Top 25 Florida high school boys basketball rankings (1/24/2024): Winter Haven moves up to No. 4

The Blue Devils’ win over Riviera Prep elevates them a spot in our latest rankings

We switch over from the gridiron to the hardwood as it's high school basketball time throughout the country and there's plenty of great hoop action going on in the Sunshine State.

With Christmas and New Years now behind us, national tournaments will be wrapping up around the state that involved many of the top teams. Only a couple weeks remain until district tournaments begin, deciding who will play in the postseason. 

Who are those top teams everyone should be watching out for? We've got you covered with our third set of Power 25 rankings for boys basketball in Florida.  

Here’s the complete breakdown of Florida's elite high school basketball teams for the 2023-2024 season, as we see it for rankings. 

1. Montverde Academy (20-0)

Ranking rationale: Reason being, this Montverde Academy team is just absolutely loaded top to bottom. The Eagles have yet to lose a game yet and are playing the best basketball teams in the country. Could they run the table undefeated? Montverde features three McDonald’s All-Americans.  

2. Columbus (17-4)

Ranking rationale: The Explorers are another team like IMG Academy that has a loss to Montverde Academy and another nationally-ranked program, Wasatch Academy. Other than that? The lead duo of Cayden-Cameron Boozer and other twin nightmare of Jase-Jaxon Richardson have shown their dominance throughout the South Florida circuit and country for that matter. 

3. IMG Academy (9-7)

Ranking rationale: Yes, the Ascenders' have seven losses on the season but before judging their record too hard, see the following teams: Montverde Academy, AZ Compass Prep and Bullis are among them. All three aforementioned teams are national powers and would tough games for anyone on this list. The Ascenders are beginning to play some of their best basketball as of late. 

4. Winter Haven (20-1)

Ranking rationale: Remember these guys from a year ago? The team that gave the Columbus Explorers everything they could handle? Winter Haven is back on track to compete once again for the Class 7A state championship, with Isaac Celiscar (20.9) points per game) and Jamie Phillips (16.3 points per game) leading the way in the backcourt. The Blue Devils just defeated Riviera Prep 80-69 recently. 

5. Riviera Prep (16-5)

Ranking rationale: Last year's Class 3A state champions brought back many members of that very team, including guard Dante Allen. The Bulldogs have five losses, but they've come against some of the country's best in Columbus (see above), Winter Haven, Long Island Lutheran, arguably the nation's top club alongside Montverde Academy. 

6. Westminster Academy (14-5) 

Ranking rationale: Picking up where they left off last season, Westminster Academy has looked sharp against some of the state's better competition. The Lions this season played a nationally-ranked Long Island Lutheran club somewhat well, falling 83-59. The most impressive win to date came up against Oak Ridge earlier this season. 

7. Pembroke Pines Charter (17-3) 

Ranking rationale: There's no doubting the play of this Jaguars' team through their first 20 outings. This Pembroke Pines Charter team is playing really well, behind the play of 6-foot-7 wing Josh Harris, who is averaging over 20 points per game. Pembroke Pines owns an overtime victory over St. Thomas Aquinas this season and defeated Calvary Christian Academy recently. 

8. Fort Lauderdale Calvary Christian (12-6)

Ranking rationale: The Eagles have six losses, but take a deeper dive and you'll see the teams they're facing are among the best in the state. Oh, and two of them have come against Riviera Prep (see No. 4 above). 

9. Orlando Christian Prep (14-3)

Ranking rationale: The Warriors are always seemingly in the conversation when it comes to competing for state championships. There's no reason why Orlando Christian Prep won't be heavily in those conversations now with the way they're playing, with its losses coming to Corner Canyon (Utah), Westminster Academy and Winter Haven. 

10. St. Thomas Aquinas (17-5)

Ranking rationale: Playing all-around solid basketball are the Raiders of Fort Lauderdale. With just five losses on the season to Riviera Prep, Pembroke Pines Charter, Winter Haven, North Broward Prep and Lexington Catholic (Kentucky), St. Thomas Aquinas is a team that's shown the ability to compete with anyone in Class 6A. 

11. Oak Ridge (19-2)

Ranking rationale: The Pioneers didn't let a 1-2 start deter them whatsoever as they've strung together 17 straight wins since then. Oak Ridge's only two losses on the season have come against Bishop O'Connell (Virginia) and Westminster Academy. 

