Xavier Prep tops Super 10 rankings
A week from today, the Open Division field will be all but set. Most of Arizona’s top teams wrap up their regular seasons on Thursday or Friday. Even the handful of exceptions will play their final games the following week. So by now, we have a good idea of what the field will look like.
Here, then, are The Arizona Republic’s top 10 teams in the state — the teams to watch for when the Open tips off on Feb. 13:
1. Phoenix Xavier Prep, 18-4
Well, it finally happened. After winning their first 17 games against instate opposition, the Gators took their first blow on Wednesday evening, falling, 51-46, to Chandler Hamilton. That doesn’t negate the season Xavier Prep has had — including a 16-point win over the Huskies just seven days earlier — but it does show that the Open Division will be more contested than it was last year, when Phoenix Desert Vista rolled to the inaugural title. Game on.
2. Phoenix Desert Vista, 18-5
Speaking of Desert Vista, the Thunder are looking more likely than ever to go back-to-back after picking up an impressive 68-59 win at Gilbert on Tuesday. Head coach Erin O’Bryan’s team has provided a resounding answer to the early-season questions about how they would replace the scoring of Jerzy Robinson. The answer has come through a collective approach, with four players averaging in double figures.
3. Chandler Hamilton, 17-5
The most impressive part of Hamilton’s win over Xavier Prep might be the manner in which it unfolded. The Huskies didn’t rely on a single heroic performance. Instead, they got balanced contributions from nine scorers, while working to shut down Noelle Guiamatsia
on the inside for Xavier Prep. That forced the Gators to play through the outside, where they shot just 3 of 21 from three. It was an all-around outstanding performance from Hamilton and a clinic on how to pull off an upset.
4. Gilbert, 20-3
Despite coming up just short against Desert Vista this week and Xavier Prep earlier in the month, Gilbert has acquainted itself well, while continuing to dominate the state’s overmatched teams. The Tigers have every chance of making a deep run in the Open.
5. Tucson Salpointe Catholic, 18-4
To get an idea of just how much Salpointe Catholic is dominating 4A right now, look no further than Tuesday’s win over Tucson Flowing Wells. The Caballeros are 18-8, but looked completely outmatched in a 65-28 loss to Salpointe Catholic. The Lancers are benefitting from a tricky early season schedule that helped them round into form by the time it matters most.
6. Surprise Valley Vista, 12-4
The most recent AIA rankings have Valley Vista slotted in at No. 21 in the state. That’s bad news for whichever highly-seeded team gets the misfortune of facing the Monsoon in the first round. Valley Vista beat 15-3 Laveen Cesar Chavez on Friday, adding to a resume that already featured a win over Chandler Seton Catholic, a thrilling two-point loss to Goodyear Millennium and a handful of nice wins over excellent California schools.
7. Gilbert Mesquite, 20-3
Mesquite avenged the biggest blemish on its resume Thursday night. Just two weeks after a one-point loss to Chandler Seton Catholic, the Wildcats picked up a 40-37 win over the Sentinels. There are some questions about their ability to score enough to keep up with the top 6A teams, but Mesquite’s defense should help it stay in every game.
8. Goodyear Millennium, 15-8
Millennium snuck past Waddell Canyon View, 67-64, in its only game of the week — a showdown between perhaps the two best teams in 5A. The Tigers continue their brutal schedule on Tuesday with a trip to Chandler Hamilton. They could use an upset win, given that they’re currently No. 26 in the AIA rankings. This is a team that can make a run in the Open, but that’s a lot harder to pull off if they have to play top 10 teams starting in the first round.
9. Phoenix Country Day School, 17-3 Another ho-hum week for PCDS, which continues to dominate every 2A team in its path. It remains a shame that 1A-3A schools aren’t eligible for the Open.
10. Phoenix Pinnacle, 17-6
Make it seven wins in a row now since the start of the year for Pinnacle, which has earned its return to the Super 10. The highlight of that stretch was a one-point win over Phoenix Sandra Day O’Connor, but a pair of wins over Phoenix Sunnyslope are also nice results.