{"id":169048,"date":"2019-10-27T15:25:39","date_gmt":"2019-10-27T22:25:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bilcomprd.wpengine.com\/?p=169048"},"modified":"2023-03-21T14:23:41","modified_gmt":"2023-03-21T21:23:41","slug":"preseason-2019-20-fab-50-teams-no-31-50","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ballislife.com\/preseason-2019-20-fab-50-teams-no-31-50\/","title":{"rendered":"Preseason 2019-20 FAB 50: Teams No. 31-50!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today Ballislife.com tips off its 2019-20 high school basketball coverage with our first installment of the preseason 2019-20 FAB 50 National Team Rankings. We begin with teams No. 31-50 and our second installment will be teams No. 16-30 on Monday, October 28. The complete FAB 50 rankings powered by Ballislife.com will be released by October 29. Teams No. 31-50 are those looking to move into the Top 25 and can't afford to get off to a slow start to the season.
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Note: The FAB 50 powered by Ballislife.com is a continuation of the National Sports News Service ratings that began in 1952. These were the first national high school rankings and the late Art Johlfs of Minnesota compiled them. They were compiled for many years by the late Barry Sollenberger of Phoenix, who merged them into the FAB 50 20 years ago.<\/em><\/p>\n

Preseason 2019-20 FAB 50 <\/strong><\/span>
\n National Team Rankings<\/strong><\/span>
\nPowered by Ballislife.com<\/em><\/p>\n

By Ronnie Flores<\/em><\/p>\n

(Final 2018-19 ranking in parentheses; *Indicates forfeit wins, forfeit losses not included; **Indicates forfeits and defaults not included; Look for preseason Region-By-Region Top 20 Rankings on Tuesday, November 5 and for the preseason Mr. Basketball USA Tracker on Monday, November 18.)<\/em><\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> Preseason 2019-20 FAB 50 (1-15)<\/a> | Preseason 2019-20 FAB 50 (16-30)<\/a> | Preseason Top 20 Regional Rankings<\/a> |<\/p>\n

 31. (NR) Lawrence Central (Indianapolis, Ind.) 22-4<\/strong>
\nKey Players:<\/strong> PG Nigel Pack 5-10 2020 (No. 80 ESPN.com, Kansas St. commit), SF D\u2019Andre Davis 6-5 2020 (No. 96 ESPN.com, Louisville commit).
\nWhy This Ranking:<\/strong> The Bears rate as the IHSAA Class 4A favorites with seven lettermen returning from a team that advanced to the regional semifinals, where it fell to eventual state runner-up Ben Davis of Indianapolis, 75-65. It\u2019s not just the quantity returning for coach Albert Gooden, it\u2019s the quality as his two big guns are back in the fold. Pack (16.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.1 apg, 2.0 spg) is a terrific two-way point guard and can score in crunch time or dish with equal effectiveness. Davis (16.9 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.3 bpg) carries the load inside offensively and he too impacts the game on both ends. Davis protects the paint and is a good interior passer. The two big guns can take this team far, but the role players must develop because it\u2019s always a difficult path for the preseason Class 4A favorites.
\nThe Skinny:<\/strong> The core of this team showed what it was capable of by knocking off Warren Central, last year\u2019s title favorites, before losing to Ben Davis in its next playoff game. Warren Central\u2019s preseason 2018-19 FAB 50 ranking was much higher (No. 12) because it was the defending champions, undefeated in 2017-18, and three teams were FAB 50 ranked that season at the state final four. We\u2019ll take a more cautious approach with the Bears because only the 2018-19 Class 4A state champ (Carmel) finished FAB 50 ranked and only had one, two-point loss. In order for Lawrence Central to move up in the rankings, veterans such as Phillip Edwards (6-4, 2020) and D\u2019Ante Davis (6-4, 2022) will need to step up the production level.<\/p>\n

32. (NR) O\u2019Dea (Seattle, Wash.) 19-8<\/strong>
\nKey Players:<\/strong> PF Paolo Banchero 6-10 2021 (No. 2 Rivals.com, Ballislife Underclass All-American), SG John Christofilis 6-4 2021 (No. 84 Rivals.com), PG Jermaine Davis 6-3 2021.
\nWhy This Ranking:<\/strong> This is the team to beat in the Pacific Northwest, as four starters and a whopping 11 lettermen return for the defending WIAA Class 3A state champs. The quality tops the quantity, as Banchero (18.2 ppg, 10.3 rpg) is one of the most talented frontcourt players in the country and with a big season could be in the running for Mr. Basketball USA honors. Cristofilis is a talented guard who is crafty with the ball, can shoot it from deep and finish with authority around the rim. Davis has made tremendous strides and got plenty of reps last season when Cristofilis missed a handful of Metro League games with injury. Coach Jason Kerr (352-124) used many lineups because of injury and the experience will pay dividends this season.
\nThe Skinny:<\/strong> There is plenty to like about this team and it\u2019s not just the two national level standouts. Paul Johnson (6-0, 2020) is another guard who can put the ball in the hole, as he scored 19 points in a state title game rout. Quick Calvin Thomas III (5-8, 2020) has starting experience and Max Debiec (6-8, 2021) will be counted on to take some of the pressure off Banchero inside. Last season, the Irish ventured to San Diego for the Torrey Pines Holiday Classic and came away with a 2-2 mark. This season, the stakes are a bit higher with regards to national level foes, so they\u2019ll need to remain healthy and get quality bench minutes to beat that .500 tourney mark. The Fighting Irish can move rapidly towards the Top 25 with a good showing at the City of Palms Tournament (December 18-23), as they open with Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach, Fla.) with the winner taking on FAB 50 title contender Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.). They\u2019ll also have to dominate in-state because, according to Kerr, WIAA rules only allow for four non-conference games and all of those will be used in Ft. Myers, Fla.<\/p>\n

33. (NR) Yates (Houston, Texas) 23-4**<\/strong>
\nKey Players:<\/strong> SG Rubin Jones 6-4 2020 (North Texas commit), PG Antwon Norman 6-0 2020, PG Gerald Doakes 6-2 2020 (No. 141 247Sports.com), PF Allen Udemadu 6-9 2020 (No. 188 247Sports.com), C Chuks Isitua 6-10 2021 (No. 68 Rivals.com).
\nWhy This Ranking:<\/strong> The Lions are loaded for a run at University Interscholastic League (UIL state title No. 5, with a host of returnees and talented newcomers that has veteran coach Greg Wise excited about his team\u2019s potential. Yates also has plenty of motivation after losing to upstart Oak Hill Faith Family Academy in last year\u2019s UIL Class 4A semifinals, 80-74. Wise\u2019s backcourt returns, as Jones can fill it up from the outside while Norman is an ultra-athletic guard who can score and run a team. Jones was nursing an ankle injury in the game against Faith Family Academy, Norman is eager to prove he\u2019s a sure-fire D1 guard and Grid-Hoop stud Daryl Brown (5-9, 2020, Texas Southern football commit) is experienced in Wise\u2019s system and a terror on defense. Wise can go deep into his bench with little drop off and is stressing teamwork to build the chemistry necessary for this team to meet its goals.
\nThe Skinny:<\/strong> One UIL Class 6A team will be ranked ahead of Yates in the preseason, as whichever team emerges from the gauntlet that is the Class 6A state tourney will be FAB 50 ranked. The Lions are our Class 4A preseason favorites despite losing to No. 46 Faith Family Academy in the state playoffs because of the depth and the host of talented transfers led by Doakes, Udemadu and Isitua. Elijah Elliott (6-0, 2020) and Latrell Moore (6-2, 2021) add to the backcourt depth while Udemadu\u2019s and Isitua\u2019s ability to protect the back line allows Yates\u2019 trademark full court press to be extra aggressive. \u201cThis is the most talented and deepest team I have had,\u201d Wise said. \u201cWe want to pressure the whole game and this team is perfect for the way we play. The national championship team\u2019s advantage was playing together in our system four years, so the key for this team is getting on the same page.\u201d Wise is referring to his 2009-10 club, which finished 32-0 and No. 1 in the FAB 50. That team began at No. 9 in the preseason, but we\u2019ll take a more cautious approach with this team to see how the talent meshes. Yates will be tested right away at the Thanksgiving Hoopfest in Dallas versus FAB 50 power Montverde Academy of Florida and contender Sunrise Christian Academy of Kansas.<\/p>\n