HOLD THAT TIGER: New Jersey power enters Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings after strong week

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – It was a revealing weekend here at the Hoophall Classic on the campus of Springfield College.

First, the Blue Star Media Elite 25 high school boys’ basketball ranked teams were well represented. Some performed well and others, well, they met their match and were vanquished from the latest Elite 25 rankings for January 20, 2015.

Joining the rankings are No. 23 Garfield (Seattle) and No. 25 Linden (N.J.). Two teams from opposite coasts and well deserved. Garfield played cross-town rivals Rainier Beach on Monday and will need to win to stay. Linden enters having the most impressive run in the New York Metropolitan area. The Tigers knocked off then-No. 2 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic and Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) at an event in Jersey City. Linden might be the best team in New Jersey currently. It’s a strange year in the Garden State with at least seven contenders to capture the coveted Tournament of Championships title in March.

Previous-No. 2 Roselle Catholic was thumped twice last week and dumped from the Elite 25 rankings. Ouch! We can’t recall such a precipitous drop.

The Dr. Martin Luther King weekend always produces great game, great events. The Hoophall was no different. Tournament organizer Greg Procino did a fantastic job of culling the nation for elite teams, players and coaches. Monday’s results at the Hoophall will be reflected in next week’s rankings, which appear on January 27.

One team that thoroughly impressed me was Sacred Heart (Waterbury, Conn.). The unbeaten Hearts defeated reigning New York State champions Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.) on Saturday. They become the first Connecticut boys’ team to appear in the Elite 25. Connecticut schools have little wiggle room in their schedules and it was well known they circled the date with CTK as their date with destiny. Well, it worked. The Hearts cracked the regional rankings and are a shoo-in to win the Class S state title.

Please support your local high school teams. There are plenty of great stories and players out there. Be sure to alert us if you have a story idea or special player in your community. Hope to see you at a game soon. – Christopher Lawlor 

Blue Star Media Elite 25 Boys Basketball Rankings, January 20, 2015

1. Findlay Prep, Henderson, Nev. (17-0)

Previous rank: 1.

Low down: Crushed then-No. 10 Stevenson (Lincolnshire, Ill.), 84-58, at Hoophall Classic. Allonzo Trier,  an Arizona recruit, had 27 points and Horace Spencer III added 20.

2. Hamilton, Memphis (15-0)

Previous: 3.

Low down: The Wildcats are 6-0 in District 16. This week they have local rivals Mitchell and Whitehaven.

3. Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va. (25-1)

Previous: 4.

Low down: Won Bass Pro Tournament of Champions, beating then-No. 11 Wesleyan Christian (High Point, N.C.), 82-59. Florida State-bound Dwayne Bacon hit for 33 points in the final and 95 points in three games and was named Most Valuable Player.

4. Wheeler, Marietta, Ga. (17-1)

Previous: 5.

Low down: The Wildcats recorded two more wins and played No. 14 Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland, Calif.) on Monday at the Hoophall Classic.

5. Montverde (Fla.) Academy (21-1)

Previous: 6.

Low down: Won two games last weekend at the Wally Keller Classic in Punta Gorda, Fla.

6. Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif. (12-1)

Previous: 8.

Low down: Defeated Crossroads School (Santa Monica), 80-49. The next big challenge is Jan. 31 vs. No. 10 Fairfax (Los Angeles).

7. Cape Henry Collegiate, Virginia Beach, Va. (15-1)

Previous: 9.

Low down: Capped the week beating Marshall (Richmond), 63-50, at the Bishop Sullivan Slamfest in Virginia Beach. Chris Clarke had 15 points and cleared nine rebounds. The Dolphins play No. 3 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) on Saturday in Roanoke, Va.

8. DeMatha, Hyattsville, Md. (14-1)

Previous: 13.

Low down: Hammered then-No. 2 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic, 69-45, at the Hoophall Classic. Junior G Markelle Fultz scored a game-high 25 points.

9. Villa Angela-St. Joseph, Cleveland (9-0)

Previous: 14.

Low down: Crushed St. Thomas Aquinas (Louisville, Ohio), 83-43. Simon Texidor threw in 24 points and Kansas-bound Carlton Bragg added 16. Played Monday against No. 3 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) at Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass.

10. Fairfax, Los Angeles (18-0)

Previous: 15.

Low down: Won three games to capture Snowball Classic Tournament title in British Columbia, Canada.

11. Stevenson, Lincolnshire, Ill. (15-2)

Previous: 8.

Low down: Lost to No. 1 Findlay Prep, 84-58, at the Hoophall Classic. Villanova-bound Jalen Brunson tossed in 27 points, including four 3-pointers.

12. Wesleyan Christian School, High Point, N.C. (22-2)

Previous: 11.

Low down: Lost to No. 4 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 82-59, in the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions final. Junior F Harry Giles scored 23 points. The Trojans are back home for a key Piedmont Conference matchup with Greensboro (N.C.) Country Day on Tuesday.

