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| Wednesday, July 16 |
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| National Boys' Basketball Top 25 By Jeff Goodman SchoolSports.com | |||
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1. Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) -- (7-0)*1 2. Willowridge HS (Sugar Land, Texas)-- (14-0)*2 Last week: Won the Outback Tournament in Ft. Bend, Texas, from Dec. 7-9. The Eagles beat Galena Park High, 111-44; Carrollton Newman-Smith High, 99-63; Kingwood High, 61-49; Clements High, 61-51; and Hastings High, 77-65. Upcoming: Dec. 15 at North Shore High. Outlook: The Eagles won their second tournament of the year, following up their Aldine Tournament championship with the Outback Tournament title. Daniel Ewing was named tournament MVP after averaging 18 points per game. Curtis Walker and Kenny Smith were also named to the All-Tournament team. 3. Mater Dei HS (Santa Ana, Calif.)-- (5-0)*4 Last week: Beat Redondo Union High, 92-68, to win the Tournament of Champions at Ocean View High; defeated Pasadena High, 73-39; Serra High, 87-36; and Ontario High, 89-77. Upcoming: Dec. 18-21 at the Holiday Prep Classic in Las Vegas, Nev. Outlook: The Monarchs looked like a semi-pro team again this past weekend, whipping up on all competitors at the Tournament of Champions at Ocean View High. Cedric Bozeman was named tournament MVP after scoring 28 points on 13-for-22 shooting in the title game. Jamal Sampson dunked all over the place despite playing on an ankle sprain, and guard Travis Gabler made 14 of 19 3-point shots during the three-game tournament. 4. Dillard HS (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)-- (5-0)*6 Last week: Beat Piper High, 73-62, and Ely High, 84-67. Upcoming: Dec. 12 vs. St. Thomas Aquinas High. Outlook: Kelvin Brown scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in the win over Piper. In the Aquinas game, he'll be matched up with another top recruit, Raiders forward Ed Nelson. 5. St. Patrick's HS (Elizabeth, N.J.)-- (0-0)*7 Last week: Idle. Upcoming: Dec. 16 vs. Neptune High at Seton Hall University. Outlook: The frontcourt at St. Patrick's goes 6-foot-9 (Marcus Austin), 6-foot-10 (Grant Billmeier)and 6-foot-6 (Jamie Sowers), while the backcourt is a couple of 5-foot-11 guys in Sam Lake and Terrell Prince. The first guard off the bench, sophomore Michael Narde, is also 5-foot-11. Austin has committed to Seton Hall. 6. Vashon HS (St. Louis, Mo.)-- (4-0)*8 Last week: Beat Career Academy, 91-59. Upcoming: Dec. 14 vs. Sumner High. Outlook: Lorenzo Gordon scored 25 points and forward Jimmy McKinney added 15 in the win over Career Academy. 7. St. Vincent-St. Mary HS (Akron, Ohio)-- (3-0)*10 Last week: Beat Garfield High, 89-55, and Orange High, 73-43. Upcoming: Dec. 15 vs. Racine Case High (Wis.). Outlook: Behind super sophomore LeBron James, the Fighting Irish continue to roll through Northeast Ohio with little trouble. James averaged 27 points, seven boards and four steals in the two wins last week. 8. DeMatha Catholic HS (Hyattsville, Md.)-- (5-0)*11 Last week: Cruised to a 72-59 win over Parkdale High and a 65-42 victory over Bishop Neumann High (Pa.). Upcoming: Dec. 16 at Canton McKinley High (Ohio). Outlook: The Stags keep rolling along, but the departure of recent transfer Marshall Strickland will prove troublesome. Lenny Smith scored 19 points to lead DeMatha in the win over Parkdale. 9. Montrose Christian School (Rockville, Md.)-- (2-1)*3 Last week: Downed Gwynn Lake Prep, 77-70, and Capital Christian High, 115-31, before falling to Coastal Christian High (Va.), 66-64. Upcoming: Dec. 18 at the Iolani Classic (Honolulu, Hawaii). Outlook: Playing without Harvey Thomas, who withdrew from the school, Montrose Christian picked up a couple of wins but was also saddled with its first loss. In the rout of Capital Christian, Levi Watkins finished with 30 points and 12 rebounds. Watkins also led the way in the loss to Coastal Christian, scoring 16. 