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Creme of the County, an annual showcase put on by San Diego-based scout Aaron Burgin to promote and highlight San Diego County's best high school basketball talent, keeps getting better and the 2024 edition was its best yet. While the range of talent varies year to year, the top showcase games are traditionally competitive and close.

Once again, Burgin did a more than solid job of separating the talent to create competitive games. At least five of the 11 games during the one-day event traditionally held over Labor Day weekend came down to the wire. In recent years, the Creme De La Creme game designed for San Diego's finest has come down to the wire. As the event approaches its tenth edition, it will be forever hard to top the ending Mikey Williams (now at Central Florida university after after a well publicized prep career) gave fans at the seventh edition in 2022 when he hit two consecutive 3-pointers, including one from the left corner in the closing seconds, to lift his team to a 118-116 victory.

The ninth edition came close, as the Creme De La Creme contest was an exciting 111-107 come-from-behind victory for the white jersey-wearing club over the black jersey-wearing club. For a while, it looked like the game would be ho-hum, as the Black jerseys jumped out to a 58-44 halftime lead and held a lead as big as 22 points. With the lead hovering around 16 points in the second half, Burgin challenged the White club to get after it and they responded with spirited play.

In particular two players responded well and they are teammates at Montgomery (San Diego), a team that will challenge Carlsbad (Calif.) for San Diego Section supremacy in 2024-25. Xair Mendez, a 6-foot-3 2025 and one of the most underrated point guards in California, and J.J. Sanchez, a 6-foot-5 do-it-all 2025 wing guard who is a matchup nightmare, got cooking and got the White team back in the game with an array of defensive plays, shot-making and timely 3-pointers.

The White team eventually took the lead at 96-95 with 5:55 remaining and the game went down to the wire from that point. With 41.6 seconds remaining, 6-foot-8 2025 Brayden Kyman of Santa Margarita (Rancho SM, Calif.)was fouled on a 3-point attempt with his team leading 107-106 and the free throw could have iced the game since it was worth three points. He missed the free throw. That gave the White club an opening and Louis Bond, a 6-foot-5 2025 small forward from Windward (Los Angeles), nailed a go-ahead 3-pointer with twenty-five seconds remaining to give his team a 109-107 lead. Bond then iced the game in the closing seconds by making two free throws to account for the final margin.

Mendez, who finished with nine points and a host of heady plays, and Sanchez, who scored a game-high 20 points and did most of his damage in the second half with 16 points, were name co game MVPs. Bond finished with 10 points, including two 3-pointers.

For the White club, 6-foot-3 2026 shooting guard Caleb Newton of Mission Bay (San Diego) had 11 points, including some highlight finishes. The winning white club also received a huge lift from 6-foot-8 2025 forward Mason Hodges of San Juan Hills (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) with his hustle and motor. He finished with nine points and six rebounds.

Other game standouts included the Black's C.J. Aldrich, a 6-foot-1 2026 guard from Rancho Buena Vista (Vista, Calif.), with 11 points and Dylan Griffin, a 6-foot-4 2025 forward from University City (San Diego), who impressed with his activity level around the rim and finished with six points, seven rebounds, two steals and a block.

Burgin also awards top performers from his underclass games by moving selected prospects up to participate in the Creme De La Creme game. The find of the event and the easiest "call up" for the event was 6-foot-7 2026 wing forward Tim Dorn of Mira Mesa (San Diego). Dorn has touched down in San Diego only recently (as in the past two weeks), as his family was in Hawaii as part of its obligations to the United States Navy.

Dorn is a major sleeper with some high major attributes who could excel at the mid major or mid-major plus level. He runs well, can attack the basket with strides and using his length to score and has good instincts. He finished the top contest with two blocked shots and four rebounds in the second half.

Another terrific call up was from the 2026 Creme Game was Lincoln Grogan, a 6-foot-3 guard who transferred this off-season from Mater Dei (Chula Vista, Calif.) to St. Augustine (San Diego). Grogan proved to be one of the best shooters in San Diego County with a solid all-around game to boot. Grogan nailed eight 3-pointers in the Creme Game for the 2026 class and hit three more triples in the first half of the Creme De La Creme contest for the White club, finishing with 11 points.

The 2028 class in San Diego County is off to a promising start and the 2028 Creme Game was one of the most closely watched. Leading the 2028 calvary was 5-foot-7 guard Columbus Parker of Parker (San Diego), 6-foot-2 point guard Josiah Profit of Temecula Valley (Temecula, Calif.), 6-foot-3 wing Braxton Rolf of Carlsbad (Calif.) 5-foot-10 guard Lucky Davis of Mission Bay (San Diego), 6-foot-7 Tyler Treder of Cal Lutheran (Wildomar, Calif.) and 6-foot-3 Isaiah Hill of San Marcos (Calif.).

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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We recently had a prominent event operator state to us that the gap between independent, academy--type programs and those belonging to state associations is "getting real noticeable". He's right, and there doesn't appear to be any end in sight by these programs recruiting players off homegrown clubs.

There are two misnomers about programs such as those belonging to the EYBL Scholastic League and similar being much stronger than parochial schools and public schools. One, the best public school teams have been able to compete with parochial and independent clubs since the advent of mainstream team rankings in the 1980s. In fact, 12 special public schools teams have finished No. 1 in the FAB 50 and the lowest the best public season at the end of the season has ever been ranked is No. 10. Second, not everyone who plays for a full-time state association member school or a public school plays for their hometown team. Talented players are recruited and pushed to play at schools all over their region once it's obvious their talents can help a program win or they are good enough to play at the next level. That recruitment is not like what we're seeing in recent years when it comes to independent clubs playing for a FAB 50 title, but it has and does exist.

With that in mind, we take a look at the highest ranked public school team for each season in the FAB 50 era (1987-88 through the present). We are just taking a look at public schools, since in many states private and public schools are separated when it comes to competing for state titles. You might be surprised how close the best public school teams are to competing for a FAB 50 national title.

FAB 50 ERA

2024 -- Plano East (Plano, Texas)
Record: 40-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: The Panthers started out No. 14 in Southwest Regional Rankings, but exceeded expectations by capturing a University Interscholastic League (UIL) state title in the highest classification (Class 6A). Coach Matt Wester’s team steadily climbed in the rankings and turned heads with a 55-50 win over Stony Point (Round Rock, Texas) in the championship game of the long-running Whataburger Tournament. That was Stony Point’s only loss of the season until the two teams once again locked horns in the state title game at the The Alamodome in front of 8,812. Plano East was in control and posted a historic 53-41 victory over the then No. 6 ranked team in the FAB 50. D.J. Hall led the way for Plano East with 18 points, while Rachard Angton, a 5-foot-10 senior, came on the bench to score 13 crucial points.

2023 -- Duncanville (Texas)
Record: 28-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: It was another remarkable season for a program that finished as the University Interscholastic League’s (UIL) best for the fifth consecutive season after starting out at No. 8 in the FAB 50. Based on its on-court results, Duncanville captured the FAB 50 title in 2021-22, but the UIL later stripped the Panthers of their Class 6A state title after ruling forfeits of all games in which an ineligible player (eventual NBA draftee Anthony Black) participated in. Last November after the preseason rankings dropped, Duncanville opted out of participating in the 2022-23 UIL playoffs, but did go on to defeat eventual Class 6A champ and No. 8 Lake Highlands (Dallas, Texas), 53-52, in November. The only loss for a Panthers club that played tough out-of-state competition was a 62-50 setback to No. 30 West Linn (West Linn, Ore.) in the championship of the Les Schwab Invitational in what was essentially a road game. That loss likely cost the Panthers back-to-back FAB 50 crowns, even if this club was a shade below the 2021-22 juggernaut. McDonald’s All-American Ronald Holland, a two-time District 11-6A Player of the Year, Holland was a key cog in Duncanville’s rise to national prominence and the team went 123-6 in his four years on the varsity.

2022 -- Duncanville (Texas)
Record: 35-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Panthers began the season No. 7 and had aspirations to compete for the FAB 50 title after finishing as Texas' top-ranked team three years running. The team got its big chance when it faced No. 1 and defending FAB 50 champ Montverde Academy (Fla.) at Hoophall West in Phoenix after it moved up to No. 5. Duncanville battled back from a 21-8 deficit after one period to win the game at the buzzer, 67-66, on a 3-pointer by junior guard Aric Demings. At that point in the season, Duncanville had beaten six FAB 50 ranked foes in 10 games. The Panthers did lose in overtime by two points (60-58) to Richardson (Texas) and that team got as high as No. 7 in the FAB 50, but the Panthers never fell behind Montverde Academy in the rankings. Duncanville was behind No. 1 Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) for the second half of the season, but when the Buffaloes were upset in the first round at GEICO Nationals and Montverde Academy went on to win the prestigious end-of-season tournament over five teams that were in the Top 10, it opened the door for the Panthers to re-gain the top position after the Richardson loss. In addition to Demings (9 ppg, 42 percent 3-point), junior forward Ashton Hardaway (9 ppg, 66 3-pointers), junior power forward Cam Barnes (6 ppg, 5 rpg, 53 percent FG) and senior forward Davion Sykes (9 ppg, 5 rpg) made first team all-district. McDonald's All-American Anthony Black (13 ppg, 58 percent FG, 5 rpg, 3.5 apg) was named District 11-6A Offensive Player of the Year and junior Ron Holland (15 ppg, 60 percent FG, 8 rpg, 2 spg) its overall player of the year.

2021 -- Camden (Camden, N.J.)
Record: 13-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 5
Lowdown: The High was highly-regarded in the preseason (No. 15) and ended up playing just enough games to move up from its preseason perch to finish in the top five. Perhaps Camden gets the benefit of the doubt as an unbeaten team, but finishing undefeated in a power state that has produced a plethora of FAB 50 ranked teams in recent years definitely helps in the final analysis. Led by National Sophomore Player of the Year D.J. Wagner, the Panthers have gone 42-1 the past two seasons, but Wagner will enter his junior campaign still seeking a coveted NJ Tournament of Champions crown after the 2019-20 season was cut short due to COVID-19 and there was no post-season in 2020-21.

2020 -- Dorman (Roebuck, S.C.)
Record: 30-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 10
Lowdown: The Cavaliers got plenty of ink in the preseason, starting out at No. 39, but they ended up being better than expected on their way to a fourth consecutive SCHSL Class 5A state crown. Dorman was creeping its way into contention for that coveted No. 2 FAB 50 spot after winning the Beach Ball Classic with a win over No. 33 St. John’s of Washington, D.C., but when the Cadets began dropping WCAC games after the New Year’s and dropping in the rankings, it made sense Dorman be behind the Oak Hill Academy of Virginia team it lost to, 63-52, earlier in the season. Dorman was selected to participate in GEICO Nationals, and even was going to host it after the COVID-19 Pandemic broke out in New York City, but eventually the event had to be cancelled altogether. Led by Butler-bound point guard Myles Tate and Clemson-bound forward P.J. Hall, Dorman not only became the first South Carolina team to capture the Beach Ball Classic since 1986, it tied the SCHSL modern era record of four straight state titles first set by Calhoun County in 2006-09.

2019 -- McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.)
Record: 32-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: The Indians completed a magical season with a GHSA Class 7A state crown, which eluded them the previous two seasons and prevented a high final ranking. McEachern, No. 16 in the preseason, defeated No. 41 Meadowcreek in the state final, 62-54, as point guard Sharife Cooper battled foul trouble to finish with 20 points, while Auburn-bound Isaac Okoro finished with 16 points, four rebounds and four assists. McEachern’s season included titles at the City of Palms Classic and the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions, not to mention eight victories over FAB 50 ranked teams. The highest ranked team it ended up beating (No. 5 Mountain Brook by a 50-29 margin) was the one team that No. 1 IMG Academy lost to. That was a significant positive in McEachern’s resume, and at least one long-time poll did move the Indians up to No. 1 after GEICO Nationals even though it didn’t play, but it wasn’t enough for them to be elevated in the FAB 50. While IMG Academy defeated No. 3 La Lumiere and No. 4 Montverde Academy and No. 8 DeMatha Catholic, the next highest ranked team the Indians beat was No. 11 Sunrise Christian Academy. McEachern beat them in overtime, while IMG beat them 65-50

2018 -- Memphis East (Memphis, Tenn.)
Record: 31-3
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: This was a team seriously considered for preseason No. 1, but started out No. 2 because our hunch that all the on-court breaks not going its way as it did in 2016-17, and potential off-court distractions with regards to eligibility rulings, having some affect proved to be correct. Despite James Wiseman and Ryan Boyce missing six games because of the TSSAA’s transfer eligibility ruling and Shelby County Schools filing a lawsuit on behalf of Memphis East against the TSSAA which allowed the duo to play after an appeal was denied, the Mustangs did win their third consecutive AAA state title and only lost to other FAB 50 ranked teams. The Mustangs recorded a key win over No. 6 Findlay Prep and advanced to the City of Palms Classic title game with wins over No. 8 Oak Ridge and No. 33 Simeon before losing to No. 2 University, 77-72.

2017 -- Nathan Hale (Seattle, Wash.)
Record: 29-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Raiders played above pre-season expectations and captured the WIAA Class 3A state title with an unbeaten mark. The mythical national crown came into focus after the Raiders defeated preseason No. 9 Sierra Canyon, 67-65, to win the Les Schwab Invitational when that team was battling for a legitimate shot at No. 1. By that point in the season, Hale had already defeated Metro League rivals Rainier Beach and Garfield (both of whom started out the season FAB 50-ranked) and went on to defeat Garfield four times, including 68-51 in the state title game.

Michael Porter Jr.

grabbed 27 points and 17 rebounds and the Mcdonald's All-American Game MVP finished his senior season with averages of 37.6 ppg, 14.5 rpg, and 5.2 apg. The Raiders edged out La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) for top rankings billing in a decision that was heightened when Hale was invited but decided not to participate in Dick's Nationals, an end-of-season tournament the Lakers won over a field that included six other FAB 50-ranked teams.

Lonzo Ball

6'6"   -   PG   -   2016

2016 -- Chino Hills (Calif.)
Record: 35-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Huskies started out as California's No. 1 ranked team and No. 9 in the FAB 50, but a national title became in reach after the Huskies defeated preseason FAB 50 No. 1 and three-time defending champion Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) by a point in the quarterfinals of the City of Palms Tournament in Florida and went on to win that tourney title. After that, the Huskies won the Maxpreps Holiday Classic and defeated seven preseason ranked FAB 50 teams after New Year's, including No. 36 Bishop Montgomery (Torrance, Calif.) 71-67 in one of California's most anticipated regular-season games ever. In the playoffs, the Huskies were even more dominant against the toughest playoff competition in California, defeating eight opponents by an average of 29 points in the CIF Southern Section and SoCal Open Division playoffs, including Bishop Montgomery 84-62. By finishing unbeaten with 35 wins, the Huskies tied the state record for most wins by an unbeaten team first set in 2013-14 by Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), according to Cal-Hi Sports. Led by UCLA-point

Lonzo Ball

, Chino Hills averaged 98.5 points per game and tied a state record with 18 100-point games.

2015 -- Ely (Pompano Beach, Fla.)
Record: 28-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 8
Lowdown: Unranked in the preseason, coach Melvin Randall's club made history as the first Broward County public school to win a FHSAA title with an unbeaten mark. Ely was then invited to Dick's Nationals and lost in the quarterfinals to No. 5 Findlay Prep, 63-50. The Class 7A champions defeated Osceola of Kissimmee in the state final, 72-60, with its big regular season win a 69-63 triumph over No. 15 Cardinal Gibbons of Ft. Lauderdale. Ely has won four state titles overall under Randall since 2007 and five overall.

2014 -- Arsenal Tech (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Record: 27-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: On the bubble in the preseason, the toughest decision for the final FAB 50 was which team to place in the No. 4 position. We didn’t want to move up previous No. 5 Whitney Young since that team still needed to be behind dropping previous No. 2 Rainier Beach. Previous No. 14 Findlay Prep also had too many losses but had to be in front of Rainier Beach. Tech was the logical choice. There were two in-state losses to Bowman Academy and Hamilton Southeastern, but those were overcome by winning the Class 4A state title. Tech also had three wins against teams that were in the Dick’s National tourney – two over Huntington Prep and one over La Lumiere. For Tech, Kentucky-bound McDonald’s All-American Trey Lyles led the way and already has been named Mr. Basketball for Indiana.

2013 -- Lone Peak (Highland, Utah)
Record: 26-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: It was evident coming into the season Lone Peak had a special team, but it turned into a one-in-a-lifetime type season for a small state program that began at No. 5 in the FAB 50. Lone Peak played a national schedule and breezed to its third consecutive Class 5A crown. The only team coach Quincy Lewis' club couldn't handle was No. 1 Montverde Academy (66-45) in the final of the City of Palms Tournament. Guard Nick Emery and center Eric Mika drew All-America acclaim and junior guard T.J. Haws will be in line for similar honors next season. Before this team came around, the highest ever ranking for an Utah team was No. 12 by Provo for the 1997-98 season.

