This is the portion of the season where pressure is heightened and many FAB 50 ranked clubs went down in flames last week. There are seven newcomers to the FAB 50 National Rankings powered by Ballislife.com this week, and DeSoto (DeSoto, Texas) moves up 36 spots after knocking off previous unbeaten Atascocita (Humble, Texas) in the UIL Class 6A title game. Read along to see how far Atascocita fell and which other upset victims fell out of the FAB 50.
By Ronnie Flores
Last week we hit the point in the post-season where some highly-regarded teams finally met their match -- or cracked under the pressure of trying to secure a state title.
The highest ranked team to lose was previous No. 4 Atascocita (Humble, Texas), which fell to Marques Bolden and his team at DeSoto (DeSoto, Texas), 73-54, in the UIL Class 6A championship game. The Eagles got 25 points from Tristen Wallace and Bolden, a McDonald's All-American selection, dominated with 12 points, nine rebounds and six blocked shots.
The upset win catapults DeSoto to No. 13 in this week's FAB 50, while Atascocita falls 11 spots after suffering its first loss of the season. It was a tough pill for Atascocita to swallow, as it was in contention for a mythical national title, but is now 73-3 the past two season without a UIL title in tow.
This week's highest newcomer also comes from the UIL ranks, as new No. 31 Lancaster (Lancaster, Calif.) captured the UIL Class 5A crown with a 67-64 victory over previous No. 43 Fort Bend Elkins (Missouri City, Texas), which remains in the FAB 50 this week at No. 48. Lancaster closed the season red hot, winning 32 straight games after losing to Atascocita, 54-47, and to a solid Fort Bend Bush club in overtime, in consecutive November games.
Some of the upset victims that didn't have a strong enough overall resume to remain in the FAB 50 -- or lost to the wrong team at the wrong time -- include Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, N.J.), Edmond North (Edmond, Okla.), Archbishop Carroll (Radnor, Pa.) and Fenwick (Oak Park, Ill.).
Seton Hall Prep fell to unranked Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) in a New Jersey Non-Public A section final, 73-53. Don Bosco Prep then lost in its next game, the Non-Public A state final, by 33 points. Edmond North fell from the ranks of the unbeaten with a 81-60 loss to unranked Putnam City West (Oklahoma City, Okla.) in the Class 6A state semifinals after beating that team 72-55 on March 4. Archbishop Carroll saw its season come to an end in the second round of the PIAA AAA playoffs, while Fenwick fell in the Class 3A Westinghouse Sectional title game. Fenwick was considered one of the main challengers to No. 26 Althoff Catholic (Belleville, Ill.) and No. 34 Morgan Park (Chicago, Ill.) for the IHSA Class 3A state title.
The second highest rated newcomer is No. 36 Foothills Christian (El Cajon, Calif.), which avenged one of its losses to Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) in the opening round of the SoCal Open Division playoffs and faces FAB 50 No. 1 Chino Hills (Chino Hills, Calif.) for the third time on Tuesday night. New No. 44 Modesto Christian (Modesto, Calif.) has avenged its only loss to Folsom (Folsom, Calif.) and is riding a 31-game winning streak. The Crusaders could potentially meet Chino Hills in the state title game if it captures the NorCal Open Division title with two victories this week.
Dick's Nationals Field Set
The field and brackets are set for the Dick's Sporting Goods National High School Tournament Nationals to be played in New York March 31-April 2. The eight-team, single elimination tournament will air on ESPNU beginning March 31 at 12 pm ET. The semifinals take place the next day at 11 am ET on ESPN2 and the championship game will take place April 2 at Madison Square Garden at 12 pm ET on ESPN.
The field is led by three-time defending FAB 50 and Dicks Nationals champ Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.), the top seeded club currently ranked No. 2 in the FAB 50. The field also includes No. 3 Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) as the two seed, No. 6 Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) as the three seed, No. 7 St. Benedict's (Newark, N.J.) as the four seed, No. 9 La Lumiere (LaPorte, Ind.) as the five seed, No. 33 Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) as the six seed, No. 28 Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah) as the seven seed and No. 8 Providence Day (Charlotte, N.C.) as the eight seed.
