Since unpredictability, parity and fluidity again came into play — on a number of occasions — PennLive’s Class AAAA boys’ basketball rankings have been forced to undergo yet another quick makeover.
So how long will this latest look be fashionable?
Hard to tell.
And while Roman Catholic and New Castle held firm at Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, those aforementioned changes impacted just about everyone else.
*Hampton’s loss at North Allegheny prompted a two-spot drop from 3 to 5 for the Talbots with Martin Luther King and Chester moving up one spot each.
*With Abington (No. 8) and Pennsbury (No. 9) also losing — those sides are scheduled to collide on Tuesday night — those programs have been relocated to the others to watch with St. Joseph’s Prep and Lower Merion moving in at No. 9 and No. 10.
*Pittsburgh’s Obama Academy, which checked in last week at No. 10, was elevated to No. 8 following Abington and Pennsbury’s respective setbacks.
Could be more movement on the way next week since New Castle visits North Allegheny Tuesday night. Might even start tonight since No. 1 Roman is scheduled to visit No. 9 St. Joseph’s Prep in a Philly Catholic League dustup.
Plus, Chester and Academy Park are scheduled to complete a contest tonight that Academy Park was leading when the fire alarm was set off. And No. 7 Great Valley is slated to play West Chester Rustin, one of two teams to beat Jim Nolan’s Patriots.
Then again, if everyone wins …
Short synopses of our top 10 appear below — PIAA district, overall record and record for the week are displayed in parentheses — as does a list of teams that merit watching as the 2013-14 campaign continues to play out.
1. Roman Catholic (12, 16-3, 2-0) — previous ranking: 1 —Chris McNesby’s talented Cahillites moved closer to a Philly Catholic League title by popping Bishop McDevitt (89-57) and Archbishop Wood (91-66). Penn State-bound Shep Garner (23/14), Gemil Holbrook (18/21) and Drexel recruit Rashann London (10/23) cracked double figures in both victories, while Garner also dished out 11 assists in the win over Wood. In action tonight at St. Joseph’s Prep.
2. New Castle (7, 19-0, 2-0) — previous ranking: 2 — Ralph Blundo’s club had its attack steaming at a full boil again last week, as the Red Hurricane humbled Seneca Valley (87-54) and Shaler (75-45). Anthony Richards (25/22) and Malik Hooker (23/24) totaled 47 points in the New Castle successes, with Richards going over 1,000 career points in the latter win. Will try to subdue North Allegheny for the second time Tuesday night on the WPIAL road.
3. Martin Luther King (12, 17-4, 2-2) — previous ranking: 4 — Sean Colson’s Cougars closed out the regular-season portion of their schedule by splitting four games. While King dropped a 55-54 decision to Math, Civics & Sciences, wins over Philly Electrical (60-51) and Frankford (66-36) before a loss to Neumann-Goretti (85-75) ended a hectic stretch. Greg Bennett (19/11/18) reached double figures in King’s first three games, while Jabri McCall matched that feat (10/10/22) in the last three. Up next for the Cougars is a date in the Philly Public League playoffs.
4. Chester (1, 14-3, 3-0) — previous ranking: 5 — With Mahir Johnson posting three more double-digit efforts (19/19/14), Larry Yarbray’s Clippers downed Penn Wood (59-54), Glen Mills (69-40) and Chichester (92-45). Tyrell Sturdivant (22/13) and Keyonte Watkins (12/24) had productive outings in Chester’s latter two wins. Will be back in action tonight at Academy Park.
5. Hampton (7, 18-2, 1-1) — previous ranking: 3 — Opened the week by stuffing Pine-Richland (83-48) behind 20 points from Ryan Luther and 16 more from Collin Luther, but closed it with a loss (68-62) at North Allegheny. David Huber netted 22 points for the Talbots and Ryan Luther added 21, but it wasn’t enough to pull out the road win. Will spend Tuesday night entertaining Seneca Valley.
