BENSALEM, Pa. – McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) closed out the regular season holding to the same theme: dominance. 

The Indians, No. 1 in the Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings, are headed into the postseason with a perfect 25-0 record and looking to cap a memorable season with a Georgia Class AAAAAAA state championship.

In ultra-competitive Georgia that won’t be easy but the Indians have a proper mix of quality players and team chemistry. 

Meanwhile, No. 2 La Lumiere School (La Porte, Ind.) added another notch to its belt after winning the Bob Kirk Invitational Tournament title in Maryland. The Lakers are unbeaten and looking like national championship timber.

As for the latest Elite 25, the top-4 remained in tact but after that the rest of the Top 10 is jumbled after multiple teams dropped games. The biggest risers were, with three joining the Top 10, No. 8 Cox Mill (Concord, N.C.), No. 9 Belleville (Ill.) West and No. 10 Rancho Christian (Temecula, Calif.). The latter two jumped eight and five spots, respectively. Rancho’s big comeback-win over No. 14 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, Calif.) dropped Sierra nine slots as the regular closed in the Southern Section.

No. 12 Ranney School (Tinton Falls, N.J.) moved up 10 spots after a huge in-state victory. Those suffering the biggest downturns were No. 13 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), No. 21 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic and No. 23 Wasatch Academy (Mount Pleasant, Utah).

No. 22 Moeller (Cincinnati) enters the Elite 25 and are Ohio’s top-ranked Division I club highlighted by an unblemished record. The Crusaders are looking to clinch their third straight outright league title this week and will be a team to keep an eye on as the postseason brackets are drawn up and the race to Columbus for the state tournament semifinals and final in March gains momentum.

As for the GEICO High School Nationals, the elite eight-team boys’ field would feature teams from these groups: McEachern, La Lumiere, Montverde Academy, IMG Academy, Oak Hill Academy, Sunrise Christian Academy are shoo-ins to start the Week of February 4-10.

The remaining two spots will be invited from this group: Wasatch Academy, Shadow Mountain (Phoenix), Carmel Christian (Matthews, N.C.), Charlotte (N.C.) Christian, University School (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) and Federal Way (Wash.). There are other public or independent schools that will emerge from qualifying states of Nevada, North Carolina, Arizona, Utah and Washington as the postseason unfolds.

This weekend the place to be is the Metro Classic High School Basketball Showcase on the campus of Kean University in Union, N.J. The three-day event tips Friday and features the home state return of future Hall of Fame coach Kevin Boyle of Montverde (Fla.) Academy. The No. 3 Eagles are scheduled to play New Jersey’s top two teams on Friday and Saturday. The arena will be packed for both games. Check out the Metro Classic’s stellar lineup of games here.

The Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings return on February 12.

A big thank you goes to all our readers. Hope to see you at a game soon. – Christopher Lawlor 

Blue Star Media Elite 25 Boys’ Basketball Rankings, February 5, 2019

1. McEachern, Powder Springs, Ga. (25-0)

Previous ranked: 1.

Low-down: The Indians close out the regular season with victories of 20, 50 and 19 points. Next up are the Class AAAAAAA Region 3 playoffs.

2. La Lumiere School, La Porte, Ind. (25-0)

Previous: 2.

Low-down: Won the Bob Kirk Invitational Tournament in Cumberland, Md., crushing then-No. 16 Sunrise Christian (Bel Aire, Kan.), 74-52, in the final. Keion Brooks was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. At 6-7, Brooks is considering such schools as Indiana, Kentucky, North Carolina, Purdue and Michigan State.

3. Montverde (Fla.) Academy (19-2)

Previous: 3.

Low-down: Cade Cunningham (26 points) and Precious Achiuwa (25) teamed for 51 points in a 76-51 hammering of then-No. Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) at the ARS Rescue Rooter National Hoop Fest in Tampa, Fla. This weekend the Eagles head north to play nationally ranked New Jersey schools Ranney School (Tinton Falls) on Friday and Roselle Catholic on Saturday in the Metro Classic in Union, N.J.

4. IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla. (26-1)

Previous: 4.

Low-down: The Ascenders topped McCallie School (Chattanooga), 66-49, and Holy Spirit Prep (Atlanta), 64-52, at the Dr. Pepper Classic in Chattanooga, Tenn.

5. Salesian College Prep, Richmond, Calif. (26-0)

Previous: 6.

Low-down: Closed out a perfect regular season, defeating El Cerrito, 61-45, and St. Patrick-St. Vincent (Vallejo), 79-60. The CIF-North Coast Section Division III playoffs start on Feb. 12.

6. DeMatha, Hyattsville, Md. (20-2)

Previous: 8.

Low-down: The Stags have now won at least 20 games in 60 of the last 64 seasons.

7. Curie, Chicago (24-1)

Previous: 10.

Low-down: Idle. The Condors open the Chicago Public League playoffs Thursday against Fenger (Chicago).

8. Cox Mill, Concord, N.C. (19-1)

Previous: 11.

Low-down: Beat local rivals Concord, 86-60, and Central Cabarrus (Concord), 77-56. The Chargers have four games left in the regular season.

9. Belleville (Ill.) West (23-1)

Previous: 17.

Low-down: The Maroons had two close calls, outlasting Simeon (Chicago), 55-54, in overtime. Additionally, EJ Liddell’s 17 points and 13 rebounds sparked a 55-49 win at O’Fallon.

10. Rancho Christian, Temecula, Calif. (24-4)

Previous: 15.

Low-down: The Eagles finished the game on a 12-0 run to beat then-No. 5 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, Calif.), 61-58. Trailing 58-49 late in the fourth, a 10-0 burst rallied the Eagles, who head into the postseason with momentum.

11. Federal Way, Wash. (19-2)

Previous: 9.

Low-down: Won the Class 4A NPSL title, routing Kentridge (Kent), 89-52. Jaden McDaniel pumped in 31 points, including several crowd-pleasing dunks, and Tari Eason added 29.

12. Ranney School, Tinton Falls, N.J. (18-2) 

Previous: 22.

Low-down: Villanova-bound and McDonald’s All-American Bryan Antoine scored a game-high 25 points and Phillip Wheeler added a double-double of 10 points and 12 rebounds in a 61-49 victory over then-No. 14 Roselle (N.J.) Catholic in a Garden State showdown. The next test is No. 3 Montverde (Fla.) Academy Friday at the Metro Classic in Union, N.J.

13. Oak Hill Academy, Mouth of Wilson, Va. (22-3)

Previous: 7.

Low-down: Lost No. 2 Montverde (Fla.) Academy, 76-51. That’s a rare blowout loss for the Warriors.

14. Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif. (23-3)

Previous: 5.

Low-down: Lost to No. 12 Rancho Christian (Temecula, Calif.), 61-58. The Trailblazers were outscored 12-0 to end the wild fourth quarter.

15. Warren Central, Indianapolis (18-1)

Previous: 13.

Low-down: Defeated Center Grove, 68-54, in the lone game of the week.

16. Sunrise Christian, Bel Aire, Kan. (19-4)

Previous: 17.

Low-down: Finished second at the Bob Kirk Invitational Tournament in Cumberland, Md., going 2-1. This weekend the Buffaloes have an interesting matchup against No. 23 Wasatch Academy (Mount Pleasant, Utah) at the Heartland Hoops Classic in Grand Island, Neb. The winner of this one gets an inside track to the GEICO Nationals.

17. Mountain Brook, Birmingham, Ala. (25-3)

Previous: 18.

Low-down: On Senior Night, the Spartans recorded a 101-75 victory over Pinson Valley (Pinson). The Class 7A Area 6 playoffs tip off Thursday against Hewitt-Trussville. The final is Saturday.

18. Carmel Christian School, Matthews, N.C. (28-2)

Previous: 19.