2012 -- Chester (Pa.)
Record: 32-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: The Clippers repeated as Class AAAA state champion with a record eighth overall crown and took a win streak of 58 games into 2012-13. With three junior starters, including 6-foot-7 all-stater Rondae Jefferson, things look bright next season for the Eastern Pennsylvania power.

2011 -- Norcom (Portsmouth, Va.)
Record: 30-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 4
Lowdown: State Player of the Year and Virginia Tech recruit Dorian Finney-Smith sparked the Greyhounds to a second straight Group AAA state championship. They also avenged their lone loss to rival Booker T. Washington (Norfolk, Va.). Victims included FAB 50 No. 14 Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.).

2010 -- Yates (Houston, Texas)
Record: 34-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: En route to winning its own Class 4A state crown, coach Greg Wise's unit set a national record with 15 straight 100-point games and also established a new state record with 170 points in a single outing. Despite the high-scoring antics, Yates didn’t come close to having the best record of an unbeaten team from Houston that finished No. 1 in the nation. That total is 46-0 for Kashmere High, which the National Sports News Service (FAB 50 precursor) named the No. 1 team for 1974-75 in the end of the season poll. In this year’s Class 4A state final, the Lions swamped Lancaster, 92-73, and won their second straight title. They also extended their two-year winning streak to 58 games. A 97-96 victory over No. 2 Neumann-Goretti in the final game at the Iolani Classic in Hawaii wound up being the mythical national title decider. Key players for head coach Greg Wise’s team were senior Joseph Young (Providence), senior Brandon Peters (Western Kentucky) and senior Darius Gardner (Stephen F. Austin).

2009 -- Westchester (Los Angeles)
Record: 35-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: The Comets won their fifth CIF Division I championship since 1998 with a 49-31 victory over McClymonds (Oakland, Calif.). They have also finished ranked No. 1 in the state of California five times in that same time period. In 2004, they were the top-ranked team but unable to participate in the L.A. City Section playoffs. In 2003, Westchester won the Div. I state title, but finished No. 2 in the state behind Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.). This team, which began No. 27 in the preseason, will be dynamite in 2009-10 as it returns four starters, although dynamic point guard Dominique O'Connor must be replaced.

2008 -- North Crowley (Fort Worth, Texas)
Record: 38-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: The Panthers simply dominated Lone Star State foes after starting out the season unranked and losing to Hightower of Sugar Land, 56-50, in their fourth game of the season. The year culminated with 35 consecutive wins and a Class 5A state title courtesy of a seven-point win over No. 26 Dulles. Willie Warren, the Dallas Morning News Player of the Year, led the charge all season long and he came through in the clutch, scoring 15 fourth-quarter points and finishing with a game-high 27 in the state title game. The big win along the way was the 61-57 regional semifinal victory over No. 10 Duncanville, as Warren paced the victors with 17 points. The McDonald's All-American and EA SPORTS National Player of the Year candidate ended his season averaging 24.7 points per game.

2007 -- Huntington (W. Va.)
Record: 25-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: The Highlanders became the first West Virginia Class AAA team to win three straight state titles by winning three state tournament games by an average 48-point margin. With two McDonald's All-Americans in the lineup, 6-5 National Player of Year candidate O.J. Mayo, a USC recruit, and 6-8 Patrick Patterson, Huntington rolled over in-state competition by 42-point margins and defeated FAB 50 No. 10 Artesia, No. 34 DeMatha, and split with No. 17 Scott County with Mayo not playing in the win. The other loss was in overtime to No. 2 St. Patrick. Mayo, who scored 4,113 career points in six varsity seasons in three states, averaged 28.2 points and 7.2 assists a game. Patterson averaged 17.2 points, 11.9 rebounds and 4.2 blocked shots per game. This team started out at No. 8, but should have been higher as their talent level was once in a lifetime type for a public school program from West Virginia.

Greg Oden

7'0"   -   C   -   2006

2006 -- Lawrence North (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Record: 29-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Wildcats went wire-to-wire as the No. 1 ranked FAB 50 team and stamped itself among the legendary squads in the basketball-rich Hoosier State. Lawrence North became only the third state team to win three consecutive state crowns by capturing the Class 4A title with an 80-56 finals' romp over eight-time champion Muncie Central. The other two teams were Marion from 1985-87 and Franklin from 1920-22. The win streak of 45 games ties the state mark set by the Oscar Robertson-led Indianapolis teams of 1955-56 at Crispus Attucks. The average winning margin was 20.3 points and victims included Ohio Division II champion Dayton Dunbar, No. 19 in the FAB 50, and defending Illinois Class AA champion Glenbrook North, No. 30 in the FAB 50. Leading North were two four-year regulars, and Ohio State recruits, who helped teams compile a 103-7 record --

Greg Oden

, the 7-foot consensus National Player of Year honoree, and guard

Mike Conley

. Oden averaged 22 points, 10.5 rebounds and shot 74% from the floor. Conley averaged 16.5 points.

2005 -- Niagara Falls (Niagara Falls, N.Y.)
Record: 28-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: Our FAB 50 national championship nod to Niagara Falls is as much a nod to how strong New York teams were this year than any other factor. The Wolverines, coached by Dan Bazzani, won their first mythical national championship on the strength of titles at the City of Palms tourney in Florida and the New York Federation state playoff tourney. In Florida, Niagara Falls defeated FAB 50-ranked Arlington Country Day of Jacksonville, Fla., the Florida 2A state champion, and Raines of Jacksonville, a 4A power. On their way to the New York Federation championship, the Wolverines defeated FAB 50-ranked New Rochelle and regionally ranked John F. Kennedy and Xaverian. The only loss for the Wolverines was to FAB 50-ranked Vashon of St. Louis, 69-66, in OT. Leading the way for Niagara Falls was junior wing Paul Harris, arguably the nation’s best on-ball defender who scored 19 points, grabbed eight rebounds and dished out four assists with a broken thumb on his shooting hand in the state title game. He averaged 19.7 points and 12.6 rebounds while sophomore point guard Johnny Flynn contributed 15.2 points, 5.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds.

2004 -- Milby (Houston)
Record: 39-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: The Buffaloes captured the state Class 5A title with a finals' victory over FAB 50 No. 10 Cedar Hill. They also defeated No. 11 Fairfax and No. 12 Montrose during the regular season after opening the season at No. 17. University of Arizona recruit and All-America honoree Jawaan McClellan led the way.

2003 -- Pike (Indianapolis)
Record: 29-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: The Red Devils sealed up the first unbeaten season in 18 years in the state's largest, or one-class, tournament with a 65-52 Class 4A title game win over 26-2 record Waterloo DeKalb. Junior Robert Vaden scored 21 points. It was Pike's third straight state final and fourth in six years. Pike is 79-7 the last three years and started out the season at No. 17. Like other good teams this season, Pike's accomplishments were dwarfed by was No. 1 St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, Ohio) was able to accomplish nationally.

2002 -- Lincoln (Dallas, Texas)
Record: 40-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Tigers won the Class 4A title by routing nationally-ranked and defending champion Beaumont Ozen, 71-51, in the final. Lincoln, led by center Chris Bosh (Georgia Tech recruit) and Bryan Hopkins (Southern Methodist), went unscathed against a schedule that included three other FAB 50 teams besides Ozen. An early-season win over FAB 50 ranked Midwest City (Okla.) vaulted the Tigers into the rankings and they also recorded wins over No. 23 Fort Worth Dunbar and No. 24 Cedar Hill. Coach Leonard Bishop's club took over the No. 1 spot when defending national champion Oak Hill Academy suffered its only loss versus No. 28 Mater Dei in the Golden State.

2001 -- Willowridge (Sugar Land, Texas)
Record: 39-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: T.J. Ford (who signed with Texas) and Daniel Ewing (Duke) are just two of many Willowridge players who will go on to star at the college level. That talent also led to a UIL Class 5A state crown after expectations were high in the preseason with this team starting out No. 3. Willowridge capped an unbeaten season by beating Converse Judson, 67-64, in double overtime, and Bryan, 65-58, in the state final to capture the Texas Class 5A state title. Ford, a 6-foot point guard, averaged 12.0 ppg, 9.4 apg, and 7.8 spg. Ewing also earned All-American acclaim while 6-3 Kenny Taylor is headed to Baylor. The Eagles, who finished the season riding a 61-game winning streak, got it done inside with Andre Watson (6-7) and Curtis Walker (6-9).

Tyson Chandler

7'0"   -   PF   -   2001

2000 -- Dominguez (Compton, Calif.)
Record: 35-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Dons took over the No. 1 spot in the FAB 50 after a 60-47 victory in February over defending national champion Oak Hill Academy of Virginia. That 13-point victory avenged an earlier 54-50 loss to the Warriors at the Iolani Classic in Hawaii. The Dons' other loss was in their fourth game in overtime to No. 17 Clovis West of Fresno, which played in the California Div. I state final. They did not avenge that defeat, but beat No. 23 Artesia of Lakewood 72-63 in the finals of the Best of the West Tournament one day after the Pioneers defeated Clovis West in the semifinals, 72-47. The Dons capped their season by winning a fourth Division II state title in five years and finished with a 28-game win streak. The ringleader for Dominguez was 7-foot center Tyson Chandler, who dominated state and numerous national opponents as well with athletic play and shot-blocking ability. Chandler had 17 points and defended well in the return win over Oak Hill, which finished No. 2 in the FAB 50, and finished with game norms of 20.1 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.7 blocks and 3.2 assists while earning National Junior Player of the Year honors. Steve Moore and point guard Micah McKinney were other key players although McKinney missed the state tournament final with a broken hand.

National Prep Poll Era

1999 -- Dominguez (Compton, Calif.)
Record: 33-3
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: The Dons came to national prominence in 1993-94 by defeating Oak Hill Academy and this was the deepest and best defensive squad among school’s many fine teams of 1990s. Coach Russell Otis' club captured its third state Division II title in the last four years with a 72-59 victory over Grant of Sacramento. The Dons lost by only 64-60 to No. 1 Oak Hill Academy in a game that was tied late in fourth quarter after opening up the season No, 12 in the preseason. The team was led by Division II State Player of the Year Keith Kincade, senior guard Marcus Moore and super soph center Tyson Chandler.

1998 -- Miami Senior (Miami)
Record: 36-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: Seniors Udonis Haslem and Antonio Latimer, along with junior guard Steve Blake and sophomore Jernel Davila, led a club that opened at No. 9 in the FAB 50 and routed Edgewater of Orlando, 89-56, in the Class 6A state title game. The Stingarees have now won state Class 6A championship eight times in the last 12 years and 18 overall. The program also enters 1998-99 having won 65 of last 66 games and compiled 13 straight seasons with 30 or more victories. Coach Frank Martin's club only lost on-court to Provo, Utah at the Iolani Classic in Hawaii, but the team was later stripped of its Class 6A state crown for recruiting violations which basically brought an end to the Stingarees' dynasty.

1997 -- Manual (Peoria, Ill.)
Record: 31-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Illinois High School Association coined the phrase “March Madness” years ago, but this year the moniker really hit home as the Manual Rams has to survive – and win – three games within a 24-hour period to claim the mythical national title. Manual dropped an overtime game to Carver of Chicago in December and needed some divine intervention to set up a historic Class 2A semifinal showdown with Thornton on Harvey. Defending national champion St. Anthony’s of New Jersey was knocked off in overtime, 82-80, by Rice of New York after sophomore Kenny Satterfield drained a 17-footer to send the game into overtime. St. John’s Prospect Hall of Maryland was then moved up to No. 1, but the next weekend they were stunned by St. Francis of Baltimore, 75-74, at the Charm City Classic as All-American pivot Mark Karcher swished a 25-footer with 2.9 seconds left. Manual was in position to claim the mythical national title after that as it beat Chicago Public League champ Whitney Young in the quarterfinals, although a shoulder injury to emotional leader Sergio McClain put a scare in Rams’ fans. In the titanic meeting with No. 14 Thornton before 11,522 fans, the Rams fell behind 18-4, but junior Frank Williams got them back in the game and Manual led 29-26 at halftime. Thornton then took a 37-29 lead but an injured McClain led a 20-0 charge and his team took a 49-37 lead. Amazingly, Thornton made one last push before falling, 65-62. The Rams then beat West Aurora 47-41 in the final, their 24 consecutive victory and 32nd consecutive playoff win that secured an unprecedented fourth straight Class AA state title. In addition to McClain and Williams, McDonald’s All-American center Marcus Griffin contributed to the team’s historic run.

1996 -- Dominguez (Compton, Calif.)
Record: 34-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: This team eventually captured the state Division II crown with a 65-49 victory over Walnut Creek of Northgate after being shocked in the 1995 final by St. Francis of Mountain View. which will undoubtedly go down as one of the biggest upsets in state playoff history. The Dons, which opened up at No. 5 in the FAB 50, got off to a slow start because of its standouts who played on a talented football team, but they ended the season with 31 straight wins. Led by junior point guard Kenny Brunner, and Grid-Hoop stud Jason Thomas, a sophomore named D2 state Player of the Year, the Dons could be even better in 1996-97 and are a shoo-in to start out preseason No. 1.

1995 -- East Central (San Antonio)
Record: 35-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 5
Lowdown: The Hornets were expected to be terrific and they were, starting out No. 18 in the National Prep Poll (FAB 50 precursor) and ending the season with a UIL Class 5A state title courtesy of a 108-86 victory over Dallas (Carter). For a program located east of San Antonio in China Grove, it was a historic run as East Central routinely hit triple digits, including a 107-94 semifinal victory over El Paso Riverside, and suffocated teams defensively. Guards Stanley Bonewitz Jr. and Chaz Jackson led the way from the backcourt and Bonewitz, the coach's son, went bonkers in the state title game, hitting 4-of-6 3-pointers and finishing with 36 points. The Hornets' tallest player was 6-foot-3.

1994 -- Crenshaw (Los Angeles)?
Record: 29-2
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: This team is considered the best of the eight Shaw clubs that captured CIF D1 state crowns. Keep in mind the 1987-88 club that spent most of the season ranked No. 1 in the country didn't win the state crown after the 1971-72 club came during in a time when there was no CIF State playoffs and was not allowed to play in the post-season that year. This Wille West-coached club had talent at each of the five traditional positions after “Tank” Davis came over from L.A. Fremont to take over the point guard duties. This club won its second straight D1 state crown even after center Leon Watson missed some games after injuring his shoulder while breaking a glass backboard at the Thousand Oaks Tournament. The team didn’t miss a beat with the junior Ronnie “Pooh” Arch inserted into the lineup. The Shaw opened up No. 1 in the nation after Kevin Garnett didn’t enroll at Oak Hill Academy and a decision by West to bench 1993 L.A. City Player of the Year Kris Johnson at the Beach Ball Classic in South Carolina likely cost the Cougars the national title after the team won the City of Palms Tournament in Florida. Johnson was suspended for drinking an extra soda without permission and without him Crenshaw lost in the Beach Ball semifinals with the second loss coming the next night in a third place consolation contest. Behind Johnson and Tremaine Fowlkes, the 1994 L.A. City City Player of the Year, Crenshaw defeated Mater Dei when it was in position to climb to No. 1 in the national rankings, 71-67, in the SoCal D1 final.

1993 -- Simon Gratz (Philadelphia)
Record: 31-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: The Philly Public League champions started out No. 2 and finished No. 2 behind wire-to-wire No. 1 Oak Hill Academy of Virginia, which went 36-0 and arguably fielded its best team ever and one of the best independent clubs in U.S. high school history. Oak Hill finished No. 3 in USA Today’s Super 25 with coach Bill Ellerbee's club at No. 1. The third dominant club this season was Chicago King, which also finished unbeaten (32-0), as none of the three clubs were able to face each other. Gratz was led by Mr. Basketball USA Rasheed Wallace and was named the third best team all-time in city history by the Daily News. Simon Gratz captured the Beach Ball Classic with a 50-47 win over Shawnee (N.J.) and defeated teams from seven states, including national power DeMatha Catholic of Maryland. This team strength was its size and depth, but the backcourt contributions of junior Shawn "Reds" Smith and sophomore Terrell Stokes cannot be overstated.

