There are four newcomers and big change to this week's edition of the FAB 50 National Team Rankings powered by Ballislife.com. The results are paramount, so strength of schedule becomes the No. 1 factor as teams move up and down the rankings ladder. Leading the way among the newcomers is No. 33 Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.).
By Ronnie Flores
No high school team in the country wants to take a loss, of course, but when it does it's our job to make sure where it ends up in the latest FAB 50 National Team Rankings powered by Ballislife.com reflects its overall body of work. For teams that choose to avoid the most difficult competition, or are kept from playing in the events they would love to because of state association rules, it's simple. When they lose, they'll drop plenty and perhaps all the way out. For the teams fortunate to have played other FAB 50 ranked clubs, there are more barometers to accurately slot them in the following week's rankings. That's why strength of schedule is so paramount in any credible national rankings.
Teams don't always fall behind the team it just lost to, if it previously recorded other quality victories. That's the case this week for a select group of FAB 50 ranked teams that recently took losses.
For previous No. 3 Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.), it fell to then No. 45 IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) at The Grind Session event in San Jose, Puerto Rico. Darius Acuff Jr., one of the top junior (2025) guard prospects in America, led the way with 28 points, nine rebounds and 12 assists. IMG's Khani Rooths, a 6-foot-8 forward committed to Michigan, also had a big game for the Ascenders with 30 points.
IMG Academy gets plenty of credit for the win, moving up 32 spots this week to No. 13, but doesn't move ahead of The Crew in the FAB 50. Prolific Prep other losses are to top-ranked Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) twice in relatively close games, an overtime loss to No. 2 Columbus and a loss to a team carrying post-graduate players. The Crew owns victories over No. 9 Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) and No. 11 AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.), so they remain ahead of IMG Academy at No. 9, down six spots from last week.
IMG Academy remains behind the No. 14 AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) team it lost to, but is able to leap frog other teams it lost to such as No. 43 Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah), No. 42 Bullis (Potomac, Md.) and No. 18 Don Bosco Prep. The Ironmen of Don Bosco Prep lost to No. 17 Archbishop Stepinac (White Plains, N.Y.) in a showcase game at the Spalding Hoophall Classic, 74-67. Archbishop Stepinac had to take a one spot ding because it has a loss to No. 16 St. Rose (Belmar, N.J.), which lost to Montverde Academy, 84-55, at the Metro Classic in New Jersey last weekend. Stepinac lost to the top-ranked Eagles, 95-55.
Montverde Academy has defeated 14 teams currently ranked in the FAB 50, and the victory margins against those ranked teams helps us place teams after taking a loss.
While still unbeaten teams continue to move up, another team that has a loss that took a big jump up is new No. 23 Fishers (Ind.). The No. 1 ranked team among Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) clubs has a loss to a hot Carmel (Ind.) team hovering at .500, but Fishers just knocked off previous No. 28 Westfield (Ind.), 51-49, in a terrific team defensive effort. Keenan Garner, a 6-foot-6 senior, led the way with 15 points for Fishers. Two nights later, Fishers absolutely throttled No. 49 Homewood Flossmor (Flossmor, Ill.), the top-ranked team in Illinois, 78-57, at the Bank of O'Fallon Shootout in Illinois.
The highest ranked team to drop out of the FAB 50 this week is No. 18 Huntsville (Huntsville, Ala.), which lost to the Bartlett (Tenn.) team that new No. 48 Cordova (Tenn.) recently avenged its only loss to, 49-43. Cordova lost to Bartlett in the first round of Class 4A, District 15 play in overtime, 63-60.
No. 20 Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) also dropped out after losing to No. 12 Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.), 60-56, in the Mission League Tournament semifinals. It was the Knights' third consecutive loss and they got left out of the eight team CIF Southern Section open division playoffs. Notre Dame, which split with Harvard-Westlake during the regular season, had a resume strong enough to be included. The section open field includes the Wolverines, No. 21 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), No. 24 Roosevelt (Eastvale, Calif.), No. 28 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), and No. 34 St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.).
Two weeks ago before the three consecutive losses, Notre Dame was the highest ranked CIF club in the FAB 50.