13. Roman Catholic, Philadelphia (14-1)

Previous: 12.

Low down: The Cahillites perfect season is over after a 56-55 loss to La Salle College (Wyndmoor). Also defeated Philadelphia Catholic League rivals West Catholic (Philadelphia), 90-47, and Archbishop Ryan (Philadelphia), 58-44.

14. Bishop O’Dowd, Oakland, Calif. (9-3)

Previous: 7.

Low down: Took third-place at the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions in Springfield, Mo. Senior C Ivan Rabb tossed in a game-high 31 points in a 65-64 win over Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.) in the consolation game. Paris Austin (21 points, eight assists), a Boise State recruit, converted a traditional three-point play with 19 seconds left rallying the Dragons from a 64-62 deficit.

15. Parkview, Little Rock, Ark. (10-1)

Previous: 16.

Low down: Cruised to a pair of wins. The Patriots stay in-state for the balance of the schedule.

16. St. Anthony, Jersey City, N.J. (9-1)

Previous: 17.

Low down: Topped The Patrick School (Elizabeth), 58-37, at the Dan Finn Classic in Jersey City.

17. Corona del Sol, Tempe, Ariz. (17-1)

Previous: 18.

Low down: Junior G Tyrell Henderson nailed a 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in overtime to edge Putnam Tech (Springfield, Mass.), 60-57, at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass.

18. Plano West, Plano, Texas (18-2)

Previous: 19.

Low down: Defeated Plano East, 79-62. Seven games left in the regular season.

19. Huntington (W.Va.) Prep (18-2)

Previous: 20.

Low down: Stopped then-No. 24 Our Savior New American (Centereach, N.Y.), 76-57, at Hoophall Classic. The Irish have a huge game Saturday vs. Oldsmar (Fla.) Christian at the Penny Hardaway Classic in Tampa, Fla.

20. Muskegon, Mich. (7-1)

Previous: 21.

Low down: Joevair Kennedy scored a career-high 31 points in a 69-59 win over Romulus at the Floyd Mayweather Classic in Grand Rapids. Deyonta Davis, a Michigan State commit, posted a triple-double, with 15 points, 22 rebounds and 13 blocked shots.

21. La Lumiere School, La Porte, Ind. (14-2)

Previous: 22.

Low down: Needed overtime but defeated Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.), 71-69, at Flyin’ to the Hoop in Kettering, Ohio. Jalen Coleman-Lands scored 30 points. The Lakers prevailed over local favorites Dunbar (Dayton, Ohio), 64-55, to close out their stay in Ohio.

22. Greensboro (N.C.) Day (24-0)

Previous: 23.

Low down: Defeated High Point Christian, 63-59. The Bengals have a showdown with No. 12 Wesley Christian Academy (High Point) on Tuesday.

23. Garfield, Seattle (14-0)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low down: Washington’s top-ranked Class 3A is rolling. Played Monday against cross-town rivals Rainier Beach (Seattle). It may be a short stay in the Elite 25 unless the newcomers win.

24. John Carroll School, Bel Air, Md. (20-1)

Previous: 25.

Low down: Won two more games with relative ease.

25.  Linden, N.J. (9-2)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low down: The pulse-thickening Tigers erased local rivals Roselle Catholic and Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) from the Elite 25 rankings. Two losses in December have been forgotten, well, were used as motivation in January. Phil Colicchio is one of the top coaches on the East Coast and utilizing a small, quick lineup—Quinton Dixon represents some size in the post—he has a team that will be in the mix for the Union County Tournament and Group 4 state championships. The Tigers visit Roselle Catholic on Feb. 1 and will likely see them again in the county tournament final.

Dropped out: No. 2 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic and No. 24 Our Savior New American, Centereach, N.Y.

High-Fives by Region

East

1. Neumann-Goretti, Philadelphia (15-1)

2. Jefferson, Brooklyn, N.Y. (17-2)

3. St. Benedict’s, Newark, N.J. (15-2)

4. Roselle (N.J.) Catholic (9-2)

5. Sacred Heart, Waterbury, Conn. (8-0)

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 (13-2)

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

3. Champlin Park, Champlin, Minn. (16-0)

4. Dominican, Whitefish Bay, Wis. (9-1)

5. Simeon, Chicago (14-2)

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

South

1. Providence School, Jacksonville, Fla. (22-1)

2. Callaway, Jackson, Miss. (18-3)

3. Atascocita, Humble, Texas (23-1)

4. Jonesboro, Ga. (18-1)

5. Ballard, Louisville, Ky. (15-2)

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

Far West

1. Bishop Montgomery, Torrance, Calif. (16-1)

2. Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif. (15-3)

3. Desert Vista, Phoenix (17-1)

4. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (14-4)

5. Regis Jesuit, Aurora, Colo. (13-0)

Geography: 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 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.