10. Reynolds HS (Winston Salem, N.C.)-- (4-1)*9 Last week: Beat Parkland High, 90-80, and Carver High, 88-69. Upcoming: Dec. 15 at Grimsley High. Outlook: Mitchell Baldwin (formerly Bittle)scored 25, including 12 in the fourth quarter, against Carver and poured in 23 points in the victory over Parkland. Brandon Senter knocked down a trio of 3-pointers and finished with 20 points while Mike Russell added 12 against Parkland. 11. St. Raymond's HS (Bronx, N.Y.)-- (0-1)*5 Last week: Lost to Bishop Loughlin High, 77-66. Upcoming: Dec. 15 vs. St. Dominic's High and Dec. 20 at City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla. Outlook: With All-Star guard Julius Hodge held to just 14 points, St. Raymond's suffered its first loss of the season -- a 77-66 loss to Bishop Loughlin in the Diane Brennan Invitational. Chris McRae was St. Ray's high scorer, finishing with 23. 12. De La Salle HS (Concord, Calif.)-- (3-0)*13 Last week: Won the Chris Vonture Classic. Defeated St. Ignatius High, 51-38, Serra High, 71-34, and St. Joseph High, 61-46. Upcoming: Dec. 19-22 at the Iolani Classic (Honolulu, Hawaii). Outlook: Charles Brown was named MVP of the Chris Vonture Classic after scoring 17 points in the victory over St. Ignatius. 13. Male HS (Louisville, Ky.)-- (5-0)*14 Last week: Beat Fern Creek High; defeated Manual High, 84-70; beat Graves County High, 60-53. Upcoming: Dec. 12 vs. Atherton High. Outlook: Forward Larry O'Bannon got in foul trouble in the first two victories but rebounded with a 30-point output against Fern Creek and then a 42-point, 15-rebound performance against Manual. Michael Bush, who joined the team late because of football, scored 17 in the win over Graves County. 14. Berkshire School (Homestead, Fla.)-- (3-0)*15 Last week: Beat Coastal Christian High (Va.), 59-30. Upcoming: Travel to Virginia later this month. Outlook: Berkshire is ineligible for the state playoffs and can't play other Florida High School Activities Association schools after being expelled, so the team has a national schedule that is loaded with road games. Depaul-bound 6-foot-7 Quemont Greer scored 14 points in the win over Coastal Christian. 15. Southern HS (Baltimore, Md.)-- (2-0)*16 Last week: Beat Springarn High, 67-58; defeated Randallstown High, 59-47, in the Function at the Junction in Baltimore. Outlook: Darshan Luckey scored 17 points in the win against Springarn and added 13 in the victory over Randallstown. 16. Camden HS (Camden, N.J.)-- (0-0)*18 Last week: Idle. Upcoming: Dec. 15 at Eastern High. Outlook: The team may not have played any games yet, but there was plenty of news surrounding the basketball team. Star point guard Dajuan Wagner was arrested, along with teammate James Pulliam, for allegedly beating up another student in a hallway outside the principal's office on Friday morning. Wagner, who has committed to play at Memphis next year, was released to his parents' custody. 17. Midwest City HS (Midwest City, Okla.)-- (2-0)*19 Last week: Routed Norman North High, 95-61. Upcoming: Dec. 15 at Edmond Memorial High and Dec. 16 vs. Oklahoma City McGuinness High. Outlook: Forward Sheldon Williams, considered one of the top juniors in the country, kept up his torrid shooting with 24 points and 12 boards in the win over Norman North. Swingman DeAngelo Alexander added 22 points and seven rebounds. 18. Berkmar HS (Lilburn, Ga.)-- (4-0)*20 Last week: Defeated Riverdale High, 83-81. Outlook: Clark Williams poured in 29 points and added 10 boards in the win over Riverdale, while Adrian Borders chipped in 13 points. 19. Pike HS (Indianapolis, Ind.)-- (5-0)*21 Last week: Defeated Providence St. Mel High (Ill.), 82-53, in the Hoops in the Loop Classic at Northwestern University (Ill.). Upcoming: Dec. 15 vs. Lawrence Central High and Dec. 16 vs. Carmel High. Outlook: Senior guard Chris Thomas continued to fill it up. He came into the game averaging 28.5 points per game and scorched Providence St. Mel for 35 and nine steals in just 22 minutes of action. Thomas was 3-for-4 from behind the 3-point arc and grabbed five boards. 