1992 -- Dunbar (Baltimore, Md.)
Record: 29-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Poets went wire-to-wire as the No. 1 team and finished the season riding a 52-game winning steak against some of the finest competition in the nation. Considering No. 2 Oak Hill Academy finished with two losses, including one to the Poets, there’s no question this Dunbar team is one of the best public school teams we ever evaluated. Coach Pete Pompey's unit will always be judged against the Poets’ legendary 1983 unit, the club most veteran observers feel is the best high school team of the modern era. "With the '92 team, it was almost like 'now it's my turn to take over the game' with each of the players," explained Sam Davis of the Baltimore Sun, who followed both teams on the prep beat and traveled to see them play in showcase games. This year’s Poets faced tougher competition overall than the 1983 unit as they won a tournament in Erie, Pennsylvania, played at the KMOX Shootout in St. Louis and also played at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Dunbar defeated No. 12 Simon Gratz of Philadelphia in the Beach Ball finals after Gratz had defeated No. 7 St. Joseph’s of Alameda, California in the semifinals, 60-53. Jason Kidd and company from St. Joseph’s were edged in the finals of the Great Florida Shootout by St. Raymond’s of the Bronx, but that New York club was no match for Dunbar as they beat the New Yorkers, 93-82, in the semifinals of the Charm City Classic. In finals, Pompey’s club beat No. 14 St. Anthony’s of New Jersey and also embarrassed highly regarded Vashon, 75-49, in front of that school's hometown fans at the KMOX Shootout. Leading the way for Dunbar was a pair of McDonald All-Americans in 6-foot-6 Donta Bright, the National Sophomore of the Year in 1990, and 6-foot-2 Michael Lloyd. Six-foot-6 junior Keith Booth will likely play in the McDonald’s game next year and the play of unsung hero Cyrus Jones was a main reason Dunbar was able to survive its moments of individualism.

1991 -- Simon Gratz (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Record: 27-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: The Bulldogs of coach Bill Ellerbee repeated as the Public League champion with a 47-43 victory over Franklin Learning Center at the Civic Center. A year earlier, Gratz had rolled past Franklin LC, 80-60, as then 6-foot-8 freshman Rasheed Wallace scored 23 points in the easy win. Gratz didn’t seal the win this year, however, until second team all-city guard Levan Alston (11.4 ppg.) sealed the game with two free throws after no-nonsense post presence Wilfred Kirkaldy drew an offensive foul on FLC's Faron "Meatball" Hand with eight seconds left. Alston and National Sophomore of the Year Wallace (13.8 ppg.) were the double-digit scorers in a balanced starting lineup that included forward Andre Griffin, center Calvin Wingfield and junior guard Contrell Scott. No. 4 Oak Hill Academy handed Gratz its only loss, 67-59, in the semifinals of the Great Florida Shootout. The Bulldogs, however, won the Beach Ball Classic in South Carolina with a 44-40 victory over St. Joseph’s of Cleveland and were able to move back in front of the Warriors in the polls after Oak Hill suffered an uncharacteristic 28-point loss to a Robert Hughes-coached club at Dunbar of Fort Worth, Texas. Another public school club, Detroit Southwestern was No. 1 by USA Today at 26-1.

1990 -- King (Chicago, Ill.)
Record: 32-0
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 1
Lowdown: This Chicago Public League power coached by Sonny Cox opened up the season as the National Prep Poll's and USA Today's No. 1 ranked team. King then went wire-to-wire as the nation's top team and won the Illinois Class AA state title with a 65-55 victory over cross-town Gordon Tech. In the first all-city final in state tournament history, 6-foot-4 McDonald’s All-American Jamie Brandon netted 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds while bruising 6-foot-6 forward Johnny Selvie added 17 points and 11 rebounds. Selvie was a four-year starter as was Brandon, who ended his career with 3,174 points, second on the state's all-time career scoring list and was called the, “Money player every truly great team has,'' by veteran talent scout Bob Gibbons. Although the Jaguars played down to the competition at times, they indeed faced tough teams in the public league and during the Windy City Classic while remaining undefeated despite the distractions of Selvie’s arrest on drug charges. The IHSA also made King forfeit 13 games for using an ineligible player, a ruling that was overturned after an appeal by King. Cox had a senior-oriented team, as five of the top six players were seniors, including Brandon, Selvie, 6-foot-3 guard Ahmad Shareef, 5-foot-10 Fred Sculfield and top sub Damian Porter, a 6-foot-10 center. Sculfield backed up 6-foot-11 Rashard Griffith, the National Freshman of the Year who is expected to help keep King in the national rankings picture over the next three years.

1989 -- Miami Senior (Miami)
Record: 35-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 2
Lowdown: The FHSAA Class 4A champion lost only to FAB 50 No. 1 St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.), 68-55, in the title game of the 8th annual Great Florida shootout at Osceola High School. Coach Marcos "Shakey" Rodriguez's deep club was led by forwards Douglas Edwards and Gimel Martinez. While this team was considered the nation's second best, Edwards was widely considered the No. 2 recruit in the country behind point guard Kenny Anderson of New York City.

1988 -- Patrick Henry (Roanoke, Va.)
Record: 30-1
Final FAB 50 Rank: No. 3
Lowdown: This team started off unranked, but finished third in the first ever weekly National Prep Poll behind No. 2 St. Anthony's of New Jersey and national champ Tolentine (Bronx, N.Y.). The Patriots won a competitive Arby's Classic in Bristol, Tenn., and went on to capture the Group AAA state championship. Led by junior forward George Lynch, Patrick Henry dispatched Lee, 54-47, as Lynch, Curtis Blair and Melvin Davis each scored 12 points for a club that won its final 21 games of the season. Henry's ranking was solidified when all four Arby Classis semifinalists went on to capture state titles.

Note: The FAB?50 National Team Rankings?powered by www.ebooksnet.com?is a continuation of the?National Sports News Service?ratings that began in 1952. These were the first national high school rankings and they were compiled by the late?Art Johlfs?of Minnesota. They were compiled for many years by the late?Barry Sollenberger?of Phoenix, who merged them into the FAB 50 for the 1999-2000 season. The FAB 50 is the longest-running weekly national rankings.

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RELATED: Southwest Camp Top 30 Player Rankings

It was only fitting the Top 20 All-Star Game reserved for the camp’s best performers came down to overtime to decide, because the talent level at the 2024 Southwest Basketball Camp was arguably the most balanced in the camp’s seven-year history. According to camp director Gregg Rosenberg, the Top 20 All-Star game was the best played game ever in the camp’s history in terms of talent level and intensity. The Top 20 game quickly displayed who the camp’s elite talent was, and a group of roughly 15 players out of the approximately 115 showed themselves as true D1 prospects in a time when it’s clearly not easy for a high school player to earn a D1 college scholarship.

According to Rosenberg, the camp was created to showcase players from Arizona who normally don't get an opportunity to be invited to elite summer camps; it was designed for the region’s players to be seen in front of lower level coaches who are looking for quality players for their programs. Players that are serious enough and good enough to play after high school. "Many players will be going to a junior college or to NAIA schools, and it’s important to get them seen in front of college coaches that are able to attend,” Rosenberg said.

After each camper participated in five, running-clock games, 60 were chosen to one of the camp’s three all-star games. A couple of campers who were not necessarily D1 prospects were rewarded for their outstanding play with a Top 20 selection, but once the ball was tipped, it was evident the camp’s elite prospects had separated themselves from the pack. It resulted in a well played game with defense on both sides. The on-ball defense in the closing minutes was good and the game went into overtime. That's when Deshawn Gory, a post-graduate 6-foot-7 wing from Phhoenix Prep in Phoenix, hit a deep 3-pointer in the closing seconds to seal the win for his team, 76-73. Gory finished as one of three players on the winning team to score in double-digits, scoring 15 points.

He was joined in the double-digit scoring column by Adam Hubbard, a 6-foot-4 2025 from AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) with 17 points and by leading scorer Mason Magee, a 6-foot 2026 guard from Basha (Chandler, Ariz.) with 23 points. Hubbard set the tone for the game by nailing five 3-pointers in the early going, and from that point on, both teams ratcheted up the intensity. Magee is one of the nation’s best point guard prospects in the 2026 class and is sorting offers from Arizona State, Washington State and UNLV with other high majors taking serious looks.

The leading scorer from the losing team with 27 points was Jaylon Dean-Vines, a 6-foot-3 2025 shooting guard who plays for a talented Phhoenix Prep team, including a group of players who will play on the Overtime Elite (OTE) circuit. Dean-Vines is one of the most athletic players in the 2025 national class and at this camp his outside shot was on point. He was excellent in both the half court and in transition. He currently holds offers from Oklahoma, Tulsa, UT-Arlington and Vanderbilt. Elijah Hayeems, a 6-foot-6 2025 forward, and Dean-Vines’ Phhoenix Prep teammate, also netted double figures for the losing club with 13 points.

Magee and Dean-Vines were not only the Top 20 game’s leading scorers, they were deservingly named co-MVPs of the entire camp.

Gerron Graham Jr., a 6-foot-2 2026 guard from Premier Prep (Gilbert, Ariz.) was named the MVP of the Top 40 all-star game.

RELATED: Southwest Camp Top 30 Player Rankings

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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Walking around the Inspire Courts in Gilbert, Ariz., one gets the sense Dalen Terry, entering his third season with the Chicago Bulls, feels a comfort level and sense of youthful bliss you normally don't see from current NBA players at a grassroots basketball event.

Terry, 22, felt that sense of comfort while he and family members and close friends with ties to the game conducted the inaugural Dalen Terry Basketball Camp over the weekend at the Inspire Courts in Gilbert. That facility, after all, is a stone's throw from South Phoenix and Ahwatukee, the neighborhoods where the 6-foot-8 Terry grew up and cultivated a career than made him the No. 18 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. While growing up in The Valley, Terry always wanted to be play the game, learn more about the game, and most importantly, feel connected to the players who made it to the higher levels who grew up where he did.

"I wanted to do this camp because when I was a kid, I could never find out where pros from here had a camp at; I didn't know where to go," Terry said. "And if there was some camp here it was never free. I want these kids to know I'm exactly like them, same city, same places and play at the same courts. I want them to know they can do it, too."

Approximately 85 youth of both genders were in attendance learning the game, and most importantly, having fun with Terry, his coaching staff and the other campers. They worked on the basic elements of the game and also enjoyed more fun games such as knockout for prizes that were awarded at the end of each of the two days. Terry has an authentic connection to the city of Phoenix and other talented peers from the Valley of the Sun can genuinely feel it, so that influences them to follow suit. It's no wonder players from the region such as TyTy Washington, Koa Peat (the high school All-American from Perry of Gilbert) and Marcus Bagley volunteered their time towards the camp. Bagley was Terry's classmate at Aprende Middle School in Chandler.

After Aprende, Terry went on to Corona Del Sol (Tempe, Ariz.) for ninth and tenth grade and finished up his high school years at Hillcrest Prep (Phoenix, Ariz.). On the grassroots circuit, he played for Team Phoenix and AZ Power locally and the Compton Magic on the Adidas grassroots circuit. Terry had a near fanatical obsession for playing and his mother Fenise Yancy knew that clearly in his formative years, especially when he wanted to have a basketball tournament for his 10th birthday. One with teams entered, refs and standings. A dozen years later, Terry understands every kid may not have that approach to the game, but he wants Phoenix youth to feel inspired to pursue whatever dreams they may have.

"I knew I needed to do something (for the kids)," Terry said. "When I played at camps like this, I knew I had to make my mark; I knew the importance even then. Some kids are good, others may not be, but it's important they know they can try to do it."

Terry aims to make it an annual event and no matter where he takes his Dalen Terry Basketball Camp, working with Phoenix youth will always be special to him. After his high school days, Terry played two years at the University of Arizona. The weekend of August 24-25, he will conduct his camp in Tucson.

To sign up for the Tucson version of the Dalen Terry Basketball Camp, CLICK HERE.

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The Formula Zero Elite Camp is an event level event hosted by Milwaukee Bucks' All-Star and former Oakland (Calif.) and Weber State standout Damian Lillard. The three-day event was held at the The PHHacility in Phoenix with "Dame Dollar" and NBA player development coach Phil Beckner leading the on-court skills training for 30 elite players (actually 15 high school participants and 17 college level athletes) that wanted to get some insight on the training methods of one of the NBA's hardest-working players who developed into an eight-time NBA all-star from humble beginnings.

Lillard played for the Oakland Rebels travel club in Northern California in the late 2000's and was somewhat of an overlooked high school prospect in California's famed 2008 class. He was a Cal-Hi Sports all-state selection as a senior, averaging 22.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists for a 23-9 club after committing to Weber State before his senior season began. From there is where Lillard's game took off after developing a unique training method to excel while many of his peers in high school plateaued.

The slogan for Formula One is "Character, Hard Work and Accountability" and is designed for players with a relentless passion to do things differently in order to take their game to the next level. The training model around Formula One has molded one of the best players in the NBA and this elite camp is a way for him to share that passion and training method with young players who aspire to get to the level Lillard has with the Bucks and Portland Trailblazers over the years.

We take a look at six of the standouts from the three-day event in front of NBA decision-makers:

High School Standouts

Mikel Brown Jr., DME Academy (Daytona Beach, Fla.) 6-2 2025
A terrific spot up shooter who should be in store for a fine senior season of high school after a transfer to a Sunshine Independent Athletic Association (SIAA) program. His ability to play make and score and his craftiness with the ball takes his spot up shooting to the next level.

Acaden Lewis, Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.) 6-2 2025
Followed up on his terrific play at the 2024 NPBA Top 100 camp with another standout grassroots performance. Lewis is crafty with the ball and knows when and where to attack or act as a setup man. Lewis gets it done with his live dribble passing and shot making ability from all over the court.

Darryn Peterson, Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) 6-5 2025
The top overall high school prospect at the event, Peterson is like a NFL running back whose pads don't make noise during practice because he is so fluid and his moves are smooth. Peterson can stop and explode into his move or shot as well as any high school or college player and is pushing the top players in the national class of 2025. Peterson recently announced his will spend his senior season in California at Prolific Prep and in that atmosphere should be a bonafide Mr. Basketball USA candidate for 2024-25.

College Standouts

V.J. Edgecombe, Baylor (2024), 6-5 SG
Explosive finisher in the open court was as good an athlete as any player in attendance. Edgecombe stand outs with his competitive fire and skill level as an attacking shooting guard. As he continues to develop a more reliable jumper will ultimately determine where he lands as a bonafide lottery pick for 2025. With continued improvement he could push towards the top five.

A?a Newell, Georgia (2024), 6-9 PG
Was an integral part of Montverde Academy's 2024 FAB 50 title team and could be a breakout performer in the SEC. Newell knows spacing and angles to get the ball in the interior and uses a variety of hooks and spins to be a formidable offensive threat. Newell's motor is a differnce-maker and his jump shot range will dictate his numbers as a college freshman.

Trent Perry, UCLA (2024), 6-4 PG
Will be competing for playing time in Westwood and his competitive nature and IQ will push his teammates in practice. Perry sees the game a few plays ahead, especially in transition, and was making some terrific open-court passes at Formula One. In the half court, Perry was knocking down his jumper and attacking defenders in an efficient manner.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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RELATED: 2024-25 Preseason FAB 50 Questionnaire - CLICK HERE to fill it out!

When it comes to the FAB 50 National Team Rankings powered by www.ebooksnet.com, we actually compile them based on what happens on the court and weigh the results. It's not just about who has the most recruitable players or who is playing on television; it's about building a team's resume to a certain point and then maintaining that level based on the on-court results.

Here are three simple steps you can take to give your team the best chance to get ranked this upcoming 2024-25 season:

Give Your Team A Chance

1. Let Us Know About Your Team
It's never too early to let us know you have a good team. In fact, we are starting to gather team info for the 2024-25 season right now. Coaches, please completely fill out the preseason FAB 50 questionnaire. CLICK HERE to go to the form. The more info we have on your team, the better!

2. Compile and Promote Relevant Team Info
Once in a while a coach or team director will reach out to us about being ranked. Our response is usually, "send me your roster and your stats." You'd be surprised by how many do not have the basics for their team. A functional website is great and the best, but if that's not possible, an up-to-date social media handle with all the results and stats does the trick, too. Some schools are terrific at getting out information and others are not so good. It's Ballislife's job to seek information and know the teams, but with so many teams out there and so much competition to be ranked, it's only common sense to want to help make that task easier since recognition for the players is what it's all about.

3. Be Honest and Consistent
There are programs that hit us up every year to let us know about their team, even if it's not good enough to be nationally or regionally ranked. We appreciate that. Sometimes, we know if a team is expected to be really good because the coach will reach out early and often. And then there are those that embellish the truth or exaggerate. We know some are just trying to get their team out there, but being dis-honest usually comes back around and after doing rankings for so many years, we have a good idea when information about a team or player is not accurate. High school stats are not common (especially since the newspaper industry no longer has the staff to publish them) so getting accurate info from a third party source is not as easy as it was 20 years ago. In press releases for college signings, high school stats are not referenced as much as they were 15 years ago. That info is still relevant and is actually helpful to evaluate players for the next level.

Reaching out early in the preseason is a great step. Below are eight ways your team can get ranked, whether you reach out or not, when the games start and results begin to pour in.