6. North Allegheny (7, 16-2, 2-0) — previous ranking: 6 — Dave DeGregorio’s Tigers ran their winning streak to six games by defeating Butler (59-33) and Hampton (68-62). While Cole Constantino scored 16 points and Pitt football recruit Elijah Zeise chipped in 14 against Butler, they shared 24 in a balanced effort against Hampton that also included 17 from Mike Carter and 16 from David Haus. Will entertain WPIAL Section 3 rival New Castle on Tuesday night.
7. Great Valley (1, 18-2, 3-0) — previous ranking: 7 — Posting victories over Sun Valley (70-47), Oxford (63-42) and Penn Wood (47-45), Jim Nolan’s Patriots upped their winning streak to five games. Villanova recruit Mikal Bridges reached double figures in all three triumphs, banking 19, 14 and 14 points, respectively. Blake McGlond (14/10) and Nate Cohen (13/10) pitched in with two double-digit efforts for Great Valley, which will host West Chester Rustin Tuesday night.
8. Obama Academy (8, 15-0, 1-0) — previous ranking: 10 — Flashing loads of balance in its lone outing last week, Nate Lofton’s Eagles pushed Alvin Hord (17), D.J. Porter (15) and Calique Jones (10) into double figures in their 55-44 victory over Westinghouse. Porter also collected his 1,000th career point in that win. Will be back in action tonight at home against Pittsburgh City League rival Brashear.
9. St. Joseph’s Prep (1, 15-4, 2-0) — previous ranking: HM — Returning to the top 10 after spending several weeks on the outside looking in, Speedy Morris’ Hawks have won six of their last eight, losing only to Class AAA hammers Neumann-Goretti and Archbishop Carroll. Prep downed both of its opponents last week, defeating West Catholic (61-45) and La Salle (58-47) behind productive performances from Chris Clover (19/24) and Kyle Thompson (19/10). Will try to make it three straight tonight against No. 1 Roman Catholic.
10. Lower Merion (1, 13-6, 3-0) — previous ranking: HM — Gregg Downer’s Aces have turned it around since a difficult start, winning 11 of their last 12 outings. Three more wins came last week, as Lower Merion defeated Conestoga (60-57), Marple Newtown (82-58) and Ridley (53-35). Justin McFadden cracked double figures in all three victories (14/13/13), totaling 40 points for Downer’s surging Aces. Will entertain District 11-AAAA power Parkland tonight.
OTHERS TO WATCH: Abington (1) 17-3, Bethel Park (7) 14-4, Carlisle (3) 14-6, Cathedral Prep (10) 10-5, Cedar Crest (3) 16-4, Central (12) 20-2, Central York (3) 18-2, Conestoga (1) 17-3, Cumberland Valley (3) 15-5, East Stroudsburg North (11) 14-4, Emmaus (11) 14-5, Fox Chapel 15-4, Franklin Regional (7) 13-6, Gateway (7) 12-8, Harrisburg (3) 16-5, Haverford (1) 13-7, Hazleton (2) 16-2, Hempfield (3) 15-5, Hempfield (7) 17-2, Hershey (3) 13-7, LaSalle College (12) 16-4, Lower Dauphin (3) 12-7, McCaskey (3) 14-6, McDowell (10) 16-2, Oxford (1) 15-5, Parkland (11) 15-4, Penn Wood (1) 12-6, Penncrest (1) 15-5, Pennsbury (1) 16-3, Plum (7) 16-2, Plymouth-Whitemarsh (1) 18-2, Pocono Mountain West (11) 14-4, Reading (3) 15-6, Red Lion (3) 18-3, Spring-Ford (1) 19-2, Upper Darby (1) 13-6, Upper St. Clair (7) 14-5, Whitehall (11) 12-8, William Allen (11) 12-7, Wilson (3) 19-2, York (3) 15-5.
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