We'll find out if Providence Day is worthy of a Top 10 national ranking, as Montverde Academy has an extremely tough draw to open the event. Miller Grove, the GHSA Class AAAAA champion, is the only team in the field without a win over a current FAB 50 ranked foe.
Updated FAB 50 National Team Rankings
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(Thirteenth poll of the 2015-16 regular season; Through games played on Sunday, March 13; Previous ranking in parentheses; *Indicates forfeit wins, forfeit losses not included; **Indicates forfeits and defaults not included; ***Indicates season complete)
| No. | Prev. | High School (City) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Chino Hills (Chino Hills, Calif.) | 32-0 |
| 2 | 2 | Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) | 25-1 |
| 3 | 3 | Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) | 42-1 |
| 4 | 5 | St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.) | 30-0 |
| 5 | 6 | University of Detroit Jesuit (Detroit, Mich.) | 23-0 |
| 6 | 7 | Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.) | 28-1 |
| 7 | 8 | St. Benedict's (Newark, N.J.) | 35-1 |
| 8 | 9 | Providence Day (Charlotte, N.C.) | 30-3 |
| 9 | 11 | La Lumiere (LaPorte, Ind.) | 25-3 |
| 10 | 13 | DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Md.) | 32-5*** |
| 11 | 17 | Stevens Point (Stevens Point, Wis.) | 26-0 |
| 12 | 23 | Blackman (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) | 32-0 |
| 13 | 49 | DeSoto (DeSoto, Texas) | 35-2 |
| 14 | 15 | Greenforest Christian Academy (Decatur, Ga.) | 30-2*** |
| 15 | 4 | Atascocita (Humble, Texas) | 38-1*** |
| 16 | 16 | Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, Tenn.) | 28-3*** |
| 17 | 22 | Roman Catholic (Philadelphia, Pa.) | 26-4 |
| 18 | 26 | Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.) | 29-2 |
| 19 | 19 | Chaminade (St. Louis, Mo.) | 25-5 |
| 20 | 20 | Bishop Montgomery (Torrance, Calif.) | 27-2 |
| 21 | 21 | Dakota (Macomb, Mich.) | 23-0 |
| 22 | 27 | H.D. Woodson (Washington, D.C.) | 32-0** |
| 23 | 24 | Hopkins (Minnetonka, Minn.) | 31-1*** |
| 24 | 28 | Lima Senior (Lima, Ohio) | 28-0 |
| 25 | 12 | St. John's (Washington, D.C.) | 30-5*** |
| 26 | 29 | Althoff Catholic (Belleville, Ill.) | 29-2 |
| 27 | 30 | Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia, Pa.) | 25-4 |
| 28 | 33 | Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah) | 29-3 |
| 29 | 38 | Federal Way (Federal Way, Wash.) | 29-0*** |
| 30 | 34 | Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) | 28-3 |
| 31 | NR | Lancaster (Lancaster, Texas) | 36-2*** |
| 32 | 32 | Advanced International Prep (Dallas, Texas) | 34-7 |
| 33 | 40 | Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.) | 30-2 |
| 34 | 41 | Morgan Park (Chicago, Ill.) | 26-3 |
| 35 | 46 | West Oaks Academy (Orlando, Fla.) | 25-4*** |
| 36 | NR | Foothills Christian (El Cajon, Calif.) | 25-4 |
| 37 | 48 | Overland (Aurora, Col.) | 25-3 |
| 38 | 35 | Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.) | 22-8*** |
| 39 | 37 | Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.) | 23-6*** |
| 40 | 39 | West Linn (West Linn, Ore.) | 26-3*** |
