Go-To 25 Boys’ Basketball Final Rankings, April 10, 2013

BENSALEM, Pa. – After much debate it has been determined the Blue Star Media Go-To 25 boys’ basketball rankings ended in a dead heat or hung jury. That means Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) and Montverde (Fla.) Academy have been declared co-mythical national champions.

I’ve been ranking high school teams for portions of four decades and this was the toughest call to make. Instead of slighting either team, it’s been decided to split it.

In the end, head to head competition decided it. Findlay beat Montverde at the Hoophall Classic (Springfield, Mass.) in January, finishing the regular season undefeated. Findlay coach Todd Simon could have called it a season but made sure his Pilots were present at the National High School Invitational last weekend. When No. 3 St. Benedict’s (Newark, N.J.) knocked off the Pilots in the semifinals—halting a win streak at 54 games—it was assumed they’d beat Montverde … and almost did.

Montverde had other thoughts and rallied from a 16-point deficit in the final to capture an elusive slice of the national championship for coach Kevin Boyle, who previously guided now-shuttered St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.) into the national spotlight, finishing as high as No. 2. When Montverde lost in the Bass Pro Invitational final to Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.), 69-67, on Jan. 19 in Springfield, Mo., it flew to the Hoophall Classic and lost 62-59 to Findlay on Jan. 21 in a nationally televised game.

Since the NHSI is not recognized—nor will it be anytime soon by the National Federation of State High Schools’ full membership, meaning all states—the event remains a wonderful showcase of top teams that normally don’t compete for state titles. Florida allows its ranked schools—bravo FHSAA—to compete. Sadly power state associations such a California, Texas, Illinois, New York, New Jersey and Georgia and even the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference do not send their brethren and need to climb aboard. The most recent NHSI boys’ draw featured one state champion (Ely, Pompano, Beach, Fla.) and one national postseason tournament winner (Prime Prep, Dallas, Texas). Montverde then bagged the NHSI chip, drawing even with Findlay.

Having said that the NHSI was a tremendous success … again. Kudos to Rashid Ghazi and his team at Paragon Marketing for another bang-up job in North Bethesda, Md. Look forward to the sixth edition next April; would love it if other states take the leap of fate and join, making it truly a national championship with no debate.

It was a great season and now it’s over, save a handful of meaningful national senior all-star games (I’ll be at the Jordan Brand Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y., this weekend). The grassroots scene is in full mode these days, with a “live period” for college coaches on the agenda later this month.

We’ll be covering grassroots basketball, both boys and girls, this spring and summer. We’ll also be releasing our national player of the year and All-America teams shortly. Stay tuned for alerts. Looking head the football season is right around the corner; we’ll be releasing preseason team and player rankings in August. The basketball rankings will be released in November.

Hope to see you at a game soon. – Christopher Lawlor

Co-Players of the Week

Dakari Johnson, senior, and Jalyn Patterson, junior, both from No. 1 Montverde (Fla.) Academy: Seems sharing is the theme of the week at Blue Star Media but without either players, the Eagles were headed to defeat in the waning minutes of the National High School Invitational. First, Johnson, the Kentucky-bound center, who competed at the McDonald’s All American Game on April 3 in Chicago and then bolted for the NHSI where he bagged Most Valuable Player honors. In the final, he had 18 points and 8 rebounds but hit two clutch free throws down the stretch as the Eagles prevailed, 67-65. Now for the 6-foot Patterson, considered a mid-major guard from Alpharetta, Ga., with tremendous upside. In 14 minutes, Patterson scored only 5 points but delivered the buzzer beating 3-pointer to rally Montverde from a two-point deficit. Patterson will be a key component for Montverde, which is expected to start the 2013-14 season at No. 1.

Blue Star Media Go-To 25 boys’ basketball rankings, April 10, 2013

1t. Findlay Prep, Henderson, Nev. (35-1)

Previous rank: 1.

Low-down: Advanced to the semifinals of National High School Invitational, but fell to then-No. 2 St. Benedict’s (Newark, N.J.), 60-57. Also won Iolani Classic in Hawaii, but saw win streak stopped at 54 games going back to December 2011 at NHSI. The Pilots own a head to head win over Montverde (Fla.) Academy.

1t. Montverde (Fla.) Academy (25-2)**

Previous: 3.

Low-down: Won National High School Invitational, beating then-No. 2 St. Benedict’s (Newark, N.J.), 67-65, in final. Jalyn Patterson’s three-pointer with 2.1 seconds left won it. In the semifinals, D’Angelo Russell scored 20 points and Dakari Johnson (MVP) chipped in with 11 points and 16 rebounds. Also won two in-season tournaments, notably the City of Palms Classic in December.

3. St. Benedict’s, Newark, N.J. (31-1)

Previous: 2.

Low-down: Lost on a last-second in the championship game of the National High School Invitational to Montverde (Fla.) Academy, 67-65. In semifinals, knocked off top-ranked Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.), 60-57.

4. Lone Peak, Highland, Utah (26-1)**

Previous: 4.

Low-down: Won sixth state championship in eight years, winning the Class 5A crown.

5. Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif. (34-2)**

Previous: 11.

Low-down: Won state-record 10^th championship, winning the CIF Open Division final.

6. Simeon, Chicago (30-3)**

Previous: 5.

Low-down: Won a fourth consecutive Class 4A championship.

7. Morgan Park, Chicago (33-3)**

Previous: 6.

Low-down: Won Class 3A championship.

8. Prime Prep Academy, Dallas (36-2)**

Previous: 8.

Low-down: The Spartans advanced to semifinals of National High School Invitational, losing to nationally ranked Montverde (Fla.) Academy, 57-55. This was a colossal success for the first-year charter school on the national scene.

9. Blanche Ely, Pompano Beach, Fla. (27-2)**

Previous: 7.

Low-down: Won second straight Class 7A championship. The Tigers lost in quarterfinals of NHSI.

10. Huntington (W.Va.) Prep (29-3)

Previous: 9.

Low-down: Played an adventuresome national schedule. Undecided senior Andrew Wiggins is national player of the year material.

11. Christ the King, Middle Village, N.Y. (28-3)**

Previous: 16.

Low-down: Won Class AA New York State Federation championship. Also annexed the New York Catholic High School Athletic Association intersectional crown. Jon Severe was named New York State’s Mr. Basketball.

12. Christ Presbyterian Academy, Nashville, Tenn. (37-2)**

Previous: 12.

Low-down: Won second straight Class AA championship.

13. Whitney Young, Chicago (27-4)

Previous: 13.

Low-down: Lost in Class 4A sectional final but won the Beach Ball Classic. The Dolphins will return as a serious candidate for preseason No. 1.

14. Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va. (33-6)

Previous: 14.

Low-down: Advanced to the NHSI quarterfinals.

15. Bishop O’Connell, Arlington, Va. (30-7)**

Previous: 15.

Low-down: Won Alhambra Catholic Invitational and Washington Catholic Athletic Conference tournament titles. Joe Wootten had best closing month of any coach.

16. Germantown, Wis. (28-0)**

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: Won second straight Division 1 state championship. Indiana-bound C Luke Fischer was named the all-tournament MVP and Wisconsin’s Mr. Basketball. The Warhawks carry a 56-game win streak into next season.

17. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (29-3)**

Previous: 16.

Low-down: Won Division I state championship.

18. Gonzaga, Washington, D.C. (27-5)

Previous: 17.

Low-down: Won Washington Catholic Athletic Conference regular season title, going 18-0.

19. La Lumiere School, La Porte, Ind. (25-6)

Previous: 18.

Low-down: Advanced to NHSI quarterfinals while playing one of the nation’s toughest schedules. Alan Huss’ team is top-five material next season.

19. Romulus, Mich. (27-1)**

Previous: 19.

Low-down: Won Class A state championship. It was the school’s first title in 27 years.

21. Etiwanda, Calif. (28-3)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: Advanced to CIF Southern California Region Open Division final. Won CIF-Southern Section Division I-AA title.

22. Poly, Long Beach, Calif. (28-4)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: Advanced to the CIF-Southern California Region Open Division semifinals. Won the Moore League title.

23. The Rock School, Gainesville, Fla. (33-4)**

Previous: 23.

Low-down: Won Sunshine Independent Athletic Association Tournament championship.

24. Olympic, Charlotte, N.C. (30-0)**

Previous: 24.

Low-down: Won Class 4A state championship.

25. Arlington Country Day, Jacksonville, Fla. (30-4)

Previous: 25.

Low-down: Advanced to Sunshine Independent Athletic Association Tournament final. The Apaches will be loaded come next season.

Dropped out: No. 20 St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.); No. 21 Salesian (Richmond, Calif.); and No. 22 Bishop Montgomery (Torrance, Calif.).

High-Fives by Region

East

1. Roselle (N.J.) Catholic (25-5)**

2. Lower Merion, Ardmore, Pa. (30-3)**

3. St. Anthony, Jersey City, N.J. (28-2)

4. Chester, Pa. (28-4)

5. Benedictine, Richmond, Va. (33-5)**

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

Midlands

1. Omaha (Neb.) Central (26-4)**

2. West, Iowa City, Iowa (26-0)**

3. Carmel, Ind. (25-2)**

4. Mentor, Ohio (25-5)**

5. Pershing, Detroit (25-1)

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

South

1. Scotlandville, Baton Rouge, La. (33-2)**

2. Miller Grove, Lithonia, Ga. (30-3)**

3. Travis, Fort Bend, Texas (33-5)**

4. Southwind Prep, Memphis (34-6)**

5. Madison Central, Richmond, Ky. (32-5)**

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

Far West

1. Archbishop Mitty, San Jose (28-6)

2. Sheldon, Sacramento, Calif. (27-6)

3. Pacific Hills, Los Angeles (29-4)**

4. Salesian, Richmond, Calif. (30-4)

5. Curtis, University Place, Wash. (27-2)**

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

 ** Won state, conference or national tournament postseason championship

About: The Blue Star Media Go-To 25 Boys Basketball Rankings are released weekly 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 league, conference, region or district. The rankings are compiled by Blue Star Media’s senior writer/national evaluator Christopher Lawlor, who consults with a national network of coaches, evaluators and prep sports writers. Follow him on Twitter @clawlor or BlueStarMedia1, or www.bluestarmedia.org.