20. White Station HS (Memphis, Tenn.)-- (5-0)*NR Last week: Beat Hazelwood Central High (Mo.), 84-61; defeated Jefferson City High (Mo.), 79-32, in the Bartlett Classic. Outlook: Senior Ernest Shelton scored 66 points combined in the two victories for White Station, which makes its debut in the Top 25 this week. 21. Westchester HS (Los Angeles, Calif.)-- (5-0)*NR Last week: Beat University High, 135-57; won Pacific Shores Tournament by beating Bishop Montgomery High in the finals, 88-85, Redondo High in the semifinals, 82-69, and Long Beach Poly High in the quarterfinals, 64-56. Upcoming: Next week at the City of Palms Classic (Palm Beach, Fla.). Outlook: Hassan Adams was named MVP of the Pacific Shores Tournament, while guard Brandon Heath led Westchester with 18 points per game. David Warsaw scored 30 points in the win over University. 22. Dominguez HS (Compton, Calif.)-- (4-1)*12 Last week: Defeated Thornwood High (Ill.), 54-50, in the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, Mo.; lost to Upland High, 94-64, at the Clovis West Tournament. Upcoming: Dec. 18-21 at the Christmas Classic (Portland, Ore.). Outlook: In the much-anticipated matchup of the nation's top two big men, it was Tyson Chandler who came out on top with his team winning and the athletic center scoring 16 points. Thornwood's mammoth center, Eddy Curry, also scored 16 points. 23. Germantown Academy (Fort Washington, Pa.)-- (5-1)*22 Last week: Beat Lawrenceville High, 71-53, in Peddie School Invitational finals; routed Hun School, 81-39, in the first round. Upcoming: Dec. 15 at Abington Friends High. Outlook: Lee Melchionni scored 23 points and grabbed seven rebounds in GA's win over Lawrenceville. Fellow junior Matt Walsh added 19 points and six rebounds. 24. West Aurora High (West Aurora, Ill.)-- (6-0)*NR Last week: Beat West Chicago High, 55-37. Outlook: The defending state champs have had little trouble in the early going behind some strong performances from Jamaal Thompson. He tossed in a career-high 30 points to lead the Blackhawks to a 55-37 win over West Chicago last Friday night. 25. Thornwood High (South Holland, Ill.)-- (5-1)*24 Last week: Lost to No. 22 Dominguez High (Calif.), 54-50, in the KMOX Shootout. Upcoming: Dec. 15 vs. Shepard High. Outlook: Eddy Curry (16 points) and the rest of the Thunderbirds battled Tyson Chandler and Dominguez on even terms for most of last Thursday's contest, but Chandler's squad ended up taking a 54-50 decision in front of 13,206 -- 45 of whom were NBA scouts -- at the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis, Mo.
Others to Watch:
The Colony HS (The Colony, Texas)-- (10-0)
Lee HS (Huntsville, Ala.)-- (10-0)
Dropped out:
No. 17 Jefferson HS (Portland, Ore.)-- (0-1) No. 23 Whitney Young HS (Chicago, Ill.)-- (0-3) Last week: Lost to Oak Hill Academy (Va.), 60-54; lost to Milwaukee Vincent High, 62-40. Outlook: While a loss is still a loss -- and the Dolphins have suffered three straight to start the season -- it's important to note that two of those losses have come against some of the top teams in the nation, including top-ranked Oak Hill. But there have been bright spots: Ronald Howard tossed in a team-high 14 points in the loss to Vincent on Saturday. No. 25 Archbishop Molloy HS (Briarwood, N.Y.)-- (3-2) Last week: Whipped Holy Trinity High, 72-29, but fell to St. Dominic's High, 70-66, in overtime in the Diane Brennan Invitational. Outlook: Wendell Gibson was big against Holy Trinity, bullying his way to 16 points and 14 rebounds. He was kept in check against St. Dominic's, though. Kevin Diffley had a big game, keeping the Stanners in it with 18 points.
*: last week's ranking
Material from SchoolSports.com.Visit their web site at www.schoolsports.com | |
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