Low-down: The regular season concludes Monday at Davidson Day. The North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association playoffs open on Feb. 12.

19. Bishop Loughlin, Brooklyn, N.Y. (19-1)

Previous: 20.

Low-down: The Lions clinched the CHSAA Brooklyn-Queens AA regular season title, topping rivals Christ the King (Middle Village), 60-58. Three games are left in the regular season before the Brooklyn-Queen Diocesan AA playoffs.

20. Fairfax, Los Angeles (24-1)

Previous: 21.

Low-down: The Lions won the Western League title, beating then-No. 24 Westchester (Los Angeles), 87-73. Next up is the CIF-City Section Open Division first round against Narbonne (Harbor City) on Friday.

21. Roselle (N.J.) Catholic (19-2)

Previous: 14.

Low-down: Lost to then-No. 22 Ranney School (Tinton Falls), 61-49, as Kahlil Whitney and Cliff Omoruyi scored 15 points apiece. It was rematch of last year’s Non-Public B state final and the Lions’ first loss to an in-state team in nearly two years (March 2017). The schedule amps up this week with The Patrick School (Elizabeth) on Wednesday and No. 3 Montverde (Fla.) Academy on Saturday.

22. Moeller, Cincinnati (18-0)

Previous: Not ranked.

Low-down: Alec Pfriem had a game-high 19 points in a 69-33 blowout at La Salle (Cincinnati). The victory stretched the winning streak to 37 games, including 17 consecutive victories in the Greater Catholic League South Division. The Crusaders can win a third straight outright league championship with a win against Elder (Cincinnati) on Friday,

23. Wasatch Academy, Mount Pleasant, Utah (23-3)

Previous: 16.

Low-down: Finished third at the Bob Kirk Invitational Tournament, beating host Bishop Walsh (Cumberland, Md.), 83-50, in consolation. Mike Saunders posted 14 points and 11 assists. Lost to then-No. 16 Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.), 53-52, in the semifinals.

24. Bogan, Chicago (20-2)

Previous: 23.

Low-down: Idle. The Bengals open the Chicago Public School playoffs against Dunbar (Chicago) on Tuesday.

25. Long Island Lutheran, Brookville, N.Y. (16-2)

Previous: 25.

Low-down: Tyler Stephenson-Moore scored 27 points and Zed Key had a double-double with 24 points and 10 rebounds in a 90-58 win over Brooklyn Collegiate. The Crusaders play three times this week capped by Saturday’s game with Gill-St. Bernard’s (Gladstone, N.J.) at the Metro Classic in Union, N.J.

Dropped: No. 24 Westchester (Los Angeles).

High-Fives by Region

East

1. St. Raymond, Bronx, N.Y. (17-4)

2. Paul VI, Fairfax, Va. (17-4)

3. Cardinal Hayes, Bronx, N.Y. (18-4)

4. Roman Catholic, Philadelphia (18-4)

5. Notre Dame, West Haven, Conn. (16-0)

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

Midwest

1. Nicolet, Glendale, Wis. (15-1)

2. Morgan Park, Chicago (22-3)

3. Carmel, Ind. (15-1)

4. River Rouge, Mich. (13-1)

5. Hilliard (Ohio) Bradley (17-0)

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

Southland

1. Scott County, Georgetown, Ky. (25-1)

2. Guyer, Denton, Texas (26-4)

3. Timberview, Mansfield, Texas (28-2)

4. North Crowley, Fort Worth, Texas (29-3)

5. Charlotte (N.C.) Christian (24-1)

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

Far West

1. Shadow Mountain, Phoenix (21-3)

2. Corona (Calif.) Centennial (25-3)

3. Westchester, Los Angeles (21-3)

4. Gonzaga Prep, Spokane, Wash. (18-2)

5. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (20-4)

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. 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 Senior Writer Christopher Lawlor, who consults with a national network of coaches, talent evaluators and prep sports writers. The final rankings will be released in April. Follow him on Twitter at @clawlor.