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Updated FAB 50 National Team Rankings
Powered by Ballislife.com
(7th poll of 2023-24 regular season; Through games played on Sunday, February 4; *Indicates forfeit wins, forfeit losses not included; **Indicates forfeits and defaults not included)
| No. | Prev. | High School (City) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) | 24-0 |
| 2 | 2 | Columbus (Miami, Fla.) | 20-4 |
| 3 | 4 | Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) | 22-2 |
| 4 | 6 | Long Island Lutheran (Glen Head, N.Y.) | 14-3 |
| 5 | 7 | Plano East (Plano, Texas) | 30-0 |
| 6 | 8 | Stony Point (Round Rock, Texas) | 29-1 |
| 7 | 10 | Myers Park (Charlotte, N.C.) | 18-2 |
| 8 | 3 | Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) | 24-5 |
| 9 | 5 | Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) | 17-6 |
| 10 | 13 | Central Cabarrus (Concord, N.C.) | 20-0 |
| 11 | 14 | AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) | 19-5 |
| 12 | 22 | Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.) | 26-3 |
| 13 | 45 | IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) | 13-7 |
| 14 | 23 | Roman Catholic (Philadelphia, Pa.) | 18-1 |
| 15 | 11 | Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.) | 21-2 |
| 16 | 12 | St. Rose (Belmar, N.J.) | 21-2 |
| 17 | 16 | Archbishop Stepinac (White Plains, N.Y.) | 18-3 |
| 18 | 17 | Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) | 18-3 |
| 19 | 19 | Combine Academy (Lincolnton, N.C.) | 20-2 |
| 20 | 27 | Wisconsin Lutheran (Milwaukee, Wis.) | 18-0 |
| 21 | 25 | Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) | 26-2 |
| 22 | 24 | McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) | 18-5 |
| 23 | 48 | Fishers (Fishers, Ind.) | 18-1 |
| 24 | 26 | Roosevelt (Eastvale, Calif.) | 27-2 |
| 25 | 21 | Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) | 20-4 |
| 26 | 29 | De Pere (De Pere, Wis.) | 16-1 |
| 27 | 37 | Ridge View (Columbia, S.C.) | 21-1 |
| 28 | 15 | Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) | 24-2 |
| 29 | 44 | La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) | 15-4 |
| 30 | 9 | Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.) | 18-1 |
| 31 | 31 | Great Crossing (Georgetown, Ky.) | 23-1 |
| 32 | 32 | Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) | 21-3 |
| 33 | NR | Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.) | 18-6 |
| 34 | 33 | St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) | 23-5 |
| 35 | 34 | Salesian (Richmond, Calif.) | 25-1 |
| 36 | 35 | Edmond North (Edmond, Okla.) | 15-2 |
| 37 | 36 | North Mecklenburg (Huntersville, N.C.) | 17-3 |
| 38 | 38 | Millennium (Goodyear, Ariz.) | 19-4 |
| 39 | 39 | Grayson (Loganville, Ga.) | 21-2 |
| 40 | 40 | Kell (Marietta, Ga.) | 20-3 |
| 41 | 41 | Jackson-Reed (Washington, D.C.) | 27-2 |
| 42 | 42 | Bullis (Potomac, Md.) | 19-2 |
| 43 | 43 | Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah) | 12-3 |
| 44 | 28 | Westfield (Westfield, Ind.) | 14-2 |
| 45 | 46 | Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.) | 18-4 |
| 46 | NR | Garfield Heights (Garfield Heights, Ohio) | 19-0 |
| 47 | 50 | Alta (Sandy, Utah) | 20-1 |
| 48 | NR | Cordova (Cordova, Tenn.) | 23-1 |
| 49 | 49 | Homewood Flossmor (Flossmor, Ill.) | 24-3 |
| 50 | NR | St. Mary Prep (Orchard Lake, Mich.) | 15-1 |
Dropped Out: Previous No. 18 Huntsville (Huntsville, Ala.), No. 20 Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.), No. 30 Bishop O’Connell (Arlington, Va.), No. 47 Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia, Pa.).
Bubble Teams: Alexander (Douglasville, Ga.) 21-2; Atascocita (Humble, Texas) 31-2**; Bartlett (Bartlett, Tenn.) 22-3; Bellevue West (Bellevue, Neb.) 16-1; Bishop O’Connell (Arlington, Va.) 18-5; Brennan (San Antonio, Texas) 25-4; Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.) 17-4; Curie (Chicago, Ill.) 24-2; De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) 23-3; De Paul Prep (Chicago, Ill.) 24-2; Fayetteville (Fayetteville, Ark.) 21-2; Fort Bend Clements (Sugar Land, Texas) 27-0; Huntsville (Huntsville, Ala.) 28-2; Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia, Pa.) 17-3; John Marshall (Richmond, Va.) 17-3; Ladue (St. Louis, Mo.) 19-1; Lake Taylor (Norfolk, Va.) 18-1; Lexington (Lexington, S.C.) 22-2; Lexington Catholic (Lexington, Ky.) 22-2; Liberty Magnet (Baton Rouge, La.) 25-4; Madison Prep (Baton Rouge, La.) 22-3; Millard North (Omaha, Neb.) 16-2; Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia, Pa.) 16-2; Newport (Newport, Ky.) 22-3; Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) 24-3; North Crowley (Ft. Worth, Texas) 27-3; North Farmington (Farmington Hills, Mich.) 14-1; Northwest (Shawnee Mission, Kan.) 14-0; Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) 17-3; Park Center (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) 18-2; Pascagoula (Pascagoula, Miss.) 25-1; Pewaukee (Pewaukee, Wis.) 16-2; Reidsville (Reidsville, N.C.) 17-0; Southern Guilford (Greensboro, N.C.) 19-1; St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) 16-3; St. Joseph (Santa Maria, Calif.) 24-2; St. Mary’s (St. Louis, Mo.) 22-1; St. Peter’s Prep (Jersey City, N.J.) 19-1; St. Raymond’s (Bronx, N.Y.) 17-3; Thornton (Harvey, Ill.) 23-3; Totino-Grace (Fridley, Minn.) 16-3; Union (Tulsa, Okla.) 18-2; Veterans Memorial (San Antonio, Texas) 32-1; Volcano Vista (Albuquerque, N.M.) 20-1; Wayzata (Plymouth, Minn.) 18-1; Winter Haven (Winter Haven, Fla.) 22-1.
Note: The FAB 50 powered by Ballislife.com is a continuation of the National Sports News Service ratings that began in 1952. These were the first national high school rankings and the late Art Johlfs of Minnesota compiled them. They were compiled for many years by the late Barry Sollenberger of Phoenix, who merged them into the FAB 50 24 years ago.
Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of Ballislife.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores