Top 25 Arkansas high school boys basketball rankings (1/7/2025)

Jonesboro, Springdale and Benton are among the top-ranked teams in our Arkansas boys basketball Top 25
Springdale won the King Cotton Holiday Classic championship.
Springdale won the King Cotton Holiday Classic championship. / Courtesy of the King Cotton Holiday Classic

With a new year, every game matters for the prep basketball season as conference play gets started statewide this week.

Frigid temperatures have already arrived and chances for snow and ice for the end of the week are continually increasing, but there is plenty of action to pay attention to before that becomes a concern. 

In the first edition of the 2024-25 High School on SI boys basketball rankings, five of the Top 10 teams hail from Class 6A, led by top-ranked Jonesboro, while 5A boasts four spots, headlined by reigning state runner-up Benton. Mills has earned its way in the Top 5 representing 4A.

See the full Top 25 below. 

ARKANSAS BOYS BASKETBALL POWER RANKINGS

January 7, 2025

1. Jonesboro (15-1)

The Hurricane are right back where they expect to be after gutting through an up and down 2023-24 season. In typical Wes Swift fashion, Jonesboro has displayed lockdown defense and takes an unblemished record against in-state competition into 2025 as it now sets its sights on 6A-Central play and, ultimately, the program’s sixth state championship since 2017. 

2. Springdale (13-3)

Isaiah Sealy powered the Red Dogs to a King Cotton Classic Championship while earning the tournament’s Most Valuable Player honors, and Springdale will go as far as the Arkansas Razorbacks signee takes them in his final prep season. With a conference win over No. 14 Fort Smith Northside under their belt, the Red Dogs likely won’t be tested again until they face No. 5 Fayetteville and No. 9 Bentonville in consecutive games toward the end of the month.

3. Benton (13-3)

The short-handed Panthers took consecutive losses in the King Cotton Classic after winning 10 of their first 11 games, but they finished the tournament strong with a consolation win over Waxahachie (Texas). They finished the nonconference slate by conquering Southwind (Tenn.) in the Memphis Hoopfest to start 2025 on the right foot. 

4. Mills (17-1)

Another year, another loaded Comets squad, but this time, they have been rolling from the start. With a loss only to No. 3 and current Class 5A favorite Benton, Mills has mostly played against opposition from higher classes and might not be challenged a whole lot for the remainder of the regular season. 

5. Fayetteville (11-4)

The Purple Dogs hit a skid around mid-December, dropping three of four games, but have since reeled off five consecutive victories. They finished 2024 strong with a championship run through the Innisfree Hotels Beach Bash Tournament in Pensacola (Fla.), then followed with a rout of Rogers Heritage in the 6A-West opener. 

6. Bryant (9-7)

Despite playing without star senior and Little Rock signee Kellen Robinson, the reigning Class 6A runner-up has hung tough. The Hornets are 4-5 in their past nine contests, including losses to No. 4 Mills and No. 3 Benton along with a host of out-of-state teams. They have three big opportunities coming up, beginning with No. 7 Little Rock Christian before they take on top-ranked Jonesboro and No. 25 Little Rock Central in 6A-Central play. 

7. Maumelle (11-5)

Many new faces for the Hornets have come together nicely as Michael Shook’s squad has won eight of its past nine games after a 3-4 start that included losses to Top 10 opponents Springdale, Fayetteville and Bryant. The addition of Little Rock Christian will make the 5A-Central even deeper, but the Hornets have three matchups before getting their shot at the eighth-ranked Warriors.

8. Little Rock Christian (12-3)

The Tyler Wayman era is off to a great start as the Warriors enter 2025 on an eight-game win streak, led by junior phenom J.J. Andrews. They have defeated multiple out-of-state teams, and the three losses have come to No. 2 Springdale, Bellaire (Texas) and Nazareth (N.Y.). LRCA has another big nonconference challenge against No. 6 Bryant before beginning play in its new 5A-Central conference. 

9. Bentonville (9-5)

First-year head coach Kyle Pennington, who led Little Rock Christian to the past two 4A state titles, has the Tigers on a five-game win streak after the squad endured plenty of learning lessons in the first month of the season. The real work begins now as the Tigers aim to compete for a 6A-West championship and get back to the state final for the first time since 2022. They already have a 1-0 record in conference play. 

10. Marion (12-4)

Former Jonesboro star Sammie Lewis is now leading the Patriots and they have not skipped a beat under his tutelage. Marion suffered consecutive losses to top-ranked Jonesboro and No. 9 Bentonville but responded with its best win of the season over No. 2 Springdale. That triumph over the Red Dogs was the beginning of a four-game win streak that the Patriots are currently riding, and they will look to add to it against rival No. 22 West Memphis in Friday’s 5A-East opener. 

11.  North Little Rock (8-4)

A 6-0 start that included an important win over No. 9 Bentonville quickly turned the wrong way for the Charging Wildcats as they finished the first half of the season by dropping four of six games. Two of those defeats were to Top 10 squads — No. 1 Jonesboro and No. 10 Marion — and the fresh start could not come at a better time as North Little Rock looks to rebound against No. 25 Little Rock Central in Tuesday’s 6A-Central opener. 

12. Forrest City (14-2)

Save for Mills, this Forrest City squad has been the hands-down top squad in Class 4A and is living up to the high expectations. With losses only to top-ranked Jonesboro and No. 22 West Memphis, the Mustangs have defeated No. 15 Farmington twice and recently took down host Lake Hamilton in the championship round of the Kameron Hale Invitational. 

13. Valley View (13-2)

The Blazers wrapped up 2024 with a championship run in the well-known NEA Tournament, then notched one final tune-up win over Osceola on Monday. Already with three Top 25 victories on its resume, Valley View gets 5A-East play rolling against Batesville on Friday. 

14. Fort Smith Northside (8-4) 

In the big picture, the Grizzlies are off to a quality start under first-year coach Cody Wilmath, but their toughest test thus far against No. 2 Springdale in the 6A-West opener showed there is still plenty of room for improvement. Two great opportunities to bounce back are on the slate this week with a matchup against Rogers and a Top 25 showdown with No. 21 Bentonville West. 

15. Farmington (14-3)

Cardinals legend Layne Taylor is now making his name on the college scene and Farmington has adjusted well to life without him as all losses have been to Top 15 competition. Taylor’s freshman brother, Press, has been a big part of sustaining the success for a team that is looking to make noise in the 5A-West after being one of Class 4A’s top teams in recent memory. 

16. Nettleton (14-2)

The Raiders handled business in their final nonconference game against Stuttgart after coming up short to 5A-East foe and 13th-ranked Valley View in the championship round of the NEA Tournament. They’ll wrap up the first week of 2025 with a home conference matchup against Searcy before taking on No. 10 Marion to tip off next week. 

17. Harrison (13-4)

A 13-2 start hit a snag as the Goblins enter the conference slate on a two-game skid after suffering losses to Carthage (Mo.) and No. 21 Bentonville West by a combined six points. There is no time to rest with Tuesday’s trip to the always-hostile Hanger to take on No. 23 Mountain Home.

18. Conway (10-6)

Ben Lindsey had one of the state’s all-time successful runs at Magnolia and is now trying to create stability as the Wampus Cats’ third head coach in the past three seasons. He certainly prepared his squad for the night in, night out challenge of 6A-Central play as five of their losses have come to Top 25 opposition. Conway enters Tuesday’s conference opener against Little Rock Southwest on a five-game win streak. 

19. Hot Springs (9-6)

Former White Hall coach Josh Hayes is still in the brutal 5A-South, just wearing different colors, and along with son Jai, an Arkansas – Pine Bluff signee, is aiming to get the Trojans back in the mix for another playoff run after just missing the postseason last year. They recently took consecutive losses to No. 18 Conway and Holy Innocents Episcopal (Ga.) in the King Cotton Classic, and it does not get any easier with conference play tipping off against Lake Hamilton and No. 3 Benton this week. 

20. Russellville (13-3) 

A key injury hampered the Cyclones in the back half of last season after one of the state’s best starts, but they are feeling confident in Year 2 under Greg Chenault. They came back strong in their final nonconference game against Fort Smith Southside after taking one on the chin to No. 4 Mills, and their focus has now shifted to 5A-West play. 

21. Bentonville West (9-4)

A solid nonconference start under first-year coach Trent Loyd, who is just the second boys basketball head coach since the school opened in 2016, was capped by the Wolverines getting their best win thus far, surviving Harrison by a point. They have a chance to get a solid win streak going to start 6A-West play when they take on No. 24 Springdale Har-Ber and No. 14 Fort Smith Northside. 

22. West Memphis (11-4) 

The past few seasons have been far below the standard for West Memphis, but Blue Devils legend Marcus Brown has his team off to an impressive start in the first year of his second stint with the team. The Blue Devils have won five of their previous six games and have a big test Friday in the 5A-East opener when they tip against rival No. 10 Marion. 

23. Mountain Home (10-6) 

The Hangar is one of the toughest gyms to play in all of Arkansas, which is why it comes as no surprise that only two of the Bombers’ losses were there, each to Top 25 opposition. They have won seven of their past nine games and play host to rival No. 17 Harrison in the 5A-West conference opener before hitting the road to No. 20 Russellville to close the week. 

24. Springdale Har-Ber (6-7) 

The first of two teams with a sub-.500 record to round out the Top 25, it cannot be stressed enough to look at the level of competition as opposed to the win-loss record. All of the Wildcats’ losses have been by single digits — six by four points or fewer. The games really start counting during conference play, and Har-Ber handled business in the 6A-West opener against Rogers. 

25. Little Rock Central (8-9)  

The Tigers lost a lot of production from last season’s 6A state championship team and have certainly had no shortage of growing pains in their first season under Shelby Lewis, who previously was an assistant with the team. Every loss has come at the hands of out-of-state or Arkansas Top 25 competition, but they do have an impressive victory over No. 3 Benton on the resume.

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Kyle Sutherland, SBLive Sports
KYLE SUTHERLAND, SBLIVE SPORTS

Kyle Sutherland is a journalist and podcast coordinator for SBLive Sports, covering Arkansas.