How Your Team Can Get Ranked

1. Play the Strongest Schedule Possible.
Teams that desire to be ranked in the FAB 50 play competitive schedules, including tournaments or showcases with opponents that are good enough to be ranked, too. The adage "If you want to be the best, beat the best" holds true.

2. Defeat a FAB 50-Ranked Team.
Upsets are common in boys' hoops, but beating a ranked team -- especially a winning team with a good track record -- can make a huge statement.

3. Own Significant Head-to-Head Victories.
These results carry weight among FAB 50 editors. A non-ranked team has a strong argument if it defeats a ranked team -- or previously ranked team. Sometimes in basketball, there are "fluke" wins, where a non-ranked team upsets a highly-ranked team, then goes back to playing at the level it previously was at. That's why a pattern of success or winning a tournament with multiple FAB 50-ranked teams is a sure way to move?up or into the rankings.

4. Earn a High Ranking in Your State or Region.
The FAB 50 takes into consideration credible state rankings. If a team wants to be nationally ranked, it should consistently show up in state or local rankings.

5. Root For Your Rivals.
If an opponent you've defeated beats other highly ranked teams during its season, it bodes well and makes a great case for you team to move up in the rankings.

6. Come From one of the Traditional Hoops Hotbeds.
A successful program’s location in a traditional hotbed for boys' basketball such as New York City, Philadelphia, Southern California, or Chicago certainly doesn't hurt its chances to be ranked. This category has expanded and contracted over the years. For instance, high school basketball in Texas once lagged behind spring football. Not anymore. Phoenix is quickly becoming a great place for college coaches to find players.

7. Dominate a Non-Power State.
Plenty of ranked teams fit into this category. That is why teams with extended and dominant in-state successes make the cut. They've earned their spot by setting standards in those states (multiple state title streaks, record victory streaks, etc.).

8. Have a Top Recruit on Your Team.
"Wait a minute,"?you might say.?"I thought the FAB 50 rankings were based on game results, not player rankings." That is true, the FAB 50 is based on game results. But with the explosion of national events, holiday tournaments and intersectional competition, boys' basketball has the most solid foundation to rank teams among the high school sports. That relates to individual talent because in basketball, one player can make a big difference. Having a player near the top of the 247Sports, Rivals.com, Scouts.com, ESPN.com or Hoop Scoop player rankings increases the likelihood of being invited to a tournament or showcase. That’s where the opportunity to defeat another ranked team lies.

FAB 50 Basketball Policy:?We do not rank teams with players on the roster that have completed eight semesters of high school i.e. 5th-year players. We do not rank programs that don't follow age cutoff guidelines of the state association in which the program resides or the recommended date outlined by the NFHS ?(19 before September 1). Programs also must be recognized by a high school athletics governing body or be an associate member of a state association. Generally, programs must be allowed to play members schools of the state association in which the program resides and, outside of recruiting, follow all other rules of the high school governing body in that particular state. If coaches intentionally provide false or misleading information about his/her program, it automatically disqualifies that particular program from inclusion in the FAB 50 this year and each subsequent year.

2023-24 Preseason FAB 50 Questionnaire: CLICK HERE to fill it out!

FAB 50 Basketball Policy:?We do not rank teams with players on the roster that have completed eight semesters of high school i.e. 5th-year players. We do not rank programs that don't follow age cutoff guidelines of the state association in which the program resides or the recommended date outlined by the NFHS ?(19 before September 1). Programs also must be recognized by a high school athletics governing body or be an associate member of a state association. Generally, programs must be allowed to play members schools of the state association in which the program resides and, outside of recruiting, follow all other rules of the high school governing body in that particular state. If coaches intentionally provide false or misleading information about his/her program, it automatically disqualifies that particular program from inclusion in the FAB 50 this year and each subsequent year.

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Josh talked to Ballislife about decision to pledge to Akron over Miami Ohio and Ohio University.

“I went on an unofficial visit and I loved it there (Akron)," Henderson said. "It felt like family with my talks and interaction from the staff and I felt I can really thrive there. Coach Groce has been to every game during the live period. He has came to see me play any chance he’s had and told me I’m his number one target. That’s why a week later after my visit I committed.”

Henderson talked more in depth about the visit. He was heavily impressed with the player development aspect.

“We talked a lot about the player development process. What that looks like year to year. They had my shot charts from AAU, percentages from where I shot, what I do best and it was just a full breakdown of my game and where and how I can improve.”

The 6-foot-5 rising senior shooting guard has a full high school year left until he reports to Akron and shared the parts of his game he will be working on prior to coming.

“Definitely my body. Getting stronger," Henderson said. "That’ll be important for me. Also finding more efficient ways to score. Drawing more fouls and being able to more effectively read and attack the second line of defense. I watch a lot of film and work out a lot. I need to be better at those areas.”

Game Breakdown

Josh Henderson holds fine positional size (6-5) and arm length at the 2-guard spot: He shoots it from deep, is a quality scorer in spot up situations that needs minimal dribbles to get to his spots, create space and score. Defensively, he shows high ceiling as a switchable defender that utilizes his length and instincts to cover ground and collect steals.

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As Team USA goes for its fifth straight men's basketball Olympic Gold Medal on August 10 (3:30 pm ET, NBC) against host France, we wanted to put into perspective what the Olympics has meant to American basketball development over the years.

To give it some perspective, Team USA was 143-6 all-time entering Olympic competition at this year's games, including the 5-3 "disaster" of 2004 when America took the Bronze medal. Overall, there is no big problem. Everyone always says the world has caught up to the U.S.A., but in reality, they still have a plenty ways to go.

Serbia led 76-63 with 10 minutes remaining in this year's semifinal contest vs. the USA with arguably the best player in the world on its team (Nikola Joki?) and still fell, 95-91. When Team USA had to get it done, it defended and played team ball. It wasn't all that surprising it made that comeback. It's how it got to this point that raises questions and/or doubts about the quality and usefulness of the American Olympic process.

There is no denying that the decision to use NBA players starting with the 1992 Olympics in Spain and coaching clinics around the world featuring some of the brightest minds over the last half century is the reason the world is so much better at the game we love. The Dream Team gave the world the motivation and our coaches gave the world the know how to get better at the game. Without that 1992 Dream Team, there perhaps is no Joki? today, or maybe a player of his caliber wouldn't have developed for another 50 years or so.

Many folks feel the development across the world has come at the expense of development here in the United States, but at the highest level, that development is curtailed.

There are two things that made the Dream Team work in 1992. tThe timing of its announcement and Team USA's 82-76 loss to the Soviet Union in the 1988 semifinals. If the late John Thompson and his group of college players (alongside David Robinson, who hadn't yet played pro ball but was the No. 1 pick of the 1987 NBA Draft) had won Gold in Seoul, South Korea, who knows if we are even having this discussion now. USA and the rest of the world was ready to see what would happen with NBA players and there was no better group than the guys on that 1992 Dream Team to make it a success. Perhaps it wouldn't have worked as well in 1988 or in 1996. Timing is very important and people forget the go-to players on this year's US Olympic team, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry, are significantly older than anyone on the 1992 Dream Team, which had the make and feel of a veteran national team.

Lost in the Dream Team's greatness is the lack of a tryout process. And there hasn't been one since.

Yes, USA Basketball has done a fine job at the youth level and are dominant in the 19U-16U age groups. But those players who dominate the younger levels are not necessarily the ones who dominate at the senior levels. Development happens at various stages for aspiring players and what the Olympic team is missing is a tryout process.

Having a tryout process would eliminate some of the issues that come with clashing NBA egos on a team and would help with chemistry. Now, NBA stars probably don't want to be part of the tryout process, as they don't want to give up the leverages they have worked at for years to attain as the world's best, but the positives would outweigh any backlash.

The positives of a tryout process are many. It would create an atmosphere of fairness, it would help foster a team culture (instead of a group of star players), and most importantly, would be great evaluation for NBA personnel, not to mention college and grassroots scouts for the younger players. It would also create what recent Olympic teams are missing: the ability for role players to increase their worldwide profile and young players to enjoy a marketing platform that would help the world know more about the up-and-coming and future pro stars. With the current state of college basketball and the NBA's reliance on players to enter the league who have been out of high school for less than a year, there are limited ?opportunities to market players to the point where they have built brand value and a faithful following prior to the draft. This would help in that area tremendously and be a win for everyone involved in the process.

The tryout should include non-NBA players and elite high school players, if the selection committee deems them worthy. Only a few might be worthy every four years, but after watching Cooper Flagg (last season's Mr. Basketball USA and now a Duke freshman) doing what he did against Team USA at a scrimmage, it would be meaningful to have that type of atmosphere in a formal tryout setting. Even for the players who didn't make the team, it would be a tremendous evaluation and marketing opportunity.

As NBA agent and marketing veteran Nate Jones points out, the Olympics are one of the few events left in terms of media platforms, where the masses still watch the game at one time. For an up-and-coming star to be siting on the bench or contributing in a way that is not the norm for a max contract NBA player, it would not only be a great opportunity, it would enhance the team and set a great example of what a team should be on on the world stage.

For anyone who attended an Olympic tryout prior to the formation of the Dream Team, it was more than an excellent evaluation tool. For Frank Burlison, a McDonald's All-American voters since the game's inception in 1977, the 1984 Olympic tryouts was one of the best settings and best basketball he ever evaluated. This coming from a person who has attended endless summer games since the 1970s to NBA Finals games featuring Michael Jordan. Even players who were cut from that '84 Olympic tryout, such as future NBA Hall of Famers John Stockton and Charles Barkley, got tremendous milage out of the experience.

Now, the 1984 team led by Jordan was one of the best teams of all-time that didn't feature NBA players. As the late Bobby Knight told the world before they could understand or were ready to hear from a coaching perspective, Jordan was that special of a talent and the team around him, which included Patrick Ewing and specialists such as sharp-shooter Steve Alford, was strong. It was evident when Thompson was putting his team together for 1988, it wasn't going to be as strong as the team in 1984. The tryout roster was not near the talent level of four years prior. Some felt Thompson was playing favorites when his incoming high school recruit Alonzo Mourning (the 1988 Mr. Basketball USA pick) was one of the last Olympic cuts. In reality, however, his talent level warranted a serious look despite just graduating from high school.

That brings us to our next two points. One, the talent level across the high school and grassroots landscape is not close to equal year over year. This is hardly ever never pointed out or analyzed by national scouts. Two, it wasn't the end of the world that Team USA lost an Olympic game. There is no secret the high school classes that made up the 1984 team were clearly stronger than the high school classes that created the talent poll for the 1988 team. The Class of 1985 is considered weak overall and it took a major hit when forward Ben Wilson of Siemon (Chicago, Ill.), was murdered just as his senior season was about to tip off in the fall of 1984. Perhaps as a graduated college senior, he could have helped Thompson and Team USA win gold.

We'll never know.

After the 1988 team lost in the semifinals in a competitive game to Arvydas Sabonis and the Soviet Union, the 1992 Dream Team's performance felt like a series of exhibition games. Still to this day, the Dream Team proved the point. Also, for a U.S. Olympic team, there is no shame in losing if the players are giving it their all like the 1988 team did. The novelty of the NBA players in FIBA events wore off fast. By the 1994 World Championships, in fact, they were more criticized than praised. The young team had talents such as Shawn Kemp and Derrick Coleman that were framed by the media as malcontents more often than great champions.

Heading into 1992, Team USA was 85-2, including the infamous 1972 Gold Medal loss to the Soviet Union. Since then, Team USA has only lost in the medal round once with a young team in 2004 that was void of great chemistry and leadership. Those issues were resolved by the 2008 Redeem Team led by the late Kobe Bryant, but perhaps those issues wouldn't have been there had the circumstances of making the team been different and accepted over the years.

The 2004 losses certainly wouldn't be looked at the same if the team wasn't handpicked by influential individuals and had a more open tryout process. For now, the process only favors NBA elites instead of being used as the ultimate developmental setting for our country's players.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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This year's All-Star game was one to remember. With record-breaking temperatures, the WNBA brought the heat to Phoenix.

The 20th annual game drew 3.4 million viewers on ABC, making it the most-watched All-Star game in WNBA history. The third most viewed event ever across all networks, according to ESPN PR, viewership peaked at 4.2 million, over a 300 percent increase from last year.

This year's format was unique, marking the second year in history to debut Team WNBA vs. Team USA. While some all-star games present as a fun, dynamic, flowing experience, this year's matchup was highly competitive, as reported by several players and coaches.

"We have to be locked in, our time together is so short," said USA Olympian Breanna Stewart prior to Friday's three-point contest. "Also knowing what happened last time we had Team USA vs. the All-Stars. It didn't go our way."

With that said, Stewart's been in this position before. In 2021, Team WNBA defeated Team USA, 93-85 in which Arike Ogunbowale was crowned MVP winner with 26 points. Four years later, it's a bit of déjà vu for Stewart and company. And there's something about Ogunbowale cooking up against the USA Basketball National Olympic Team.

In front of a crowd of 16,407 attendees at the Footprint Center, Team WNBA once again defeated Team USA 117-109. After admitting that she had pulled out of the Olympics due to "politics," Ogunbowale captured her second All-Star MVP against Team USA with 34 points, three rebounds, six assists, and two steals on 10-20 field goal shooting. Although it's the All-Star game, Ogunbowale wouldn't let Team USA stop her and her squad from competing at the highest level.

"They're [Team USA] getting ready to play, and they want to win," said Ogunbowale post-game. "We're not going to get embarrassed as well. They have plays they've been practicing. We just want to come out hard, and I love competition. If I hear someone is trying to beat me, I'm going to try to beat them twice as hard."

Your 2024 WNBA All-Star MVP Arike Ogunbowale #WNBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/WsFd7mKPsZ

— Sara Jane Gamelli (@SaraJGamelli) July 21, 2024

After scoring zero first-half points, the Dallas Wings star erupted for 21 third-quarter points, including 5-7 shots from beyond the arc. In true Arike fashion, the guard sauced up several guards with highly contested shots. Ogunbowale's 34 points were the most points ever scored in an all-star game, and the guard was extremely humble prior to the big matchup. Not one guard could stop her, including Jackie Young, Kelsey Plum, and Jewell Loyd.

In the post-game, Ogunbowale admitted that Team WNBA head coach Cheryl Miller "called her out at halftime." In front of everyone, Miller told her, "Just take a deep breath and play your game," said Ogunbowale. "I guess you guys saw what happened."

Under coach Miller, Nneka Ogwumike (14 points), Angel Reese (12 points), Allisha Gray (16 points), and Kelsey Mitchell (13 points) all contributed points in double figures. For Chicago Sky's Reese, she became the first rookie in WNBA history to tally a double-double, which included 11 boards. Able to snag rebounds over Brittney Griner and Alyssa Thomas, Reese continues to show why she's the WNBA leader in offensive boards.

Although Reese and Clark are known for being opponents on the court, a definitive moment gave fans a chilling glimpse of the level of talent these two players produce. Able to split the defense, Clark unselfishly found Reese in the paint with the dime bounce. Having only finished with four points, Clark tallied 10 assists, a rookie WNBA All-Star record. This comes a week after Clark became the single-game assist leader with 19 against the Wings.

Aside from calling Ogunbowale the best "one-on-one player in the league," Clark, without question, opted to remain on the bench while Arike continued her dominance. Although ready for a break, Clark seemingly enjoyed her first WNBA All-Star experience.

"I had a lot of fun just playing, enjoying the atmosphere, talking with people courtside," said

For Team USA, Breanna Stewart and showcased their dominance, scoring a combined 53 points. With Stewart leading the way with 31 points and 10 rebounds, Diana Taurasi tallied 14 points, including a game-starting trey for the hometown fans. With 37 points off the bench, Griner was the only other player to contribute points in double figures.

Heading into the Olympics, Stewart was quick to point out a lack of defense from Team USA. Committing 14 costly turnovers, the Olympic team once found themselves down by a 20-point deficit.

"Understanding that we just gave up 117 points is kind of crazy," said Stewart post-game. "We don't want to peak too soon, and we know we can improve on a lot. I speak for A'ja [Wilson] here. We're excited to get to London and really focus on this team and what our ultimate goal is."

Overall, the experience was jovial and eventful. With the popularity of WNBA live, the weekend festivities drew in several celebrities, including Aubrey Plaza, Pitbull, Sheryl Swoops, Shannon Sharpe, and others.

Following one of the most exciting WNBA All-Star weekends, Team USA will play Japan this afternoon, beginning at 3 p.m. EST. Starting Aug 1, the Women's National Team will suit up against Belgium, and Germany on Aug 4. The USA Women's National Team is seeking their eighth straight gold medal.