| 41 | NR | Bingham (South Jordan, Utah) | 24-2*** |
| 42 | NR | New Albany (New Albany, Ind.) | 25-1 |
| 43 | NR | Thomas Jefferson (Brooklyn, N.Y.) | 24-9 |
| 44 | NR | Modesto Christian (Modesto, Calif.) | 31-1 |
| 45 | 44 | High Point Christian (High Point, N.C.) | 24-6*** |
| 46 | 45 | Greensboro Day (Greensboro, N.C.) | 28-5*** |
| 47 | 10 | Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) | 26-5*** |
| 48 | 43 | Fort Bend Elkins (Missouri City, Texas) | 36-3*** |
| 49 | 25 | Apple Valley (Apple Valley, Minn.) | 29-2*** |
| 50 | NR | Long Island Lutheran (Glen Head, N.Y.) | 22-3 |
Dropped Out: Previous No. 14 Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, N.J.), No. 18 Edmond North (Edmond, Okla.), No. 31 Archbishop Carroll (Radnor, Pa.), No. 36 Fenwick (Oark Park, Ill.), No. 42 Scotlandville (Baton Rouge, La.), No. 47 Rangeview (Aurora, Col.), No. 50 Shenendehowa (Clifton Park, N.Y.).
Bubble Teams: Aliquippa (Aliquippa, Pa.) 28-0; Allderdice (Pittsburgh, Pa.) 27-1; Aquinas (Rochester, N.Y.) 23-3; Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) 25-7***; Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.) 25-4***; Canisius (Buffalo, N.Y.) 26-2; Columbus (Columbus, Miss.) 27-5***; De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) 29-2; Dillard (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) 28-5***; Edmond North (Edmond, Okla.) 27-1***; Eleanor Roosevelt (Greenbelt, Md.) 24-3***; Garfield (Seattle, Wash.) 26-3***; Grandview Prep (Boca Raton, Fla.) 34-0***; Houston Math Science & Tech (Houston, Texas) 33-5***; Imhotep Charter (Philadelphia, Pa.) 24-5; J.O. Johnson (Huntsville, Ala.) 29-5***; John Carroll (Bel Air, Md.) 27-11***; Jonesboro (Jonesboro, Ga.) 28-5***; Kickapoo (Springfield, Mo.) 28-2; Lee's Summit (Lee's Summit, Mo.) 29-0; Liberty County (Hinesville, Ga.) 28-1***; Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.) 23-8***; Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 27-5***; Mustang (Mustang, Okla.) 20-7***; Natchitoches Central (Nachitoches, La.) 32-3***; National Christian Academy (Ft. Washington, Md.) 30-2***; Norcross (Norcross, Ga.) 26-4***; Norland (Miami, Fla.) 25-5***; Norman North (Norman, Okla.) 24-4***; Oldsmar Christian (Oldsmar, Fla.) 29-9***; Omaha South (Omaha, Neb.) 28-1***; Ozen (Beaumont, Texas) 31-4***; Putnam City West (Oklahoma City, Okla.) 24-5***; Rainier Beach (Seattle, Wash.) 24-6***; St. Augustine (Richland, N.J.) 30-1; Sacramento (Sacramento, Calif.) 30-1; Sacred Heart (Waterbury, Conn.) 23-2; Scotlandville (Baton Rouge, La.) 34-3***; Shadow Mountain (Phoenix, Ariz.) 27-5***; Southport (Indianapolis, Ind.) 22-6; Starkville (Starkville, Miss.) 27-6***; Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) 21-7; Victory Rock Prep (Sarasota, Fla.) 25-6***; Wayne (Huber Heights, Ohio) 25-1***; Westerville South (Westerville, Ohio) 24-4; Westfield (Chantilly, Va.) 26-3***; Westlake (Atlanta, Ga.) 27-4***; Westtown School (West Chester, Pa.) 28-6***; Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.) 22-6***; Wilmington (Wilmington, Ohio) 26-1.
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 16 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