Holiday Break Rankings Update

The final week before teams head into the holiday break was another eventful week around the state, and there is a new No. 1 team in Class 3A as a result. We run down that, and detail some of the other movement, below.

Class 4A

-Top ranked North Scott keeps playing close games against quality teams, and they keep finding ways to win. The latest 'W' came on Friday night, when the Lancers outlasted then-No. 4 Davenport Central in a road overtime win. North Scott heads into the break with an 8-0 mark, and they've handed three ranked teams (Cedar Rapids Prairie, Bettendorf, Davenport Central) their only losses on the young season.

-Aforementioned Central drops a single spot to No. 5 following their loss. The Blue Devils head into the break with an 8-1 record and have been the biggest story of the first half of the season after going 5-16 last year. After getting a chance to see them on Friday night, this group is for real and looks like a true state title threat. They're not big, but they're long, hyper athletic and disciplined. The storybook season should continue following the break.

-The only newcomer to this week's rankings is Cedar Falls, who come in at No. 10. The defending champions have rolled off six straight wins following a season opening overtime loss to Waterloo West, just a few weeks after playing for a football title. That loss can be excused, and the Tigers look like a real threat to defend their title.

Class 3A

-There is a new No. 1 team in 3A, the Maquoketa Cardinals, who improved to 8-0 heading into the break, including a major win over then-No. 3 West Delaware on Tuesday night. The Cards have shown the ability to win in a variety of ways, and the improvement they've made on the defensive end of the floor has really sparked this group. Maquoketa won only nine games last year, but we expected them to be good, with their top four scorers returning. They've exceeded expectations so far.

-The only other remaining undefeated team in the class is Clear Lake, who moves up to No. 2 following losses by Oskaloosa and West Delaware last week. The Lions lost a 30-point a game scorer in Zach Lester, but have been impressive, winning their first eight games by an average of 19 points a game behind a more balanced attack.

-The biggest risers this week are Gilbert and Pella, who each moved up four spots. Gilbert stays above the Dutch, with their season opening head-to-head win serving as the trump card there, but Pella keeps putting together an impressive resume, with wins over Norwalk and Oskaloosa.

-Speaking of Norwalk, the Warriors are back in the rankings at No. 6 this week following their win over Oskaloosa, the previous No. 1 team in the class. 

Class 2A

-Yet again, 2A sees little movement, with the top five teams remaining the same as they were last week - North Linn, Camanche, West Sioux, Treynor and South Hamilton. South Hamilton is the only team in that group with a loss.

-Six teams are still undefeated in the class, the most of any classification. Boyden-Hull and Van Meter (Nos. 6 and 7 this week) join the top four teams as unbeatens.

-Western Christian drops a few spots after a blowout loss to Sergeant Bluff-Luton, but the Wolfpack should still be a legitimate state title threat in the class when they get Jacob Vis back from injury. 

-The lone newcomer to this week's rankings is Unity Christian, who head into the break with a 7-1 record, their lone loss a four-point overtime defeat at the hands of a good South O'Brien team. We'll get a much better feel for the Knights after the holiday break, as they have a three game stretch of Sioux Falls Christian (SD), Boyden-Hull and Western Christian in six days. Few teams in 2A will play a more difficult stretch than that this season.

Class 1A

-Two-time defending champion Grand View Christian keeps rolling along in the top spot. The Thunder's only loss is to 4A No. 3 Iowa City West.

-The only change this week comes in the middle of the rankings, where West Fork and Bishop Garrigan swap spots. Garrigan lost to 3A Algona and dropped a spot to No. 7, while West Fork moves up a spot to No. 6.