Stay tuned for more WNBA related articles. Click here

Sara Jane Gamelli is a full-time Sportswriter, Content Creator, and Social Media Manager for Ballislife Bets. She focuses on Women's Basketball, both college and the WNBA, and currently resides in the Connecticut/NYC area. SJ received her undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Connecticut, with a minor in business administration.

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Compiled by Ronnie Flores

(Preseason ranking in parentheses; *Indicates forfeit wins, forfeit losses not included; **Indicates forfeits and defaults not included.)

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1. (1) Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) 33-0
This team made history for a variety of reasons, as it became the third team under coach Kevin Boyle (344-26 at MVA, 854-158 overall) to claim a FAB 50 title with an unbeaten record. The 2020 team didn’t get an opportunity to compete in Chipotle Nationals because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but this year’s team was able to match the 2018 team by going wire-to-wire as the FAB 50 No. 1 team. The 2021 MVA team also went wire-to-wire No. 1 but was not unbeaten. The Eagles closed out their season with a Chipotle Nationals crown, courtesy of a 79-63 win over No. 3 Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) in the championship game, their second victory over that same club. Curtis Givens came off the bench to nail 6-of-9 3-pointers and score 24 points while All-Americans Cooper Flagg and Derik Queen added 16 and 19 points, respectively, as the program upped its record to 29-6 all-time at the end-of-season tournament. Between those three players, there was only nine shots missed while Flagg (16.1 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 3.9 apg, 2.7 bpg, 1.6 spg) blocked six shots. Flagg averaged 20.0 ppg and 7.0 rpg in three Chipotle Nationals victories, as the Eagles recorded a whopping 24 victories over teams that were FAB 50 ranked at some point during the 2023-24 season. Queen was the Eagles’ leading scorer (16.4 ppg) and shot 68.3 percent from the field while attempting only three 3-pointers, as this club had uncanny balance and thrived by taking quality shots from the field. Montverde Academy’s other three starters averaged double figures for a team that played as tough a schedule as any MVA team ever and only had three games decided by single-digits. For its dominance, this club will ultimately be compared to its 2020 unit and by living up to expectations was able to claim the program’s seventh Chipotle Nationals crown and seventh No. 1 FAB 50 crown. The No. 1 finish means MVA ties Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) for the most all-time FAB 50 national titles. Regardless of where it stands on the list of most dominant teams the program has ever produced, it will be remembered for playing up to expectations against one of the toughest schedules ever seen among FAB 50 ranked teams.

2. (3) Columbus (Miami, Fla.) 28-5
Similar to No. 3 Paul VI and No. 5 Long Island Lutheran, the Explorers lost to No. 1 Montverde Academy twice, but are able to finish one spot ahead of Paul VI because of their 70-61 victory over the Panthers at the Spalding Hoophall Classic. Columbus lost to Montverde Academy in the semifinals of Chipotle Nationals after falling behind big just as it did in its first matchup with the eventual FAB 50 champions. Junior Cameron Boozer finished with 29 points and seven rebounds in Columbus’ final game of the season and was remarkably consistent throughout the year for a team that lived up to expectations, averaging 22.2 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 2.7 apg and 2.1 bpg. Columbus qualified for Chipotle Nationals by defeating No. 15 Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) in overtime, 72-67, in the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 7A championship game. Boozer’s slam dunk with five seconds remaining sent the game into overtime and he finished it with 24 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Columbus also got strong seasons from Cam’s brother, Cayden Boozer (12.0 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 7.6 apg) and Michigan St.-bound Jase Richardson (15.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.7 apg, 2.3 spg). In addition to defeating No. 3 Paul VI, the Explorers also downed No. 4 No. 4 Long Island Lutheran (Glen Head, N.Y.), No. 6 Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) and No. 8 Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.), the latter in the title game of the Les Schwab Invitational in Portland, Ore.

3. (5) Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) 35-3?
As the season came to a close, the big ranking decision involved placing the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) champs at No. 2 or leaving them behind Columbus of Florida, which lost in Chipotle Nationals semifinals to the same Montverde Academy team the Panthers fell to in the event’s title game, 79-63. The Panthers did have two fewer losses than the Explorers, but MVA’s victory margins over Paul VI in comparison to the margins vs. Columbus are in similar range that a rankings flip to go against a head-to-head result (Columbus defeated Paul VI) was unwarranted. Although that decision was a close call, what cannot be disputed was the expectation for Paul VI to be in the thick of the FAB 50 title race for the second consecutive season and being able to live up to that. Although this year’s club wasn’t able to ascent to the No. 1 spot as the 2022-23 club did, coach Glen Farello’s club was able to capture its second WCAC title in there years with a 63-51 win over No. 30 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) at American University. Duke-bound Darren Harris, the WCAC MVP, led the way with 20 points and seven rebounds. Harris (17.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.1 apg, 2.0 spg) scored 36 points in Paul VI’s first round win at Chipotle Nationals over No. 17 IMG Academy (101-89), netted 20 points in the semifinal victory over No. 7 Link Academy (58-44) and averaged 24.0 ppg in three games at the event. Also playing key roles on a deep team that won its third consecutive VISAA D1 state crown and finished 15-0 in WCAC regular and tourney play were sophomore guard Jordan Smith Jr., a third team All-Met selection by the Washington Post, and honorable mention choice Isaiah Abraham, a senior forward. An unbeaten WCAC run like Paul VI’s last occurred in 2011-12 when the Panthers finished No. 12 in the FAB 50.

4. (BB) Plano East (Plano, Texas) 40-0
The Panthers were the definition of team, and check in as the highest rated public school team for 2023-24. Plano East started out No. 14 in Southwest Regional Rankings, but exceeded expectations by capturing a University Interscholastic League (UIL) state title in the highest classification (Class 6A). Coach Matt Wester’s team steadily climbed in the rankings and turned heads with a 55-50 win over Stony Point (Round Rock, Texas) in the championship game of the long-running Whataburger Tournament. That was Stony Point’s only loss of the season until the two teams once again locked horns in the state title game at the The Alamodome in front of 8,812. Plano East was in control and posted a historic 53-41 victory over the then No. 6 ranked team in the FAB 50. D.J. Hall led the way for Plano East with 18 points, while Rachard Angton, a 5-foot-10 senior, came on the bench to score 13 crucial points. Stony Point led by two points early in the game momentarily, as Plano East not only won its first UIL state crown, but the first state title in school history in any sport. Hall (15.7 ppg, 7.0 rpg) was named Class 6A Tourney MVP and TABC all-state, while Jordan Mizell, a 6-foot-2 senior guard, was a TABC all-Region 1 choice.

5. (4) Long Island Lutheran (Glen Head, N.Y.) 21-5?
The Crusaders were expected to challenge Montverde Academy for the EYBL Scholastic (formerly NIBC) League title and they played up to par all season long. They finished 10-2 in league play, losing once to the top-ranked Eagles and dropping a game to No. 16 AZ Compass Prep. LuHi was able to overcome that loss with two victories over No. 6 Link Academy, a win over No. 17 IMG Academy and one over No. 19 Don Bosco Prep. LuHi qualified for Chipotle Nationals, where it saw its season come to an end with a 71-58 setback to No. 2 Columbus in the quarterfinals. Leading the way for coach John Buck’s successful program for the second consecutive season was Baylor-bound shooting guard V.J. Edgecomb (17.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, 2.3 spg), who made many big plays on both sides of the ball and was named all-league for the second consecutive year. Also putting forth a terrific season was junior point guard Kayden Mingo, a third team all-EYBL Scholastic choice. Mingo averaged 15.2 ppg in league play for a team whose four of its five losses were to the two top-ranked teams in the country.

6. (2) Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) 26-7?
After capturing the 2023 FAB 50 national crown in only its second season eligible for the national rankings, Link Academy was expected to be a main challenger to Montverde Academy for a chance at back-to-back No. 1 finishes. That didn’t materialize, although the Lions had only one loss that can be pointed to that was to a team out of their rankings range. That was a loss in EYBL Scholastic play to No. 34 Brewster Academy, as Link Academy fell twice to No. 5 Long Island Lutheran and to No. 3 Paul VI. Coach Billy Armstrong’s club was able to avenge its regular season loss to No. 7 Prolific Prep with a 80-76 double overtime victory in the opening round of Chipotle Nationals before falling in the semifinals to Paul VI, 58-44. Link Academy, which finished in third place in the EYBL Scholastic standings one game behind (9-3) No. 5 Long Island Lutheran, were led by All-American and first team all-league choice Tre Johnson. The Texas-bound shooting guard averaged 15.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 3.6 apg. Alabama-bound guard Jasper Johnson earned third team all-league honors while averaging 11.9 ppg, while LaBaron Philon, also bound for Alabama, scored 24 points in the avenging win over Prolific Prep and sported norms of 10.0 ppg and a team-high 4.3 apg.

7. (6) Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) 31-6
The Crew played right in the range expected of them in the preseason and earned a Chipotle Nationals berth for the fifth consecutive season. On a team built to challenge for the FAB 50 title, the big problem was health, as the team went 13-0 heading into Chipotle Nationals with its top seven players healthy. In the first game of the season for sophomore forward Tyran Stokes, The Crew upped their record to 9-1 with a 77-76 win over Link Academy when that club was No. 2 in the FAB 50. In the rematch with all top seven players available, Prolific Prep fell in double overtime, 80-76. There were three McDonald’s All-Americans on the team (Washington-bound point guard Zoom Diallo, Alabama-bound forward Derrion Reid and Alabama-bound center Aidan Sherrell), but the top player was junior A.J,. Dybansta. He helped Prolific Prep win its second consecutive Grind Session regular season and tourney title by finishing with team highs in points (21.2 ppg) and rebounds (9.4 rpg), while adding 3.5 apg.

8. (11) Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.) 33-3
The Wolverines lived up to expectations and then some, as No. 2 Columbus was the only team it didn’t beat on a tough schedule, falling to the Explorers on a controversial call in the waning moments of the Les Schwab Invitational championship game, 55-54. Coach Dave Rebibo’s club lost back-to-back Mission League games the same week after a MLK Monday victory over No. 24 McEachern, but the Wolverines avenged those losses by beating Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) by four points in the Mission League Tournament semifinals and by defeating Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), 72-38, in the CIF Southern Section open playoffs. By going on to defeat No. 13 Roosevelt in the CIFSS open title game and CIF open final, Harvard-Westlake became the first team since Sierra Canyon in 2019-20 to start as preseason No. 1 in California and officially finish as the Cal-Hi Sports State Team of the Year. It was a preseason goal of Harvard-Westlake to win both section and state open crowns, after winning only at the state level in 2022-23 and behind the play of Trent Perry, basically refused to lose down the stretch. The McDonald’s All-American closed his senior strong, scoring 42 points in Harvard-Westlake’s 73-72 SoCal open semifinal win over Carlsbad (Calif.), netting 28 points in a come-from-behind win over Roosevelt in the SoCal open final, and scoring the last six points of the game and coming up with a clutch steal down the stretch in a 17-point performance in a 50-45 win over No. 32 Salesian in the CIF open title game at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. Senior Robert Hinton and junior Nik Khamenia also stepped up in the playoffs with the team’s role players knowing exactly what was expected of them.

9. (NR) Fishers (Fishers, Ind.) 29-1
The Tigers didn’t crack the preseason Midwest regional rankings, but served notice they were a force to be reckoned with by defeating preseason No. 8 Ben Davis (Indianapolis, Ind.), 74-61, and preseason No. 3 Kokomo (Ind.), 77-55, early in the season. Ben Davis was the defending Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) Class 4A state champs and Kokomo the defending runner-up, but Fishers proved to be the class of the Hoosier field in 2023-24. Fishers avenged its only loss to Carmel (Ind.) with a 54-41 victory and beat Kokomo once again in the IHSAA Class 4A playoffs. Coach Garrett Winegar’s club went on to face Ben Davis for a second time in the Class 4A state final and with the stakes at their highest, came away with a 65-56 victory at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The defending champions led Fishers heading into the final period, 48-47, but the Tigers scored the first six points of the final period to take control of the game. Fishers junior guard JonAnthony Hall and senior forward Keenan Gardner led the way down the stretch, as Hall finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds while Gardner had 19 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Garner, a 6-foot-6 senior bound for IUPUI, was the ringleader all-season long and was named to the first team A.P. all-state team. Taden Metzger, a 6-foot-2 senior guard who scored 10 points in the state title game, and Hall, a Grid-Hoop standout, were honorable mention choices. Ben Davis was coming off a 33-0 season in which it finished ranked No. 4 and had the Tigers not dropped the one contest, it would have finished in that range, too.

10. (NR) Wisconsin Lutheran (Milwaukee, Wis.) 30-0
Another team we didn’t have on our preseason Midwest Region radar was the Vikings, who ran roughshod through their Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) competition en route to a D2 state crown. Wisconsin Lutheran was able to defeat preseason FAB 50 No. 17 De Pere, 70-68, during the regular season to snap that team’s 42-game winning streak, as Duke-bound Kon Knueppel racked up 38 points in the big win. De Pere was the defending D1 state champs and the Vikings went on to defeat three-time defending D2 state champ Pewaukee three times during the season, including a 83-62 victory in the D2 state title game. Pewaukee came into that contest a FAB 50 bubble club, but was no match for Wisconsin Lutheran as Knueppel shared the sugar with 11 points and 11 assists. In the state semifinals, Wisconsin Lutheran downed Nicolet (Glendale, Wis.), 56-54, on a lay-up right before the buzzer by junior Alex Greene (7.6 ppg) off a pretty feed from sophomore Zavier Zens (9.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 2.7 apg). Knueppel (25.9 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 5.3 apg) was named WBCA state Mr. Basketball and was a three-time all-state choice, while senior Logan Rindfleisch, a 6-foot-5 wing headed to UW-Oshkosh, also earned all-state mention while averaging 13.9 ppg.

?11. (BB) Stony Point (Round Rock, Texas) 38-2?
This team had a season to be proud of even though the results came up one game short of their desired goal of a UIL Class 6A state crown. Similar to eventual champ Plano East, Stony Point started a bit too low in our regional rankings forecast at No. 12 in the Southwest (two spots higher than the Panthers), but steadily climbed after rebounding from its 55-50 loss to Plano East in the Whataburger Tourney title game. Stony Point’s big win in the postseason came in the regional semifinals when it defeated preseason FAB 50 No. 30 Brennan (San Antonio, Texas), 69-68, and secured a high FAB 50 ranking with its 54-46 state semifinal victory over No. 48 Beaumont United. Stony Point had a chance to avenge its only loss in the highly-anticipated final but came up short, 53-41. Josiah Moseley was Stony Point’s only double-digit scorer in the game, finishing with 18 points, 12 rebounds and four assists for a club that was outscored in each quarter. The Villanova-bound Moseley (22.8 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 1.8 bpg) earned second team All-American Elite team honors and was a TABC all-state choice, while junior Uzziah Bunton (12.2 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.8 spg) and senior Junior Goodlet (10.9 ppg) were named TABC all-Region 4.

12. (BB) Central Cabarrus (Concord, N.C.) 33-0
In 2022-23, the Vikings began as the No. 2 North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) team in our Southeast Region pecking order behind Myers Park of Charlotte, but ended up as the state’s best team. This season, Central Cabarrus actually opened up at No. 18 in the Southeast Regional Rankings behind NCHSAA schools Myers Park and Chambers of Charlotte, but exceeded expectations en route to a second consecutive Class 3A state title. Central Cabarrus did have some key graduation losses, but coach Jim Baker’s club was able to run the table for the second consecutive season, downing 71st of Fayetteville, 90-62, in the state title game. Lees-McRae commit Desmond Kent Jr. (19.8 ppg, 9.0 rpg) had 20 points in the first half and added nine rebounds, five steals, two assists and two blocks, while senior forward Josh Dalton (15.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg) scored a game-high 22 points. The Vikings also recorded a key semifinal win by downing previously unbeaten Hickory (N.C.), 87-78, as Kent went for 25 points. Baker had three other double-digit scorers at his disposal in junior Emari Russell (10.3 ppg), and Catawba College-bound twin brothers Carson Daniel (11.7 ppg, 8.1 apg, 4.5 spg) and Chase Daniel (11.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 7.2 apg, 3.2 spg). With their success the past two seasons, the Vikings enter 2024-25 with the nation’s longest winning streak at 65 games. The program has won 95 of its last 96 contests.

13. (44) Roosevelt (Eastvale, Calif.) 31-4
It was a successful season for Mustangs coach Steve Singleton, who coached Roosevelt to a California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) D1 state title in 2017 and a Tyson Chandler-led Dominguez (Compton, Calif.) team to a D2 state title and No. 17 FAB 50 ranking. Despite not winning a section or state title, this team is actually ranked higher than that Dominguez club led by a 7-footer a few months from being the No. 2 pick in the 2001 NBA Draft. Roosevelt fell to No. 8 Harvard-Westlake in both the CIFSS open title game and SoCal D1 title game and split with the other two teams it lost two, including Big VIII League rival Centennial (Corona,. Calif.). In the preseason, we knew Roosevelt was going to be dynamic with the eligibility of junior guards Brayden Burries and Isaac Williamson restored after sitting out the 2022-23 season, but the Mustangs were even better than expected, as they beat Centennial in the league title game and avenged the loss to JSerra (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) with a 64-51 victory in CIFSS open pool play. With Burries (24.8 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 3.5 apg and 2.7) and Williamson back next season along with point guard Myles Walker and glue player Dom Copenhagen, this team should begin next season much higher than its 2023-24 preseason spot.

