By Jordan Burton (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
See this week’s boys basketball power rankings below.
THESE RANKINGS ARE BASED ON DOMINANCE BY CLASS AND NOT HEAD-TO-HEAD COMPETITION.
1. (1) Mountain Grove (C3: 14-0)
It’s been 14 and a goose egg for the Panthers and at this point its tough to find spots for them to lose when looking at their remaining schedule. Especially when you look at what they’ve done. Wins over Catholic, Hartville, Kickapoo, Nixa and Dora are a who’s who of teams that will compete for district tiles. Eleven of those 14 wins have come by double digits. The Blue Bracket champs are 69-9 over the last three seasons with Licking and Cabool on the schedule this week. They’ve been disgustingly good over the last few years.
2. (10) Glendale (C5: 8-2)
Glendale is now looking like the team everyone expected to see early, winning seven straight games and averaging 90 points per game over that span. Monty Johal is over 2,000 career points an he’s a bucket away from breaking Dorial Green-Beckham’s scoring record. Jordan Walton just passed 1,600 career points and all the other Falcons continue to bomb away from deep. Camdenton and the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions is up this week.
3. (4) Thayer (C2: 13-1)
The Bobcats lone loss came to Eminence on a neutral floor, the championship of the Cabool Tournament. Outside of that game, Thayer has been dominant with nine of their 13 wins coming by double digits and 11 opponents failing to score more than 40 points. It’ll be a tough week with trips to Eminence and Salem, followed by the MV-BT/Liberty Tournament.
4. (12) Eminence (C1: 10-1)
The Redwings are riding a 10-game winning streak after beating Alton on Friday. That stretch includes wins over Blue Eye, MV-BT/Liberty, Dora and Thayer. Seven of their 10 wins have come by 10 or more and the season-opening loss to Advance, who is the reigning Class 1 runner-up is a quality one. Junior standout Trent McBride just scored the 1,000th point of his career.
5. (5) Springfield Catholic (C3: 12-4)
Four losses and three of those (Aurora, Confluence Prep and Helias Catholic) came to Class 4 squads, with the fourth being Mountain Grove. Confluence Prep and Helias have lived in the Class 4 state poll and Catholic seems like they’re here to stay. The Gold Bracket champs have won seven of their last eight with Class 4 Reeds Spring up this week.
6. (15) Rolla (C4: 9-1)
The Bulldogs have quietly won seven straight since their lone loss to Ozark back on Dec. 1. Yes, it’s been nearly six full weeks since Rolla has dropped a game, that stretch includes a win over Hogan Prep. We will learn a ton about just where Rolla stands in Class 4 soon with Joplin, Hillcrest and Helias Catholic on the docket.
7. (7) Nevada (C4: 11-2)
Again, if this team was closer to Springfield – much like Rolla – they would be talked about all the time. Nevada’s two losses have both come against Class 5 teams that could be ranked in the next few weeks. Clay Gayman is averaging 23 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks and the Tigers have every role filled around him. St. Pius X is Nevada’s lone game this week.
8. (13) Dora (C1: 12-3)
Rick Luna and company have won nine of their last 10, with their three losses coming to Mountain Grove, Thayer and Eminence. The Falcons are averaging nearly 70 per game, led by four freshmen. Isaac Haney is coming off a 41-point performance, including 8-for-10 from 3-point range. His 36 first-half points are tied for 10th most in state history. Haney is on pace for one of the top-10 scoring seasons by a freshman in state history. Dora has Bakersfield and Gainesville this week.
9. (2) Ozark (C5: 8-3)
The Tigers have lost back-to-back games, but both came in rematches against quality teams (Republic and Rogersville). It’s difficult to beat a good team twice and in Rogersville’s case it would’ve been three times. Ozark has a tough week with a visit from an improved Carthage team before the Bass Pro TOC. Senior standout Quinn Nelson remains close to breaking Ozark’s career 3-point record.
10. (8) Hartville (C2: 12-3)
Speaking of teams with quality losses, Hartville is undefeated against Class 1, 2, 4 and 5 teams. That’s crazy. The Eagles have lost to Mountain Grove, Catholic and Mount Vernon and one of those teams will be in the Final Four. Hartville has won nine of its last 10 entering a week with Mansfield – likely for the eventual summit title – and Morrisville.
11. (3) Walnut Grove (C1: 6-7)
It’s hard to hold their record against them too much. The Tigers still haven’t lost to a Class 1 team. The reason for the slide is mainly because of how good Eminence and Dora have looked, suggesting that the gap between Walnut Grove and the rest of Class 1 isn’t as big as it appeared to be to start the season. But still, these cats are playing Class 3-5 teams regularly. You’ll see the cream rise to the top when they start playing like-sized schools. The Tigers might not lose again this season.
12. (NR) Republic (C5: 9-4)
One of the area’s biggest surprises has been Republic and it’s not a fluke; the Tigers are a legit contender. Republic has won eight of its last 10 with the two losses coming to state-ranked Springfield and Helias Catholic by a combined 13 points. RepMo opens COC Large play with trips to Carl Junction and Carthage this week.
13. (6) Nixa (C5: 8-5)
Nixa has a resume that includes wins over Glendale, Fayetteville (Ark.), DeSmet and Mount Vernon. All five of their losses are quality, with the only true in-area loss coming to unbeaten Mountain Grove. The narrow win over Blue Springs South could start the Eagles on a fruitful streak.
14. (11) Joplin (C5: 9-1)
The Eagles won nine straight to open the season before running into a buzz saw in Francis Howell. Joplin sophomore Evan Guillory scored 24 points with three steals and two blocks in that game. The Eagles semifinal win in the Kaminsky Classic over St. Louis Christian is an impressive win, as are the dubs over Nevada and Carthage. It’ll be a tough week with Rolla, Camdenton and Neosho all on the schedule.
15. (9) Mansfield (C2: 8-3)
Yet another small school that’s had a tough schedule. The West Plains loss was surprising, but losses to Catholic, Hillcrest and Mountain Grove can’t be held against the Lions too much. They’re still an elite Class 2 team, which they’ll have a chance to prove with Hartville coming to town this week.
Knockin’ on the Door: Pierce City (C2: 10-2), Joplin Thomas Jefferson (C2: 10-0), Forsyth (C3: 12-3), Parkview (C5: 7-5), Mount Vernon (C3: 9-5), Conway (C3: 7-2), Carthage (C5: 8-2), Rogersville (C4: 10-5), Strafford (C3: 9-4), Blue Eye (C2: 8-3)
