The Star’s high school basketball rankings (Jan. 28)
The Star’s high school basketball rankings are voted on by the high school staff. The big-class division is made up of Missouri Class 5 and 4, as well as Kansas Class 6A and 5A. All other classes are in the small class.
(Records are through Wednesday’s games)
BIG-CLASS BOYS
1. Lee’s Summit: 16-0. Blake Spellman and Nick Larkin combined for 72 points in a four-point win Tuesday against Blue Springs.
2. Lawrence: 12-1. The Chesty Lions beat Highland Park in overtime to win the Topeka Invitational.
3. Olathe East: 10-2. The Hawks edged Mill Valley by five points to win the St. Thomas Saints Classic.
4. Lee’s Summit West: 13-3. The Titans have won 10 of 11 after a three-point conference win Tuesday against Blue Springs South.
5. Liberty North: 12-3. The Eagles scored 76 points in Tuesday’s win against Fort Osage, the second most in program history.
6. Shawnee Mission North: 6-3. The Indians will be operating on 12 days of rest in this weekend’s Nixa Tournament.
7. Blue Valley Northwest: 8-3. The Huskies gave up 24 points from beyond the three-point line in Monday’s loss to BV Southwest.
8. Blue Valley: 9-2. The Tigers handed Basehor-Linwood its first loss of the season to win the Bobcat Classic tournament.
9. Blue Springs South: 12-4. Three of the Jaguars’ four losses have come by five or fewer points.
10. Lawrence Free State: 10-2. The Firebirds won six of seven games in a 14-day span, including second place in the McPherson Invitational.
SMALL-CLASS BOYS
1. Barstow: 13-2. After a one-point loss to Mill Valley, the Knights responded with 180 points over their next two games.
2. Basehor-Linwood: 10-1. The Bobcats suffered their first setback of the season against Blue Valley in the Bobcat Invitational title game.
3. Bonner Springs: 11-1. DeVante McGee has scored in double figures in each of the Braves’ last two games.
4. O’Hara: 14-4. The Celtics hung with top-ranked Lee’s Summit for a half, but couldn’t slow the Tigers’ offense after halftime.
5. Hogan Prep: 14-3. After back-to-back losses in early December, the Rams have lost just once in their past 13 games.
BIG-CLASS GIRLS
1. Olathe South: 9-0. The Falcons have had 13 days to prepare for competition in this week’s Emporia tournament.
2. Liberty: 15-2. Truman handed the Blue Jays their first loss to an in-state program in the finals of the Truman Tournament.
3. North Kansas City: 14-1. The Hornets came from behind in the fourth quarter to defeat Smithville and win the Oak Park Invitational.
4. Leavenworth: 8-2. The Pioneers’ two losses have come against teams ranked in the KBCA state poll.
5. Shawnee Mission Northwest: 8-2. Brenni Rose has scored 38 points across the last two victories for the Cougars.
6. Olathe East: 8-1. The Hawks take a seven-game winning streak into McPherson’s Mid-America Classic.
7. Lawrence Free State: 7-2. The Firebirds have allowed opponents to score just 31 points in their last two victories.
8. St. Thomas Aquinas: 6-3. The Saints will play in the Capital City Classic this weekend, which is hosted by Topeka Seaman.
9. St. Teresa’s Academy: 12-4. Grace Kitts had 26 points and Ryan Wilkins had 24 points in an overtime thriller against Lee’s Summit North.
10. Truman: 9-5. The Patriots won their own tournament with victories against Wyandotte, William Chrisman and Liberty.
SMALL-CLASS GIRLS
1. Bishop Miege: 9-0. Hunter Bentley dropped 20 points as the Stags topped Blue Valley Southwest on Monday.
2. Piper: 11-0. The Pirates have limited their last three opponents to 28 or fewer points, while averaging 73 points.
3. St. Pius X: 13-1. Junior Abby Hipp is averaging a double-double with 14.6 points and 10.7 rebounds per contest.
4. Paola: 10-1. The Panthers set a tournament record with 82 points in the Burlington Invitational title game on Monday.
5. O’Hara: 13-2. The Celtics will play Grain Valley tonight in the title game of the Grain Valley Sonic Showdown.
This story was originally published January 28, 2016 at 5:56 PM with the headline "The Star’s high school basketball rankings (Jan. 28)."