14. (BB) St. Rose (Belmar, N.J.) 29-2
After advancing to the NJSIAA Non-Public Group B title game in 2022-23, we got tipped off the Purple Roses would be terrific in 2023-24 by an event operator, and he turned out to be spot on. St. Rose started out at No. 14 in the East Region Top 20, one spot outside of the FAB 50 and that tuned out to be too low. After losing their first game to Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.), 62-59, the Purple Roses were too cohesive and talented for any other team to handle expect No. 1 Montverde Academy (beat them 84-55). The Purple Roses defeated No. 18 Archbishop Stepinac at the Jordan Holiday Classic and went on to capture the Non-Public B state crown with a 73-29 whitewashing of Immaculate Conception (Montclair, N.J.). That win cemented their status as New Jersey’s No. 1 team, as Villanova-bound Matt Hodge finished his career with 14 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and three blocks. St. Rose relied on defense the entire season, and it came up with 10 blocks in the title game, including five from 6-foot-6 Gio Panzini, who netted a game-high 16 points and nine rebounds. The third senior in the eight-man rotation, Maryland-bound Jayden Hodge (12.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.6 apg), was the team’s top overall talent and helped this program win its first state title since 1977.

?15. (28) Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) 27-4
Similar to No. 14 St. Rose, the Pioneers lost big to No. 1 Montverde Academy (97-66), but it’s losses to Bishop O’Connell of Virginia (preseason No. 44 in FAB 50) and to unranked Westminster Academy of Florida that keep them behind that New Jersey state champion. Oak Ridge certainly showed what type of team it was when it gave No. 2 Columbus all it could handle in the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 7A championship game, going into overtime before falling, 72-67. After a slam dunk tied the game near the end of regulation, Oak Ridge junior guard Jalen Reece’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer rimmed out. The Pioneers were down 16 at one juncture, but made a huge comeback behind the efforts of junior Jamier Jones, who canned three 3-pointers in the third period and finished with 16 points and six rebounds. Senior Jordan Tillery (16 points, 13 rebounds, five assists) also played well in his final game for coach Steve Reece. His club was able to down then No. 46 Winter Haven (Fla.) in the semifinals, 85-74, to snap that team’s 27-game winning streak as Jones (19.2 ppg) went bonkers from the field (12-of-15) and finished with 29 points. With Jones and Reece (15.4 ppg), the coach’s son, back in the fold along with the rapidly improving Tim Winkler (4.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg), the Pioneers could start next season higher than this ending position.

?16. (16) AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) 27-6
The Dragons finished exactly in the spot forecasted for them in the preseason and qualified for Chipotle Nationals for the fourth consecutive season. Coach Pete Caffey’s club was the No. 8 seed and fell to top seed and season-long FAB 50 No. 1 Montverde Academy, 64-49. The Dragons finished the EYBL Scholastic League in fourth place (9-4) behind No. 6 Link Academy (9-3). AZ Compass Prep was able to record a victory over No. 5 Long Island Lutheran (10-2), but also fell to unranked Wasatch Academy of Utah in league play. Outside of Wasatch Academy, Caffey’s crew lost only to teams ranked ahead of it, with two of the losses coming to Montverde Academy. Junior guard Jeremiah Fears led the way, averaging 13.8 ppg and earning third team all league honors. The Dragons will have a fine team once agains next season, but must replace the grit and rim protection of Grand Canyon-bound Sammy Yeanay and VCU-bound Luke Bamgboye.

17. (7) IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) 18-9
The Ascenders weren’t quite as good as forecasted in the preseason, but they were formidable and could compete with the nation’s best teams. The high overall loss count means a 10-spot drop from the preseason, but a victory over No. 7 Prolific Prep offsets its 96-92 loss to No. 19 Don Bosco Prep and a loss to No. 28 Bullis. The Ascenders were the No. 7 seed at Chipotle Nationals and fell to No. 2 seed Paul VI, 101-89, and now sport a 6-5 all-time mark at the event. Point guard Darius Acuff, a junior, was the leading scorer in EYBL Scholastic games (21.3 ppg) and averaged 20.4 ppg and 5.5 assists to earn first team all-league honors. Donnie Freeman (16.5 ppg, 8.3 rpg) had 21 points and seven rebounds in his final game for the Ascenders and the third team all-leaguer is now headed to Syracuse, while bookend forward Khani Rooths is bound for Louisville.

18. (13) Archbishop Stepinac (White Plains, N.Y.) 26-4
The Crusaders won their second straight Catholic High School Athletic Association AA crown and were one of the nation’s best teams throughout the season. In 2022-23, they were FAB 50 ranked until losing in the New York State Federation Tournament of Champions AA final, an event that was discontinued. Before last season, Stepinac last captured the Catholic League title in 2018, as it was the favorite in 2020 before COVID-19 abruptly stopped the post-season in New York, while there wasn’t much of a 2020-21 season. Patrick Massaroni (169-80) coached a unit that only lost one game to an unranked team it had already beaten twice, St. Raymond (Bronx, N.Y.), in the New York Archdiocesan Class AA title game. The Crusaders other three losses are to higher ranked teams (including No. 1 Montverde Academy) and they own victories over No. 19 Don Bosco Prep and No. 21 Perry. They defeated Nazareth (Brooklyn, N.Y.), 66-51, in the state title game as three-time all-CHSAA pick Boogie Fland (19.2 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.6 apg and 2.4 spg) scored 18 points, while sophomores Jasiah Jervis and Hassan Koureissi added 15 points each. Stepinac downed PSAL champ Eagle Academy (Brooklyn, N.Y.), 75-64, to close its season as Fland (Alabama) and Quinnipiac-bound Braylan Ritvo (14.2 ppg) netted 22 and 21 points, respectively, in the inaugural Catholic vs. Public League AA title game at Long Island University.

19. (18) Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, N.J.) 29-3
With the New Jersey Tournament of Champions discontinued after the 2021-22 season, the Ironmen were not able to take on NJSIAA Non-Public Group B champ No. 14 St. Rose after capturing its own state title in Group A. Similar to that club, Don Bosco Prep lost to Patrick School, but must remain behind St. Rose since its second loss is to No. 5 Long Island Lutheran with the third loss a 74-67 setback to No. 18 Archbishop Stepinac. Led by Rutgers recruit Dylan Harper, the Ironmen captured the New Jersey Non-Public A title with a 56-29 victory over Paul VI (Haddonfield, N.J.). Harper produced as well as any player in America down the stretch, nearly outscoring Paul VI by himself (26 points) and going for 38 points and eight rebounds in the prior game versus highly-regarded St. Peters Prep in the North Jersey Non-Public A title game. Harper, the son of former NBA guard Ron Harper who averaged 22.4 ppg, 5.7 rpg and 2.7 apg, also led his team to a win over No. 24 McEachern.

20. (35) St. Mary Prep (Orchard Lake, Mich.) 27-1
Coach Todd Colvert’s club was preseason FAB 50 ranked in three of the last four seasons and more than lived up to expectations with this year’s unit, capturing the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) D1 state crown. St. Mary Prep had its top seven returnees back from a mildly surprising semifinalist unit in 2022-23, so it wasn’t a big surprise the Eaglets only dropped one game in the Catholic League to University of Detroit-Jesuit in December. The Eaglets came back to avenge that loss with a 76-68 victory, as All-American Trey McKenney and junior power forward Jayden Savoury combined for 48 points. McKenney (22.6 ppg, 10.1 rpg, 2.5 apg) scored 21 points in the first half and finished with 32 points in the state D1 title game victory over North Farmington (63-52) to give the program its first state title since 2000, when the program finished 28-0 and was ranked No. 10 in the FAB 50. McKenney proved to be one of the most difficult checks in the country and yet another junior honors candidate for Colvert was 6-foot-3 Sharod Barnes, who averaged 12.5 ppg, 3.1 rpg and 4.4 apg.

21. (NR) Ridge View (Columbia, S.C.) 27-2?
Dorman of Roebuck opened up as the top-ranked team from the Palmetto State at No. 20 in the Southeast Region Top 20, but when the dust cleared it was evident the Blazers should have been regionally ranked. Ridgeview did drop two in-state contests to Westwood of Blythewood and cross-town A.C. Flora, but were able to avenge both losses. Coach Joshua Staley’s club also defeated No. 23 Grayson (58-53) and No. 27 John Marshall (also 58-53). The Blazers downed Riverside, 58-52, in the South Carolina High School League (SCHSL) AAAA title game after jumping out to a 20-6 lead and holding on to capture their fifth state title. Ridge View was led by Korie Corbett with 18 points and Jayden Pretty with 15 points. Corbett, a sophomore wing, was named all-state after averaging 16.0 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.1 apg and 2.3 spg.

22. (33) Perry (Gilbert, Ariz.) 24-6
For a while, it looked like the Pumas would finish ranked in the range of their preseason forecast or even a bit lower after they lost twice to Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) teams. Perry, however, closed strong and so did the out-of-state teams they lost to. No. 18 Archbishop Stepinac won a New York state title and No. 8 Harvard-Westlake, which beat the Pumas twice, won California’s open state title. After losing to Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.), the team it beat in the first AIA open title game in 2022-23, the Pumas actually dropped out of the nation's longest-running weekly national rankings but returned at No. 34 after downing then No. 38 Millennium (Goodyear, Ariz.), 71-67, to repeat as AIA open division state champs. Incredibly, Perry was down 17 points but chipped away at its deficit behind some big shots by guard Barron Silsby and the clutch play of Koa Peat, already a two-time All-American with his senior season to go. Silsby had 10 second half points to help Perry overcome a 41-32 halftime deficit and Peat finished with 21 points, 13 rebounds and four assists. Perry won the Class 6A crown in 2021-22 and is 14-0 in the playoffs the past three seasons with Peat (20.5 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 3.4 apg, 2.2 bpg) in the lineup. Arizona high school hoops fans are already anticipating his quest for an unbeaten career postseason run.

23. (29) Grayson (Loganville, Ga.) 30-2
The Rams opened the season as the No. 2 Georgia High School Association (GHSA) team behind McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) and in front of Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.), the team it fell to in the 2022-23 GHSA Class AAAAAAA semifinals. Grayson got over the hump and erased some demons by capturing its first-ever state crown with a 51-41 victory over then No. 20 McEachern, the same team it beat 79-62 in a true road game at the Georgia Elite 8 Tip-Off Classic. Junior Georgia commit Jacob Wilkins made some big plays down the stretch after McEachern made one final push, finishing with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Purdue signee Gicarri Harris, a 6-foot-4 senior, added nine points and five rebounds for the victorious Rams, who also defeated No. 37 Kell (70-54), the Class AAAAA champion. In 2019-20, Grayson got all the way up to No. 4 in the FAB 50 before falling in the AAAAAAA title game, but this year’s ranking cake is baked, so to speak, because of its two out-of-state losses. Grayson fell to No. 21 Ridge View and No. 22 Perry.

24. (21) McEachern (Powder Springs, Ga.) 26-6
McEachern started the season ranked higher in the FAB 50 than Grayson by eight spots and came into the GHSA Class AAAAAAA title game ranked higher in the FAB 50 than that club because of its previous national results, including a win over No. 25 North Mecklenburg and an overtime loss to No. 8 Harvard-Westlake. McEachern played the Rams better than it did in their first game, but eventually fell 51-41 after making one final push in the fourth quarter. The Indians’ other losses were to No. 2 Columbus, No. 3 Paul VI and to No. 19 Don Bosco Prep, so it’s only natural they finish one spot behind their in-state nemesis. National player of the year (Mr. Basketball USA) finalist Ace Bailey had 18 points in his final game, but only four in the second half. Against national competition, Georgia’s Mr. Basketball finished with norms of 32.5 ppg, 15.5 rpg, 3.5 apg and 2.4 bpg.

25. (26) North Mecklenburg (Huntersville, N.C.) 30-3
The Vikings moved down one spot after capturing the NCHSAA Class 4A state crown to make room for a McEachern of Georgia club that had to drop, too, after losing in its respective state title game. On the flip side, North Meck also finish one spot higher than forecasted in the preseason when it opened as the NCHSAA’s No. 2 team behind the Myers Park of Charlotte club it lost to in the 2023 Class 4A Western Regional Final. McEachern was one of the three losses for North Mecklenburg, with the others coming against No. 36 Camden and No. 6 Link Academy. North Meck downed No. 26 Myers Park in the state quarterfinals, 79-63, as Duke-bound All-American Isaiah Evans went bonkers with a season-high 48 points, including 21 consecutive in the third period. In the semifinals, it took North Meck overtime to down Lake Norman, 65-61, as Evans scored four points in the final 40 seconds to force overtime. His jumper with 40 seconds remaining in OT gave his team the lead and his two free throws down the stretched sealed the victory. New Hanover came into the state title game unbeaten, but Evans’ 23 points and eight rebounds propelled North Meck to a 57-47 victory. For the season, the N.C.B.C.A. State Player of the Year led the program to its third state crown by averaging 27.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 3.2 apg and 2.3 spg.

?26. (15) Myers Park (Charlotte, N.C.) 27-3
The Mustangs were the preseason No. 1 NCHSAA for the second consecutive season and were coming off a year in which they captured the Class 4A title. With their three big guns back, Myers Park had its eyes on a FAB 50 title run, but ran into a North Mecklenburg team that wouldn’t be denied in the Class 4A state quarterfinals. Myers Park led until late in the second quarter, but the wheels fell off in the third, as it trialed by 20 points (56-36) heading into the final period of an eventual 79-63 loss. Notre Dame-bound Sir Mohammed (13.1 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.8 apg, 2.3 spg) led the way in a losing effort with 20 points, while Tennessee-bound Bishop Boswell (11.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 5.9 apg) and junior Ashton King added 14. The Mustangs showed they were a serious FAB 50 threat when they took No. 3 Paul VI into overtime before losing, with the other loss coming versus in-state Combine Academy. In addition to King (7.4 ppg), Myers Park (which beat No. 27 John Marshall), return highly-regarded Sadiq White Jr. (16.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg) next season.

27. (8) John Marshall (Richmond, Va.) 25-3
Similar to No. 26 Myers Park, the Jayem Justices had FAB 50 title aspirations in the preseason, but came up just short of that level. Unlike Myers Park (which beat John Marshall), the Justices were able to capture a third consecutive Virginia High School League (VHSL) Class 2A state crown. Their 2020-21 club might have been the most talented on paper, but didn’t play any games because of the COVID-19 Pandemic so technically its a fourth consecutive title after wining it all in 2020. John Marshall’s FAB 50 ranking is easily laid out, as it lost to No. 21 Ridge View, while its loss to St. Christopher’s of Richmond is offset by a win over No. 29 Sidwell Friends. Led by VHSL Class 2A Player of the Year Damon “Redd” Thompson (18.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 4.1 apg), John Marshall easily downed Virginia High, 89-32, in the state title game with its James Madison signee going for 12 points, four rebounds, six assists and two steals in a game that went to a running clock early. Without a VHSL Tournament of Champions or open division, the Justices’ dominance in its division is nearly counter productive to its greatness. The program’s average margin of victory in its six playoff games was 60 points, while its 2023 post-season winning margin was 65.5 ppg. Under coach Ty White, the program has now won five state titles in the past seven seasons and six since 2014. In all, the Justices enter 2024-25 having won 24 consecutive playoff games and have all-state talents Latrell Allmond (6-9 sophomore) and Aiden Argabright (5-11 junior) returning, along with 6-foot-9 junior Marcus Jackson and 6-foot-6 junior Desmon Rose.

28. (38) Bullis (Potomac, Md.) 27-3
The Bulldogs started out as our No. 4 team for the DMV and there could have been six or seven ranked teams, as the region is that talented. For the second consecutive season, coach Bruce Kelley’s club captured the Interstate Athletic Conference (IAC) title, defeating Georgetown Prep (Bethesda, Md.), 70-52, behind a balanced offensive attack and good rebounding. Junior Adrien Stevens led the way with 14 points, while junior center Eric Reibe added 13 points with senior Caden Diggs chipping in 12 points. After a short-handed Bullis club was upset in the first round of the 2023 Maryland Private School State Tournament, this year the Bulldogs fared much better, advancing to the title game before falling in double overtime to DeMatha Catholic, 74-68. Bullis’ also lost another overtime game to No. 44 Jackson-Reed and a third game to Moravian Prep of North Carolina, but those losses are offset by victories over No. 17 IMG Academy and No. 29 Sidwell Friends. Stevens (14 ppg, 43 percent 3-point) was the top honors candidate and will be back along with the highly-regarded Reibe, but the club will miss Diggs (Old Dominion) and two-time All-Met choice Tyler Boston (Holy Cross).