12. Sagemont (15-6)

Ranking rationale: The defending Class 2A state champions from a season ago have looked good from the outset behind the play of Kevin Thomas and Patrick Liburd. Both players are averaging around 17 points per game and will be relied upon to lead Sagemont throughout the season. 

13. North Tampa Christian Academy (21-2)

Ranking rationale: Making their debut onto this list are the Titans, who have yet to lose to a team from the Sunshine State this season. Only losses have come against Morton (Illinois) and St. Xavier (Kentucky). Impressive wins have come over Cardinal Mooney, Gateway Charter, Lake Worth and Seffner Christian. 

14. Gibbs (19-3) 

Ranking rationale: There's a new top team of St. Petersburg, Florida and that's the Gibbs Gladiators. It's been a pretty impressive start for Larry Murphy's bunch, coming off a 23-6 campaign last year. The breakout player for Gibbs this season has been freshman Oneal Delancy, who is averaging 16.6 points per game. 

15. Andrew Jackson (17-3)

Ranking rationale: Another team making their debut onto this list are the Tigers of Jacksonville. Since Dec. 12th, this program has arguably been one of the best around, winning 12 straight games. Wins over Gibbs, Ribault and Mainland have impressed. 

16. Victory Christian Academy (16-4) 

Ranking rationale: Steve Fitzgerald always does a very nice job with his Storm program out of Polk County, with the 2023-2024 campaign playing out no differently. Lorenzo Cason has been one of the county's top players not only in Polk, but the state as a senior point guard. The Storm have won 10 games in a row.  

17. Williston (20-2) 

Ranking rationale: We'd be remiss if we didn't make a mention of the defending Class 1A state champion Red Devils on this list. Williston is playing some high level basketball right now and all signs point to this team making a run at repeating as state champions. Only losses have come to Mater Lakes Academy and Winter Haven. 

18. Olympia (16-5)

Ranking rationale: After last season being the Jizzle James Show, the Titans are playing a lot more balanced all around. Three players are averaging 11 points or better, with Kamaren Wright leading the way with 16 per game. 

19. Northeast (13-6)

Ranking rationale: Class 5A better watch out as the Hurricanes are ramping up to be one of the state's better clubs heading into the new year. With just six losses under their belt, Northeast has impressed through 19 games. Leading the way is Landen Joseph, who is averaging 16.8 points per game. 

20. Western (16-7)

Ranking rationale: The Wildcats have played a tough slate of games through 23 games and two of their seven losses have come against teams on this list (Pembroke Pines Charter, Wellington). Other than that, Western has remained one of the tougher teams out of South Florida.

21. Dwyer (16-3)

It seems like no matter what year it is, the Panthers always come creeping up eventually as one of the state's better ball clubs. This winter provides no different story compared to past years, with Dwyer picking up some impressive wins along the way. Only losses have come at the hands of Jupiter, Palm Beach Lakes and Western.

22. Gateway Charter (15-7)

Ranking rationale: The Griffins have played a very tough regular season schedule and it speaks to some of their losses on the slate. Among Gateway Charter's losses are Gibbs, North Tampa Christian Academy, St. Thomas Aquinas and Victory Christian Academy. All four teams are on this list. 

23. Sarasota (18-2)

Outside of a loss to IMG Academy's national team to begin the season and North Port, Sarasota has been impressive. The Sailors remain the South Suncoast's top team and are winners of now nine straight contests. 

24. Mater Lakes Academy (14-7)

Ranking rationale: We know the Bears have lost seven games this season, but this is one of the more talented teams in the state. Mater Lakes has an impressive victory on its slate over Williston and has played national power Columbus and Riviera Prep. 

25. Wellington (16-4)

Ranking rationale: Hard not to like what's going on over in Palm Beach County with the Wolverines. This club has been winning games by a pretty wide margin. The point differential for Wellington this season is 359, with the four losses coming by a combined margin of 16. Despite a loss to Dwyer back on Jan. 9, Wellington remains one of the state's best. 

On the outside looking in: Bell Creek Academy, Blake, Brooks Debartolo Collegiate, Brooksville Central, Edgewater, Florida Christian, Hileah Educational Academy, Lake Highland Prep, Lake Worth, Mainland, Marianna, Milton, Norland, Northwestern, North Broward Prep, NSU University, Oviedo, Palmetto Ridge, Paxon School, Rickards, Rockledge, Sanford Seminole, Santa Fe Catholic, Sneads, Stranahan, Tampa Catholic, Windermere, Wiregrass Ranch

-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl