Week 4 Rankings Update
Following another busy week of basketball, it’s time to update the class rankings.
In Class 1A, the top two remain the same, then there is a bit of movement. Grand View Christian (7-0) has stepped up their schedule this year, and it hasn’t bitten them yet. The defending state champions remain in the top spot, followed by North Linn (7-0), who is blasting teams by an average of 64 points a game this season. Remsen, St. Mary’s (7-0), Wapsie Valley (6-0) and Lynnville-Sully (6-1) round out the top five. Council Bluffs, St. Albert (4-2) falls from No. 3 to No. 6 following a loss to Wahoo Neumann (NE). George-Little Rock (5-2) moves up a spot despite a loss, as that lost came to 2A No. 3 Sioux Center, and their win over 2A No. 10 West Lyon looks better every night. Gladbrook-Reinbeck (4-0) and Don Bosco (5-0) enter the rankings as Nos. 9 and 10, respectively.
In Class 2A, there is no movement. The ten teams that we had ranked last week went a combined 19-0, but none of them were big enough wins to shake up the poll in any way.
The power shifts out west in Class 3A, with Glenwood (6-0) and Sioux City Bishop Heelan (4-0) taking over the top two spots after previous-No. 1 Cedar Rapids Xavier (4-1) dropped a game to Waterloo West this week. Glenwood was previously No. 2, then won a pair of games by an average of 30 points. Heelan posted a big win over then-4A No. 2 Sioux City East. Xavier, the two-time defending champions, still probably has the best resumé, and playing in the MVC, they’ll have plenty of chances to take the top spot back. Dallas Center-Grimes (5-2) and Spirit Lake (4-1) swap spots following DC-G’s loss to No. 4 Oskaloosa (8-0). LeMars (5-1) is the lone newcomer to the rankings, coming in at No. 10.
Iowa City West remains a strong No. 1 in Class 4A. The Trojans went 2-0 this week to improve to 5-0 on the season, and added another strong out-of-state win to their resumé with Saturday’s 81-65 win over Bolingbrook (IL), who was a top-10 team in Illinois’ Class 4A. Following Sioux City East’s loss, Dubuque Senior (4-0) moves up to No. 2. They won a pair of games by two points each this week, and with star forward Noah Carter sidelined for an undetermined amount of time, we’ll see how long they last near the top of the poll, but for now, they deserve this spot. With Carter Stevens leading the charge, they’ll still be a tough team to beat. Des Moines North moves from No. 6 to No. 3 following a win over No. 4 Johnston, who remains in their slot, but gets leaped by the Polar Bears. Waukee (5-1) rounds out the top five, giving the CIML the 3-5 slots in the rankings. North Scott (5-1) is the lone newcomer to the rankings, entering at No. 7 after a 3-0 week which included a win over then-No. 5 Pleasant Valley, and a win over Rock Island (IL) at the Genesis Shootout.