?29. (9) Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.) 27-4
The Quakers didn’t fare quite as well as they wanted to versus FAB 50 title contenders, but it was another terrific season for coach Eric Singletary (279-133). His club lost to No. 28 Bullis (60-56), in overtime to No. 27 John Marshall (63-55), to No. 6 Link Academy and to No. 3 Paul VI. Sidwell Friends did finish strong, however, capturing the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA) Class AA title with a 47-37 victory over St. John's (Washington, D.C.). From a rankings standpoint, the big playoff victory was a 52-52 semifinal victory over then No. 16 Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.), which finishes right behind the Quakers in the rankings. Acaden Lewis, a play-making point guard, had 16 points vs. St. John’s and was the difference-maker vs. Gonzaga with 21 points, five rebounds and three assists. Georgetown-bound forward Caleb Williams had another terrific season on both ends of the floor. He joined Lewis (14.5 ppg) on the Washington Post All-Met team, with junior forward Jalen Rougier-Roane also earning post-season acclaim. Sidwell Friends has now won three consecutive DCSAA state titles and four in the past five seasons heading into 2024-25 with Lewis, Rougier-Roane and guard Caleb Gillus all returning.

30. (12) Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) 28-6
The Purple Eagles opened as the No. 2 team in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) and finish as its No. 2 ranked team behind FAB 50 No. 3 Paul VI, the preseason favorite. The one-point (53-52) loss to No. 29 Sidwell Friends in the DCSAA semifinals dropped the Purple Eagles 13 spots the week after the game and prevents them from finishing in the range expected in the preseason. Sidwell Friends was the only non-WCAC or EYBL Scholastic member coach Stephen Turner’s club lost to, as it also fell to No. 1 Montverde Academy and No. 5 Long Island Lutheran. Gonzaga split with Bishop O’Connell and the loss to Paul VI in the WCAC title game was actually it second setback to the Panthers. Nyk Lewis (13 ppg, 6 rpg, 4.5 apg) was first team All-Met for the second consecutive season with his senior year two go. Turner (468-171) also has second team All-Met selection Derek Dixon (6-3) and honorable mention choice Christian Gurdak (6-10) returning.

31. (19) St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) 28-7
The Braves rebounded from failing to advance to the CIF Southern Section open title game and losing the Trinity League title to No. 46 Mater Dei by capturing the CIF D1 state crown. Coach Matt Dunn’s club defeated San Ramon Valley (Danville, Calif.) in the state final, as Loyola-Chicago-bound Jack Turner led the way with 20 points, including 4-of-6 3-pointers. After losing to Trinity League champ Mater Dei twice in league play, Bosco got its avenging victory with a 71-68 overtime win in the SoCal D1 final. Junior point guard Elzie Harrington had 22 points in the win over Mater Dei and sophomore Brandon McCoy had 18 points, eight rebounds and three blocks and averaged 19.7 ppg and 11 rpg in the regional playoffs. St. John Bosco lost to then FAB 50 ranked Sierra Canyon and to No. 8 Harvard-Westlake in CIFSS open pool play, to No. 13 Roosevelt (the team that played Harvard-Westlake for the section title), to No. 3 Paul VI and to Chris The King of New York in the semifinals of the Iolani Tournament in Hawaii.

32. (BB) Salesian (Richmond, Calif.) 31-2
The Pride began No. 19 in West Region Top 20, but they were much better than that and were one game away from finishing in the Top 15. It got over its demons in the NorCal open regionals (0-5 between 2013-23) to advance to the CIF open championship game, where it gave No. 8 Harvard-Westlake all it could handle before falling, 50-45. Two late turnovers doomed any chance Salesian had to pull off the mild upset and allowed the Pride to hop the No. 31 St. John Bosco team it lost to in overtime at The Classic at Damien. Salesian might have been the most balanced NorCal team we’ve ever evaluated, as six players averaged between 6.3 and 9.0 ppg. The ringleader was Hawaii-bound point guard Aaron Hunklin-Claytor, the Tri-County Rock League Player of the Year for the second consecutive season who averaged 8.4 ppg (tied for second on the team with fellow all-stater De’Undrae Perteete), 3.9 rpg and 3.8 apg.

33. (25) La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) 23-5
After going 5-7 in the National Interscholastic Basketball Conference (now EYBL Scholastic) in 2022-23, LaLu had a more talented team, closed games better and was able to finish in a four-way tie for fifth place in the conference standings. At 7-5, the Lakers tied with No. 17 IMG Academy (which they lost to), No. 34 Brewster Academy (which they beat) and with unranked Wasatch Academy. Coach Patrick Holmes’ team key conference win came against fourth place and No. 16 AZ Compass Prep to help offset the above mentioned losses and those to conference foes Oak Hill Academy and No. 1 Montverde Academy. Junior Jalen Haralson and Jerry Easter received the most post-season acclaim, while fellow junior Chuck Love was another standout.

34. (BB) Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.) 27-7
In its first season being eligible for the FAB 50 after joining the EYBL Scholastic League, the longtime New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) power (which now has a prep and a national high school team) started No. 16 in the East Regional Rankings. That was only three spots outside the FAB 50, but coach Jason Smith’s club started a tad bit low after ended up finishing in a four-way tie for fifth place in the conference standings. Brewster not only lost to No. 33 La Lumiere head-to-head in two overtimes (74-66), it lost to No. 17 IMG Academy and to Veritas Prep of California, two EYBLS clubs La Lumiere defeated. Brewster Academy, competitive in every game outside its loss to No. 1 Montverde Academy, was led by third team all-EYBLS choice and Gatorade State Player of the Year Nojus Indrusaitis (14.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.3 apg), whose headed for Iowa State, and BYU-bound point guard Elijah Crawford (13.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 5.1 apg).

35. (NR) Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.) 28-4
The Celtics quietly had a terrific campaign as an independent program. Yes, the Patrick School did lose games to Bridgton Academy of Maine, Phelps School of Pennsylvania, and to Our Savior Lutheran of New York, but the Celtics deserve rankings credit for the quality of their wins. They downed No. 14 St. Rose and No. 19 Don Bosco Prep, the two highest ranked New Jersey state champions. Patrick School’s top talents were St. John’s-bound guard Jaden Glover, junior guard Brandon Lee and Manhattan College-bound forward William Sydnor.

36. (BB) Camden (Camden, N.J.) 30-2
The High had a team not quite as talented nor acclaimed as its 2022-23 unit, but became embroiled in a major playoff controversy for the second straight year. The ’23 unit led by D.J. Wagner wasn’t able to defend its ’22 state title after a melee in the first-ever Camden County Tournament led to the team being booted from the playoffs. In this year’s NJSIAA Group 2 state semifinal, it appeared Manasquan defeated The High on a buzzer-beating field goal as time expired before a game official waived off the basket to give Camden the 46-45 victory. Manasquan filed a lawsuit before Camden met Arts of Newark for the state crown to overturn the result, but the NJSIAA stuck to its bylaws that the game was over the moment the referees left the gym despite admitting the mistake. Led by Louisville recruit Billy Richmond (17.6 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.6 apg), Camden went on to win the state crown and only lost to St. Frances Academy of Maryland and to No. 24 McEachern. Our rankings are always results based and from a national perspective based on our criteria it wouldn’t have made sense to penalize Camden, as controversies, blown calls and off-court rulings have been part of the high school landscape for decades.

37. (NR) Kell (Marietta, Ga.) 28-3
The Longhorns missed the Southeast Regional Top 20 in the preseason and got off to a slow 1-3 start. One of the teams they lost to, Newton, ended up only losing to No. 24 McEachern by only three points (67-64) in the playoffs and Kell’s other early losses were to that same McEachern team and to No. 23 Grayson, the two teams that ended up playing in the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) Class AAAAAAA title game. Kell went on to end the season on a 27-game winning steak that culminated with a 62-51 victory over Eagle’s landing in the AAAAA title game. Coach Jermaine Sellers’ club won its second consecutive state crown behind the play of AAAAA Player of the Year C.J. Brown, a University of South Florida recruit, and his backcourt mate and Alabama A&M recruit Jaylen Colon, a second team all-state choice by sandysspeil.com.

38. (NR) Homewood Flossmor (Flossmor, Ill.) 33-4
The Vikings have a proud history and for the first time ever won the Illinois High School Association’s top prize by defeating a talented Normal Community unit, 60-48, in the Class 4A state title game. Junior Bryce Heard led the way with 21 points, 10 rebounds and three assists, while Jayden Taylor, a 5-foot-11 sophomore, added 15 points for a club that only lost two games in-state. The Vikings lost to Bradley-Bourbannis, split with Bolingbrook, defeated Bloom, Chicago Public League champ Curie and a Thorton of Harvey team that spent plenty of time FAB 50 ranked twice. As Illinois’ top-ranked team, the Vikings cannot be ranked any higher because of the defeat margins vs. No. 30 Gonzaga (77-47) and Fishers of Indiana (78-57).

39. (NR) Reidsville (Reidsville, N.C.) 29-0?
After going 26-1 and losing in the NCHSAA Class 2A state title game in 2022-23, this season the Rams upped the ante by a game, capturing the Class 2A crown with a perfect mark. The Rams defeated Farmville Central (Farmville, N.C.), 78-77, in overtime, in a terrific title game. Reidsville junior Johnniyus Sharpe Jr. made all 10 of his free throw attempts, as the Rams went 13-of-13 from the line in the hostly contested contest. Sharpe Jr. finished with a game-high 29 points, including 3-of-6 3-pointers, while Grid-Hoop dynamo Kendre Harrison finished with 19 points, 17 rebounds and blocked five shots. Harrison, a sophomore, was the ringleader all season long by recording 25 double-doubles and averaging 19.4 ppg, 15.1 rpg, and 3.7 bpg while shooting 67 percent from the field.

40. (NR) Roman Catholic (Philadelphia, Pa.) 26-3
The Cahillites captured their 34th Philadelphia Catholic League title in dramatic fashion, as they defeated Archbishop Ryan, 46-45, in overtime. It looked like Archbishop Ryan was going to claim the crown when Ryan Everett hit a 3-pointer to give his team a 45-44 lead with 8.5 seconds remaining, but Roman’s Kabe Gass hit the game-winner on a pull-up 17-footer as the clock hit 0.00 after he dribbled the length of the court without the Cahillites calling a timeout. Yes, Roman Catholic did lose to Parkland in the PIAA Class 6A quarterfinals, but that doesn’t change the fact the Cahillites avenged their loss to Father Judge in the PCL semifinals, 65-57, while the dramatic win over Archbishop Ryan also avenged another of their three losses. Junior Shareef Jackson (17.3 ppg) earned first team all-PCL honors, while senior Travis Reed (Chestnut Hill) earned second team laurels for a club that won its second consecutive league title.

?41. (37) St. Ignatius (Cleveland, Ohio) 26-3
Some Midwest prognosticators felt we had the Wildcats a bit too high as our No. 6 team from the region, but that spot ended up being in the range for a club that won the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) D1 crown. Coach Cam Joyce’s club defeated Centerville, 66-56, before 5,189 at University of Dayton Arena as four players scored in double figures led by 6-foot senior guard Jack Zapolnick with 14 points, plus seven assists, and 6-foot-1 senior guard Matt Ellis’ 12 points. The difference in the game was St. Ignatius’ 3-point shooting, as it made 7-of-15 3-pointers, including a 3-for-3 performance by senior forward Michael Lamirand. This is a natural spot for the Wildcats as they only suffered one in-state loss with the others coming against No. 15 Oak Ridge and St. Joseph's Prep (Philadelphia, Pa.), which lost to No. 40 Roman Catholic. The Wildcats won their first state title since 2001 when they finished No. 40 in the FAB 50 after capturing St. Ignatius’ first D1 state crown.

42. (BB) Millennium (Goodyear, Ariz.) 25-5
The Tigers started out at No. 17 in West Region Top 20, as the fourth highest rated Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) team behind Desert Mountain, Sunnyslope and top-rated Perry. It was a terrific regular season in which coach Ty Amundsen’s club defeated Desert Mountain and Sunnyslope twice. The Tigers look like they were going all the way after opening up a big lead on Perry in the AIA open title game. Millennium's Sabien Cain knocked down seven 3-pointers in the first 10 minutes of the title game, as then No. 38 Millennium built an early 17-point lead. In the end, Perry stormed back and won, 71-67, as Millennium dropped its first game to an AIA foe at the most inopportune time. Cain, who had 33 points in the title game, sophomore Cameron Holmes and junior Kingston Tosi led a team that only lost to teams ranked ahead of it: No. 11 Stony Point, No. 3 Paul VI and No. 25 North Mecklenburg at the City of Palms, and to No. 32 Salesian.

43. (NR) Winter Haven (Winter Haven, Fla.) 27-2
The Blue Devils played a national level schedule and beat qualify FHSAA teams, including six that made the final four in their respective classifications. They lost their first game of the season to Burlington School of North Carolina, then rattled off 27 consecutive victories, including one over two-time Alabama Class 7A state champ hoover, before running into No. 15 Oak Ridge in the Class 7A state semifinals. Winter Haven was looking to capture its first state crown since the Otis Birdsong-led 1973 team, but came up two games short after falling to the Pioneers, 85-74. Yale-bound Isaac Celiscar (21.5 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 5.0 apg, 2.0 spg) and Stetson-bound Jamie Phillips Jr. (15.9 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 6.3 apg) led a team with four double-digit scorers.

44. (NR) Jackson-Reed (Washington, D.C.) 33-3
The Tigers lost to St. John’s in the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA) Class AA semifinals, but their overall resume was just too strong to keep them out of the FAB 50. Jackson-Reed defeated No. 28 Bullis in overtime, 61-58, defeated Philly Catholic League finalist Archbishop Ryan, South Shore (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah). We considered Chicago Public League champ Curie, Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Class 6A state champ Imhotep Charter and Independence (Thompson’s Station, Tenn.) for the FAB 50, but all three lost to South Shore. Jackson-Reed, whose other losses are to No. 30 Gonzaga and No. 37 Kell, had a balanced attack led by second team All-Met selection Jayden Fort (11.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg), a junior, and senior guard Scottie Hubbard (8.7 ppg, 4.8 rpg).

?45. (48) Bellevue West (Bellevue, Neb.) 27-1
We figured the Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) Class A state championship would come down to Millard North and the Thunderbirds. After all, the two clubs had met in the previous four state title games. Sure enough, the two clubs met again for all the marbles and it was Bellevue West defeating its rival, 57-48. The win gave Bellevue West its second straight state crown, avenged the club’s only regular season loss and allowed it to finish in the range expected in the preseason. South Dakota St-bound Jaden Jackson led the way in the state final with 21 points, seven rebounds and three steals. For the season, the state player of the year averaged 17.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.9 apg and 2.0 spg and helped the Thunderbirds go 106-8 in his four-year career.

46. (42) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 29-6
Good offensive execution and terrific outside shooting allowed the Monarchs to advance to the SoCal D1 final, where they fell in overtime to Trinity League rival and No. 31 St. John Bosco, 71-68. Gary McKnight (1,272-140) had a club that won its 40th league crown in his 42nd season as head coach by defeating Bosco twice during the regular season. After losing sophomore Brannon Martinsen for the post-season to injury, Mater De went 0-2 in CIFSS open play, but bounced back to beat a Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks club that spent some time FAB 50 ranked in the regional semifinals. Martinsen will return along with sharpshooters Owen Verna and Luke Barnett, the latter whom McKnight feels might be the best shooter in program history.

47. (BB) Lyon County (Eddyville, Ky.) 36-3
The Lyons, a program with 277 students, opened up No. 14 in Midwest Region Top 20, but ended up breaking in the FAB 50 by capturing the Kentucky High School Athletics Association (KHSAA) Sweet 16. Lyon County downed Harlan County (Rosspoint, Ky.) in the Sweet 16 final, 67-58, before 13,568 at historic Rupp Arena. Travis Perry, Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball, hit 5-of-9 3-pointers en route to 27 points, along with five assists and two steals vs. Harlan County. Jack Riddick and Brady Shoulders added 15 points each for the Lyons, who downed then No. 25 Great Crossing (Georgetown, Ky.) 58-49 in the semifinals a few hours before taking on Harlan County behind Perry’s 24 points. Lyon County also beat state champions from Alabama (Buckhorn) and South Carolina (Lexington). Kentucky still employs the one-class system (as does Delaware) and because of Eddyville’s and Harlan’s size, Perry (29.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 5.0 apg, 3.9 spg) is now a state folk hero after leading his team to its first state title.

