SBLive's Michigan high school boys basketball Power 25 (Feb. 6)
Michigan high school sports scores
North Farmington boys basketball hands Muskegon its first loss
1. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (14-1)
Last week’s ranking: 1
Next game: Feb. 7 at Orchard Lake St. Mary’s
Ranking rationale: Brother Rice retains the top spot for another week. With how good it is and the competition it has faced, it’s hard to put any other team ahead of it.
2. Detroit Cass Tech (17-0)
Last week’s ranking: 2
Next game: TBA
Ranking rationale: Cass Tech ends its regular season schedule undefeated. Given everything I just said about Brother Rice, I still almost put it at No. 1 this week instead. But again, the Detroit PSL just doesn’t have the same level of competition as the Catholic League.
3. North Farmington (12-1)
Last week’s ranking: 3
Next game: Feb. 9 vs. Rochester Adams.
Ranking rationale: North Farmington asserted its dominance as a top three team in the state with a big win over previously unbeaten Muskegon last weekend.
4. Detroit U-D Jesuit (14-2)
Last week’s ranking: 5
Next game: Feb. 10 at Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice
Ranking rationale: U-D Jesuit rides a three-game winning streak into the No. 4 spot in this week’s Power 25.
5. Muskegon (13-1)
Last week’s ranking: 4
Next game: Feb. 7 at Zeeland East
Ranking rationale: Muskegon suffered its first loss of the season to North Farmington last weekend. It simply hadn’t seen a team like that this season. Now that it has, it’ll be more prepared come state playoff time.
6. Grand Blanc (14-2)
Last week’s ranking: 7
Next game: Feb. 7 at Flint Powers Catholic
Ranking rationale: What a surge it’s been for Grand Blanc. It has won 11 straight after a 3-2 start to the season, beating some good teams along the way. It’s a team that I wouldn’t want to play right now.
7. Detroit Loyola (14-1)
Last week’s ranking: 8
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood
Ranking rationale: Loyola rebounded nicely from its first loss with two blowout wins last week.
8. Ann Arbor Huron (13-1)
Last week’s ranking: 12
Next game: Feb. 7 at Temperance Bedford
Ranking rationale: Huron lost its first game of the season and still moves up four spots this week. Beating a good Benton Harbor team certainly helps.
9. Flint Beecher (12-3)
Last week’s ranking: 10
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Burton Bentley
Ranking rationale: Beecher moves up a spot despite losing a game. That loss was to Cass Tech, which is understandable.
10. Okemos (12-1)
Last week’s ranking: 13
Next game: Feb. 7 at DeWitt
Ranking rationale: Okemos moves into the top 10 thanks to several teams ahead of it losing. Later this week, it’ll look to avenge its only loss of the season to Grand Ledge.
11. Port Huron Northern (14-1)
Last week’s ranking: 15
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Grosse Pointe North
Ranking rationale: Port Huron Northern suffered its first loss of the season to Ann Arbor Huron, then won an overtime thriller over New Haven. It moves up four spots thanks to losses by several teams previously ahead of it.
12. Grand Rapids Northview (12-3)
Last week’s ranking: 6
Next game: Feb. 7 at East Grand Rapids
Ranking rationale: Northview loses two straight games to cause a steep drop in this week’s rankings. It was upset by Lowell and lost to Warren Lincoln at Aquinas College.
13. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (10-5)
Last week’s ranking: 9
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Cedar Springs
Ranking rationale: Catholic Central played a competitive game against Orchard Lake St. Mary’s up until the fourth quarter, where it ran out of gas. It lost an out of state game a couple of weeks back. It’s also had some scheduling issues. It’s been a strange couple of weeks for it.
14. Benton Harbor (13-3)
Last week’s ranking: 14
Next game: Feb. 11 vs. Warren Lincoln
Ranking rationale: Benton Harbor is in the midst of a brutal part of its schedule. It lost to Ann Arbor Huron, and now it's got back-to-back games against Warren Lincoln and Kalamazoo Central—two good teams. It's time to see what it's made of
15. Onsted (12-3)
Last week’s ranking: 11
Next game: Feb. 7 at Hudson
Ranking rationale: Onsted lost a game at home to a good Jonesville team. It falls four spots in the process.
16. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (7-6)
Last week’s ranking: 16
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice
Ranking rationale: Orchard Lake stays put after snapping a three-game losing streak with a win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central in what was essentially a true road game. It’s got a massive opportunity to prove itself at home against Brother Rice.
17. Hamtramck (10-6)
Last week’s ranking: 17
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep
Ranking rationale: Hamtramck stays put again, picking up a couple of nice wins in the process.
18. Taylor Trillium Academy (13-0)
Last week’s ranking: 18
Next game: Feb. 10 vs. Dearborn Advanced Tech Academy
Ranking rationale: Trillium stays unbeaten and stays put at No. 18 in the Power 25.
19. Warren Michigan Collegiate (14-2)
Last week’s ranking: 19
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Farmington
Ranking rationale: Michigan Collegiate lost a tough game against Grand Rapids Christian that came down to a controversial call at the very end of the game. It was just its second loss of the year, so it won’t drop in the rankings.
20. Warren De La Salle Collegiate (9-7)
Last week’s ranking: 20
Next game: Feb. 7 at Detroit Catholic Central
Ranking rationale: De La Salle continues to play inconsistent basketball, but it has still beat some really good teams this season, including handing Brother Rice its only loss. It stays put this week.
21. Romulus Summit Academy North (15-1)
Last week’s ranking: unranked
Next game: Feb. 14 vs. TBD
Ranking rationale: Summit Academy enters the rankings this week thanks to a 15-1 regular season record. It has this week off before the Charter School Conference tournament starts the following week.
22. Oak Park (9-3)
Last week’s ranking: 22
Next game: Feb. 9 at Ferndale
Ranking rationale: Oak Park lost a close one to a good Clarkston team last week. It stays put for now.
23. Grand Rapids Christian (10-4)
Last week’s ranking: 23
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Ranking rationale: Grand Rapids Christian won a wild game against Michigan Collegiate last week to bounce back from a loss to Byron Center. It’s a team capable of doing some damage in March, but it’s still a bit inconsistent.
24. Grandville Calvin Christian (13-1)
Last week’s ranking: 24
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Hopkins
Ranking rationale: Calvin Christian stays put this week. It’s got a home game coming up against a Hopkins team that’s won four in a row and five of its last six. That should be a good one.
25. Wyoming Tri-unity Christian (10-4)
Last week’s ranking: 21
Next game: Feb. 7 vs. Ravenna
Ranking rationale: Tri-unity Christian narrowly avoids falling out of the Power 25 after losing to a good Godwin Heights team. It has lost three of its last five games. It gets one more chance.