New number one in the regional boys’ hoops rankings
GAINESVILLE – There was a little bit of a shake-up in the Prep Zone Power Poll heading into the holiday season.
Top-ranked Ribault (Jacksonville) lost to #15 Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville), 63-58, opening the door for unbeaten Creekside (St. Johns) to move into the top spot.
The Knights went 2-0 last week, including a 61-38 win against previous No. 19 Bartram Trail (St. Johns), which dropped out of the rankings. Creekside (9-0) received six of the eight first-place votes.
Meanwhile, the Trojans (8-1) dropped one spot to second, while the Tigers (7-3) made one of the biggest jumps in the regional rankings following the win against Ribault, moving up seven spots to No. 8.
The other two first-place votes went to Providence (Jacksonville), which moved up two spots to third following a 94-51 rout of previous No. 3 Bolles (Jacksonville). The Stallions (6-3) defeated Lake Highland Prep (Orlando) and lost to Florida Prep, with their other losses coming to nationally-ranked Montverde Academy by only eight and by two to nationally-ranked Westminster Academy (Ft. Lauderdale).
Vanguard (Ocala) remained fourth following a trip to the Savannah Holiday Classic in Georgia. The Knights (6-1) suffered their first loss of the season against New Hampstead (Savannah, GA) at the tournament and return home on Tuesday to host the 43rd annual Kingdom of the Sun (Dec. 27-30).
Rounding out the top five is Gainesville High. The Hurricanes (8-1) have won three in a row since an overtime loss at No. 4 Vanguard and will travel to Naples for the Gulfshore Holiday Hoopfest next Tuesday against No. 16 Spruce Creek (Port Orange).
Bolles (8-3), which also lost at previous No. 15 Fernandina Beach, dropped three spots to sixth. They are followed by Atlantic (Port Orange) (6-2), Andrew Jackson (7-3), Nature Coast (Brooksville) (9-0), and Fernandina Beach (9-1) and The Villages (10-0), who are tied for 10th, in the top 10.
Wolfson (Jacksonville) and New Smyrna Beach also dropped out of the rankings, making room for newcomers Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (6-2), Terry Parker (Jacksonville) (7-1) and Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville) (9-2) at Nos. 16, 17 and 19, respectively.
The new rankings will be released in early January 2017.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters.
PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2016-17 BOYS BASKETBALL POLL #2
(School, followed by classification, first-place votes, record through 12/20, and total voting points)
1. Creekside (St. Johns) (8A) (6) (9-0) – 158
2. Ribault (Jacksonville) (6A) (8-1) – 147
3. Providence (Jacksonville) (4A) (2) (6-3) – 145
4. Vanguard (Ocala) (7A) (6-1) – 134
5. Gainesville (7A) (8-1) – 128
6. Bolles (Jacksonville) (5A) (8-3) – 108
7. Atlantic (Port Orange) (7A) (6-2) – 107
8. Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville) (5A) (7-3) – 95
9. Nature Coast Tech (Brooksville) (6A) (9-0) – 94
10t. Fernandina Beach (5A) (9-1) – 90
10t. The Villages (5A) (10-0) – 90
12. Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (6A) (7-4) – 67
13. Hawthorne (1A) (8-1) – 54
14. Bell (1A) (12-0) – 45
15. Trinity Christian (Deltona) (3A) (9-1) – 44
16. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (9A) (6-2) – 34
17. Terry Parker (Jacksonville) (6A) (7-1) – 28
18. DeLand (9A) (7-3) – 24
19. Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville) (4A) (9-2) – 21
20. P.K. Yonge (Gainesville) (4A) (7-4) – 18
Also receiving votes: New Smyrna Beach (7A) (6-3) – 11; East Ridge (Clermont) (8A) (9-3) – 9; First Coast (Jacksonville) (8A) (9-2) – 7; Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (8A) (6-3) – 6; Eastside (Gainesville) (6A) (4-1) – 5; Wildwood (1A) (10-0) – 5; Robert E. Lee (Jacksonville) (8A) (8-3) – 3; Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (6A) (5-1) – 1; North Marion (Citra) (6A) (6-3) – 1; Flagler Palm Coast (9A) (4-2) – 1.