48. (BB) Beaumont United (Beaumont, Texas) 34-4
The Timberwolves began No. 17 in Southwest Regional Rankings, but for the second consecutive year exceeded national expectations. After winning back-to-back University Interscholastic League (UIL) Class 5A state crowns in 2021 and 2022, Beaumont United was moved up to Class 6A last season and advanced to the state title game. This season, TABC All-State picks Kayde Dotson (18.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.2 apg) and Clarence Payia III (17.6 ppg, 7.4 rpg) led a Timberwolves club that advanced to the Class 6A semifinals before falling to No. 11 Stony Point, 54-46. The program has now finished FAB 50 ranked for four consecutive seasons.

49. (NR) Northwest (Shawnee Mission, Kan.) 25-0
Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park, Kan.) was our top-ranked Kansas team in the preseason, two spot behind Beaumont United at No. 19 in the Southwest Region, but it was Northwest that emerged as the state’s best team. The Cougars culminated their perfect run to the KSHSAA Class 6A state title with a 47-38 victory over Wichita Heights. Northwest defeated Sunflower League foe Mill Valley in the semifinals and captured its first state title on its 14th trip to state since 1973 using an all-underclass starting lineup led by all-staters Keaton Wagler, a junior, and Ethan Taylor, a sophomore. The Cougars are the sixth and final team from the Southwest to earn a ranking, edging out Oklahoma’s top team, Owasso, and New Mexico’s best club, Volcano Vista, the latter which started at No. 18 in the region sandwiched between Beaumont United and Blue Valley Northwest.

50. (NR) Great Crossing (Georgetown, Ky.) 36-2
The Warhawks are the eighth and final Midwest club to crack the FAB 50, beating out Chicago Public League champ Curie, St. Joseph of California from the West Region, Imhotep Charter of Philadelphia from the East Region and Lexington of South Carolina from the Southeast Region. Great Crossing’s season ended in the KHSAA Sweet 16 semifinals with a 58-49 loss to eventual champ No. 47 Lyon County, with its only regular season loss coming in double overtime to Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) member Bishop O'Connell of Virginia. Helping the Warhawks earn the final spot in the final rankings despite falling in the semis is O’Connell defeating two FAB 50 ranked teams and similar to Lyon County, owning a win over Lexington of South Carolina. After losing in the Beach Ball Classic final to O’Connell, Great Crossing downed Chaminade of Missouri, 72-46, and before the Beach Ball won the King of the Bluegrass Tournament with a win over Central of Little Rock, Ark.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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Allisha Gray, of the Atlanta Dream made history Friday night, crowned winner of the WNBA 3-Point Contest and Skills Challenge at WNBA All-Star weekend.

PHOENIX- Prior to the WNBA events on Friday night, Allisha Gray continuously had the media in hysterics. She's made it clear she's visiting Disney World during Olympic Break. And when asked about the all-star game MVP, Gray responded, "I'm just here to have fun." In true Gray fashion, the guard remained humble as always. A woman of few words, little did the world know what she was about to accomplish.

Friday night at Footprint Center, Gray finished the evening a few bucks richer—well, $115,150, to be exact. For the first time in WNBA history, the 6-foot Atlanta Dream guard was crowned the 3-Point Contest and Skills Challenge winner. Gray joins Becky Hammon and Sabrina Ionescu as the only current and former players to win both contests throughout their careers.

Allisha Gray took home more than 62 percent of her salary

On the historic night, Gray donned nothing but smiles. Days before All-Star weekend, WNBA Players Association president Nneka Ogwumike announced that Aflac would supplement with a $55,000 bonus to the three-point contest and skills challenge winner. Indeed, a fantastic way to support women's basketball, Gray took home nearly 62 percent of her pay. She makes an annual salary of $185,000 and signed an extension with the Dream in 2023.

After the monumental performances, Gray told ESPN's Holly Rowe she may start a business with the extra earnings. "Now that I think about it, had a good nap. Maybe I'll go on a little golfing spree, shopping spree," said Gray.

As part of the WNBA's collective bargaining agreement (CBA), Gray earned a total of $5,150 from both events. As women's basketball evolves and grows, companies must continue to invest to increase the prize pool in future events.

Aflac made $110,000 in contributions to the winner of both events

Contributions from Aflac are a testament to the growth and direction of women's basketball, especially with the record-breaking viewership the league has seen just halfway through the season. Although the players were unaware of the contributions heading into the events, Ogwumike expressed her excitement and hope for future investors.

"I love that Aflac came in and stepped forward and really displayed their investment," said Ogwumike Friday afternoon. "They stepped in, and I think that's what's most important. We are in a very transformational and pivotal moment in women's sports, and I'm just really grateful to be actively experiencing it."

After all, the former Gamecock guard's Instagram handle is graytness_15. An avid gamer, her twitch name is the same. So how can you count out a player with "graytness" in their name?

Allisha Gray edged out Jonquel Jones 22-21 to win the 3-Point Contest

Phoenix Mercury's Sophie Cunningham, Brittney Griner, and Connecticut Sun's Mabrey Mabrina participated in the skills challenge. However, due to a global outage, Erica Wheeler could not participate (flight was cancelled), so Indiana Fever's Kelsey Mitchell stepped in. Not only did Gray take home the victory, but she also defeated two hometown favorites, Cunningham and Griner. Competitively, the skills challenge is a timed event used to showcase passing, shooting, and dribbling skills.

For the three-point contest, Gray competed with five total candidates— Jonquel Jones (New York Liberty), Stefanie Dolson (Washington Mystics), Marina Mabrey (Connecticut Sun), and Kayla McBride (Minnesota Lynx). Gray finished with 23 points, in which she sunk a deep Starry ball on the left hash. Jonquel Jones tallied 25, pushing herself into the final round against Gray.

Allisha Gray kicks off the 3-point contest with 23 points, including a deep starry shot!#WNBAAllStar pic.twitter.com/Yd73jzlhxT

— Sara Jane Gamelli (@SaraJGamelli) July 20, 2024

The final round was as exhilarating as anyone could've expected. Although both were slightly cold from beyond the arc, Jonquel Jones had an opportunity to claim victory, except she fell one ball short. With seconds to go, Jones missed the final shot, which excited Gray to the fullest. At 22-21, it was at that moment Gray was declared the winner of the 2024 WNBA 3-Point Challenge.

Admitting she was "nervous" competing against Jones, Gray had her biggest supporters on the sideline. Notorious for sporting goggles during games, the Dream guard admitted they aren't for vision. However, best friend A'ja Wilson was seen hilariously donning the same goggles courtside. In addition, Dream co-owner Renee Montgomery was seen cheering her on all night.

Gray jokes dinner is on her, as long as her team plans it

Post-event, Gray comedically told the media she's still a "cheap person." However, in light of her earnings, the next dinner is on her.

"I got them, dinner on me," said Gray. "They just gotta let me know early... because I'm still a very cheap person. For my team, yeah, they have to plan it, I'll just pay the bill."

In her 8th WNBA season, Gray will make her second all-star selection for the second consecutive year. Although it's been a trying year for the Dream, especially with injuries, Gray remains the leading scorer for Atlanta, putting up 15.6 points per game. The 2017 Rookie of the Year, there's a possibility she could make history tonight, possibly winning the All-Star MVP.

If you're looking to watch the 2024 WNBA All-Star game, Team USA will matchup against team WNBA. Set to tip off at 8:30 EST, the event will air on ESPN.

Stay tuned for more WNBA related articles. Click here

Sara Jane Gamelli is a full-time Sportswriter, Content Creator and Social Media Manager for Ballislife Bets.?She has a focus on Women's Basketball, both college and the WNBA, and currently resides in the Connecticut/NYC area. SJ has her undergraduate degree from the?University?of Connecticut in Economics, with a minor in business administration.

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Just as these are perilous times in America, grassroots basketball is at a perilous juncture in its current form. Judging from what we evaluated during the first July live period, independent operations (and operators) during live period events are at a critical crossroads in their very existence. It's very similar to other companies or entities offering products or services: The costs to operate keep getting higher as the quality of the product gets worse. We examine why this is happening.

1. The Scholastic Live Period Has Caused Major Change
After the NCAA corruption scandal of 2017-18, there was an attempt to make scholastic basketball a bigger part of the recruiting process by implementing two live weekends in June for high school teams. This started in 2019 and it's safe to say it has caused major change to July. After the June scholastic period, D1 colleges have a good read on their main high school recruiting targets. Since they are also targeting less high school players overall because of the NCAA Transfer Portal, July just has a different feel, especially among the independent events. With college coaches spread out at so many live events, much of the electricity and anticipation for a great game or a great evaluation setting has disappeared at independent events. College coaches don't seem to be going the extra mile to unearth a new revelation when they already know the talent levels are way down in comparison to pre-COVID levels. And armed with the knowledge they gained in June, they can follow and hone in on their main targets.

2. Players Are Wising Up
To be clear, events like Peach Jam (EYBL Finals) and adidas' 3SSB Palmetto Road Championships are still terrific July events with much of the same atmosphere we saw before the onset of the June live period. Those events, however, are geared towards elite, high major prospects. There are lower level elite prospects playing in the independent sector and the talent pool is getting worse every summer. A fallout of this is some D1 prospects are realizing they don't have to play endless July games if they feel their recruitment is where it needs to be and or they played well during spring and June. We know of at least three D1 prospects that simply chose not play with their travel team or a travel team in the first July period. The value of doing so is still there, but it's clearly not as strong as it once was. Parents sometimes still foster unrealistic expectations of their son going high major or even getting a scholarship, but the picture is getting more clear for them each passing summer. The messaging certainly is more powerful when they are paying more all-around to have their son play in front of such few college coaches.

3. Shoe Company Circuits Have The Fat
With Under Armour Association in Atlanta, Adidas 3SSB in Rock Hill, S.C., NXTPRO League in Mesa, Ariz. and Nike Peach Jam and Prelude 32 in Augusta, Ga., there is certainly less independent teams or independent grassroots coaches operating less travel teams under one umbrella. Many big businesses like to "cut the fat" so to speak, but shoe company-sponsored circuits are rounding up as many teams for their circuits as possible and with two more circuits emerging, July is definitely watered down. There is no meeting spot like Las Vegas was before the corruption scandal, there are few battles across shoe company lines and the teams are spread out. For independent programs to survive (and when we say survive we mean play in live period events in front of D1 college coaches) they are going to have to come together to some degree and be smarter on how they operate events. There simply isn't enough fat to feed everyone, especially with the rising costs of doing business (insurance, referees, scorer's tables, trainers, etc.).

4. Still Some Independent Diamonds In The Rough
Even with so many events in so many different places at once, the tireless recruiter has an even bigger advantage now. He or she will go the extra mile to uncover a sleeper. And trust me when I say there are still some quality D1 prospects on independent clubs, such as 6-foot-5 2025 shooting guard Anthony Moore of Develop 17U/(Lincoln HS, Stockton, Calif.), among others. The drawback is having to spend more precious time traveling to gyms to find prospects such as Moore and not having more of them under one roof. Smart college coaches simply can't afford to sit through multiple games without viewing a prospect close to their level. They simply won't come back, will move on to other targets or simply sit it out. Going forward, there will need to be more incentive not to play on an established shoe company team and there is no guarantee all five circuits will be around in 2025.

5. Senior Season Greatly Matters Again
The 1982-83 season marked the beginning of the basketball early signing period in November. If prospects knew where they wanted to attend college and said institution was comfortable with offering a scholarship, a player could sign and play his senior season without the pressure of trying to earn a scholarship. Prior to that season, senior season performance was still relatively important, but the early signing period put a premium on junior year and underclass performance and it became no secret many of the prestigious high school honors (such as McDonald's All-American selection) had little to do with senior season performance. Over 40 years later, however, the importance of the senior season is making a comeback for a vast majority of potential D1 prospects. Colleges are using less of their scholarship allotment on high school seniors, and they often wait until the spring as roster turnover is a season-to-season reality. Seniors can play their way into a scholarship, because colleges are waiting a bit longer to offer high school prospects and because they have to wait to see which returning players will jump into the NCAA Transfer Portal in March. On the flip side, a legitimate scholarship offer in the summer and fall shouldn't be taken lightly. This hope to get "something bigger" is a risk for a high school senior because that offer (or roster spot) may not be available in the spring.

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of www.ebooksnet.com. He can be reached at?[email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter:?@RonMFlores

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Originating from SEC rival universities, A'ja Wilson and Angel Reese find themselves a top of the WNBA player rankings.

What a week it's been for Angel Reese and A'ja Wilson. Wilson, of the Las Vegas Aces, was named Western Conference player of the week. Similarly, Reese, of the Chicago Sky, was crowned the Eastern Conference Player of the Week, including games on June 27 through July 7.

Reese, the former no. 7 overall pick, averaged 16.8 points, 14 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game. Although the Sky finished 2-3 over a five-game span, the rookie put up a career-high 27 points on 8-13 field goal shooting against the Seattle Storm. The game prior, "Chi-Town Barbie" notched a career-high 19 boards against the Atlanta Dream. With victories over the Storm and Dream, Reese has been relentless on the glass. Although some criticize her inability to finish at the rim, she leads the league in offense boards — by a mile. She's a fighter down below, and now she's classified in the same category as the all-time greats.

Angel Reese becomes the first player in WNBA history to put up 10 consecutive double-doubles in a single season surpassing Candace Parker (9 in 2015) pic.twitter.com/6Aac5nyzgN

— Ballislife Womens Basketball (@ballislifewbb_) June 30, 2024

Reese has made history in multiple ways in a week filled with awkward post-game pressers and social media chatter. She totaled her 13th consecutive double-double, passing the great Candace Parker for a WNBA all-time record. Putting up such numbers close to halftime, Reese accomplished the feat by the third quarter, and against an admirable Storm team. Now halfway through the season, she finds herself deep in the Rookie of the Year conversation alongside Caitlin Clark.

With that said, Sky guard Chennedy Carter didn't hold back after a post-game presser with ION. While the Rookie of the Year award verdict is still debatable, Reese earned her first WNBA All-Star nod in her rookie season. In her increasing list of accomplishments, she becomes the first rookie to win a Player of the Week award. What's more impressive was her dominant performance against the reigning champions. It's not every day you're given the opportunity to matchup against A'ja Wilson, and Reese understood the assignment, at least offensively. In the loss against the Aces, the Sky star tallied 18 points and 11 rebounds.

"Barbie [Angel Reese] is rookie of the year, there's no other way to put it," said Carter. Named Rookie of the month in June, Reese continues to make headlines.

As for , her energy is unmatched on and off the court. The heavy favorite to win her third MVP award, the former Gamecock averaged 25.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game. During the stint, she managed to become the Aces all-time leading scorer. Passing Sophia Young-Malcolm with 4,301 points, Wilson's ability to accomplish this task only in her seventh season is remarkable. This time, she's etched her name in the history books, earning player of the week for the 19th time in her career. Throughout her illustrious vocation, Wilson is now no. 7 all-time in earning the honor.

Taking the league by storm, Wilson's emotions from last year's MVP results have translated to success on the court. Averaging a double-double for the first time in her career, the Aces center is putting up 27 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.8 steals, and 2.7 blocks. Putting up more than four points compared to last season, Wilson has added a lethal addition to her game--- a three-point shot. We are talking about a superstar who didn't hit her first three until 2022. The latest addition to her game could be something fierce.

A’ja Wilson scored 31 and extended her WNBA record for most consecutive 20-point regular season games (20).

Angel Reese had 18 points, 11 rebounds and tied Candace Parker’s WNBA record for most consecutive double-doubles (9).

@LVAces pic.twitter.com/Jrjffn1I5V

— www.ebooksnet.com (@Ballislife) June 28, 2024

With only two deep shots in last year's finals, we've been witnessing the evolution of Wilson's pre-game three-point shots. While that's translated to the court, the Center's drawn the likes and recent attention of NBA star LeBron James and Raiders Maxx Crosby. Just last game, Wilson matched a career-high 3-4 from downtown (75 percent) against Dallas, and a masterful 31 points against the Chicago Sky. With a favorable matchup against Angel Reese, Wilson finished with 10 free throws made alone from the stripe.

From rookie to the vet, women's basketball is in great hands. We are witnessing historic seasons from both athletes, the top two rebounders in the WNBA. Earning player of the month in June and July, Wilson will look to capture her third straight award before the start of the Olympics.

A'ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces (13-7) will next face the Storm in Seattle on June 10. Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky(8-12) will host the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday night.

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Sara Jane Gamelli is a full-time Sportswriter, Content Creator and Manager for Ballislife Bets. She has a focus on the Women's Basketball and the NBA. Sara Jane currently resides in Connecticut/NYC area. SJ has her undergraduate degree from the University of Connecticut in Economics, with a minor in business administration

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