion (Ill.)-Benton, 87-64, for their second win of the week. The final major playoff tune-up is against regionally ranked Simeon (Chicago) on Feb. 21.

12. St. Vincent-St. Mary, Akron, Ohio (17-0)

Previous: 18.

Low down: Stopped North Central (Indianapolis), 75-68, and Archbishop Hoban (Akron), 61-47. Josh Williams totaled 21 points vs. Hoban.

13. Ely, Pompano Beach, Fla. (24-0)

Previous: 19.

Low down: Won the District 14-7A tournament, halting Boyd Anderson (Lauderdale Lakes), 81-64, in final. Also stopped Northeast (Oakland Park), 82-29, in the semifinals. Up next are the Region 4-7A quarterfinals Thursday vs. Lake Worth.

14. Wesleyan Christian School, High Point, N.C. (27-4)

Previous: 14.

Low down: Harry Giles had 24 points as the Trojans used a 15-7 fourth quarter run to overcome Davidson Day, 59-54. Also beat then-No. 13 Greensboro Day, 52-50, in four overtimes. Brandon Childress hit two free throws with 3 seconds left to snap a 50-all tie.

15. St. Anthony, Jersey City, N.J. (16-1)

Previous: 16.

Low down: The Friars ripped Central Jersey College Charter (Somerset), 70-10. Wichita State-bound Markus McDuffie  dropped in 23 points during a 66-25 drubbing of Chester (Pa.), at the PrimeTime Shootout in Rosellle.

16. Greensboro (N.C.) Day (28-2)

Previous: 13.

Low down: The Bengals bounced back last Friday beating High Point Christian, 43-24, after a four-overtime thriller loss to then-No. 14 Wesleyan Christian (High Point), 52-50. Up next is Davidson Day on Friday, a team that took them down on Jan. 27.

17. Bishop O’Dowd, Oakland, Calif. (17-4)

Previous: 9.

Low down: Lost to No. 1 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 63-52, at the Nike Extravaganza. Two of the Dragons’ losses are to the Elite 25’s top-ranked squad.

18. Corona del Sol, Tempe, Ariz. (25-1)

Previous: 17.

Low down: Freshman sensation Marvin Bagley scored 13 of his game-high 31 points n the third quarter as the Aztecs closed out the regular season, beating Red Mountain (Mesa), 66-54. Up next is the Division I super sectional quarterfinals on Wednesday.  

19. La Lumiere School, La Porte, Ind. (17-2)

Previous: 20.

Low down: Junior C Isaac Humphries scored 22 points and Alex Olesinski had 17 in a 90-60 victory over Thea Bowman Academy (Gary). The Lakers host Kenwood Academy (Chicago) on Saturday.

20. Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif. (22-3)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low down: G La’Vette Parker (22 points) and C M.J. Cage (12 points, 12 rebounds, 6 blocks) combined for 34 points in a 47-34 win over then-No. 6 Fairfax (Los Angeles) at the Nike Extravaganza. A stingy defense allowed only 9 points in the second half and forced 15 turnovers. The Monarchs have lost only twice on their home court since the facility opened in 2006.

21. Plano West, Plano, Texas (24-2)

Previous: 21.

Low down: Tyler Davis (30 points) and D.J. Hogg (27) combined for 57 points in a 77-74 win over Allen, improving to 14-0 in district play. The Wolves have a quiet week, playing Tuesday against Flower Mound.

22. Huntington (W.Va.) Prep (25-2)

Previous: 22.

Low down: The Irish were on fire last weekend, scoring 119, 86, and 99 points in three games. The frenetic pace was evident in a 119-50 victory over Mount Zion Christian (Durham, N.C.). Eight games remain in the regular season in addition to an invitation from the Dick’s Nationals from April 2-4 in New York City.

23. Bishop Montgomery, Torrance, Calif. (24-1)

Previous: 23.

Low down: Defeated Cathedral (Los Angeles), 76-69, for a 16^th-straight victory. The Knights play Cantwell-Sacred Heart (Montebello) on Monday and Serra (Gardena) on Wednesday to close out the regular season. The CIF-Southern Section playoffs start on Feb. 18.

24. Muskegon, Mich. (13-1)

Previous: 24.

Low down: Joevair Kennedy totaled 47 points in a pair of wins and surpassed the 1,000-point career point barrier. In a 76-52 victory over Whitney Young (Chicago), he had 21 points, and then netted 26 points in a 72-56 win over Zeeland (Mich.) East.

25. Villa Angela-St. Joseph, Cleveland (13-2)

Previous: 25.

Low down: Kansas-bound PF Carlton Bragg scored 23 points and Simon Texidor and Derek Pardon each had 17 in a 104-62 blowout of Kennedy (Warren). Another light week sees the Vikings play Trinity  (Garfield Heights) on Friday.

Dropped out: No. 15 Roman Catholic, Philadelphia (20-2).

High-Fives by Region

East

1. Neumann-Goretti, Philadelphia (21-1)

2. Roselle (N.J.) Catholic (18-2)

3. Roman Catholic, Philadelphia (20-2)

4. Jefferson, Brooklyn, N.Y. (21-2)

5. Sacred Heart, Waterbury, Conn. (15-0)

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

Midlands

1. St. Rita, Chicago (19-2)

2. Champlin Park, Champlin, Minn. (22-0)

3. Dominican, Whitefish Bay, Wis. (14-1)

4. Simeon, Chicago (21-2)

5. Reitz, Evansville, Ind. (20-0)

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

South

1. Providence School, Jacksonville, Fla. (29-1)

2. Jonesboro, Ga. (24-1)

3. Callaway, Jackson, Miss. (23-3)

4. Atascocita, Humble, Texas (28-1)

5. Ballard, Louisville, Ky. (24-2)

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

Far West

1. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (20-6)

2. Regis Jesuit, Aurora, Colo. (19-0)

3. Redondo Union, Redondo Beach, Calif. (19-5)

4. Corona (Calif.) Centennial (19-4)

5. Cesar Chavez, Laveen, Ariz. (24-2)

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

* Record adjusted includes forfeit wins

 About: The Blue Star Media Elite 25 High School Boys’ Basketball Rankings are released weekly from December until the conclusion of the high school season. 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 and prep sports writers. The final rankings will be released April 6, 2015. Follow him on Twitter: @clawlor.