High School

Top 25 national high school boys basketball rankings (1/6/2024)

Jaxon Richardson, Cameron Boozer reassert Columbus at No. 1; Gonzaga College rises after strong Les Schwab Invitational showing

Andy Buhler

Columbus' Jaxon Richardson rises for a jumper against Lake Oswego High School during the 2023 Les Schwab Invitational in Portland, Oregon.
Columbus' Jaxon Richardson rises for a jumper against Lake Oswego High School during the 2023 Les Schwab Invitational in Portland, Oregon. / Photo by Leon Neuschwander, SBLive

In a holiday high school basketball stretch full of big matchups, shiny showcases and cross-country travel, preseason No. 1 Columbus reasserted itself atop the High School on SI national rankings.

The Explorers, led by Cameron and Cayden Boozer, toppled Montverde on Christmas Eve to win the City of Palms Classic— the largest-scale showcase of the season. Gonzaga College leapt five spots after winning the Les Schwab Invitational.

Lots of basketball was played in the month since the High School on SI national rankings were last updated. Who else rose, fell, dropped and debuted? Scroll down for the latest update.

Check out the National Player of the Year watchlist for 2024-25 along with the preseason SI Six All-American team.

(Senior reporter Tarek Fattal contributed to this report)

TOP 25 NATIONAL BASKETBALL RANKINGS, JAN. 6

1. Columbus (Fla.)

Record: 13-3 | TEAM PAGE

Explorers jump back up to No. 1 after taking home the City of Palms Classic championship, beating Montverde in a back-and-forth 59-57 Christmas Eve title bout. With the Boozer twins stymied and stifled at times, Columbus flexed depth with one of the country's best two-way players in Jaxon Richardson, who averaged 18 points on 73 percent shooting in the tournament.

2. Montverde Academy (Fla.)

Record: 8-2 | TEAM PAGE


The Eagles picked up its first losses in December to EYBL Scholastic foe Brewster Academy on Dec. 15 and made a City of Palms run that included a win over previously ranked Oak Ridge and a loss to top-ranked Columbus in the title for the early-season game of the year. Villanova-signed combo guard Dante Allen (16 points per game) leads the team's four players averaging double-digit scoring.

3. IMG Academy (Fla.)

Record: 11-2 | TEAM PAGE

Strong showing at the City of Palms Classic—wins over Texas power Faith Family (in double-OT) and La Lumiere before a 77-71 semifinal loss to No. 1 Columbus. Arkansas-signed Darius Acuff Jr., nation's No. 1 point guard, is a big shot-hitter.

4. Prolific Prep (Calif.)

2023-24 record: 16-3 | TEAM PAGE

The Crew capped an undefeated December with three straight post-Christmas wins at a Grind Session weekend in Hilo, Hawaii. An 11-point win over Columbus and six-point win over Utah Prep in December look better by the day.

5. San Antonio Brennan (Tex.)

Record: 19-2 | TEAM PAGE

You may know about Houston-signed 5-star point guard Kingston Flemings (20 points per game). But have you heard about hot-shooting Camden Cowgill (18.6 points per game), whose doesn't need many dribbles to get a shot off and whose off-ball movement is reminiscent of Klay Thompson?

6. Eastvale Roosevelt (Calif.)

Record: 18-1 | TEAM PAGE

Mustangs show no signs of hangover after winning Classic at Damien by going 3-0 at Tournament of Champions, beating Coronado, Sandra Day O'Connor and Layton Christian by an average of 18 points.

7. Harvard-Westlake (Calif.)

Record: 18-1 | TEAM PAGE

Wolverines win Hoophall West with a win over De La Salle (California) after a run that included a strong 66-63 win over Gonzaga College. Duke commit Nik Khamenia named MVP.

8. Gonzaga College (D.C.)

Record: 12-2 | TEAM PAGE

After beating the defending Oregon and Idaho state champs, then nationally ranked La Lumiere to win the Les Schwab Invitational in Portland behind a stellar showing from Virginia Tech-bound center Christian Gurdak, the Purple Eagles picked up their second loss of the season, this time to nationally ranked Harvard-Westlake.

9. Utah Prep (Utah)

Record: 14-4

AJ Dybantsa led an Iolani Classic title run and a It adds four-star BYU-signed seven-foot center Xavion Stanton sharp-shooting 6-foot-7 senior Hamza Zahran, a New Zealand native, from Oak Hill (who Utah Prep beat on Dec. 21) via transfer.

10. Dynamic Prep (Tex.)

Record: 20-3 | TEAM PAGE

Despite boasting losses to UIL foes Allen and Brennan, as well as an 18-point loss to No. 1 Columbus, Jermaine O'Neal's squad has won 11 in a row of its whopping 23 games played already. Jaden Toombs, SMU-signed four-star center, is averaging 14.7 points, 10.1 boards and 1.5 blocks per game.

11. St. John Bosco (Calif.)

Record: 17-1 | TEAM PAGE

Braves go 3-0 at Hoophall West. Elzie Harrington, new USC commit, scored 29 points in 62-61 win over Coronado. Can St. John Bosco keep it up with Brandon McCoy sidelined?

12. Perry (Ariz.)

Record: 13-1 | TEAM PAGE

The Pumas are off to a sterling start behind 5-star forward Koa Peat, the nation's No. 8 overall prospect (ESPN). After taking its first loss of the season to Harvard-Westlake (by three points), Perry rebounded with double-digit wins over Sunnyslope (Arizona) and Duncanville (Texas) at HoopHall West.

13. Grayson (Ga.)

Record: 13-1 | TEAM PAGE

The Rams went 7-1 since the last rankings update with wins over Oregon power Central Catholic, Oklahoma power Owasso and Georgia mainstay McEachern. Its lone loss of the season came via a 37-point blowout at the hands of No. 1 Columbus at City of Palms.

14. Link Academy (Mo.)

Record: 10-4 | TEAM PAGE

After beating No. 1 Columbus on Dec. 29, the Lions are amid a two-game skid with losses to Bella Vista Prep and Wasatch Academy. The mid-January Bass Pro Tournament of Champions looms.

15. Brewster Academy (N.H.)

Record: 12-2 | TEAM PAGE

Toppled Georgia power Wheeler before losing to Utah Prep in the Iolani Classic on Dec. 21. The Bobcats boast an imposing 6-foot-7 forward tandem of James Madison commit Preston Fowler and four-star junior Sebastian Wilkins.

16. Paul VI (Va.)

Record: 8-3 | TEAM PAGE


Took Back-to-back losses to Veritas Prep (in OT) and Wheeler in the Iolani Classic, then rebounded after Christmas with wins over Christ the King (NY) and Georgetown Prep (MD).

17. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (Calif.)

Record: 14-2 | TEAM PAGE

Knights go 2-1 at Hoophall West without Lino Mark and NaVorrow Bowman. Tyran Stokes scored 20, 17 and 34 in the three victories. Notre Dame's second loss came to Layton Christian.

18. La Lumiere (Ind.)

Record: 12-5 | TEAM PAGE

The Lakers, which boast one of the nation's most talented 1-through-4 lineups, are back to EYBL Scholastic play after a challenging December that featured a three-point loss to IMG in the City of Palms quarters and a double-digit loss to Gonzaga College in the Les Schwab Invitational finals.

19. Hoover (Ala.)

Record: 20-0 | TEAM PAGE

The Bucs keep rolling through a thus far unblemished season and haven't played a close game since mid-December.

20. Fishers (Ind.)

Record: 12-0 | TEAM PAGE

Perhaps the most impressive win in the Jason Gardner Jr.-led Indiana Class 4A power's undefeated start? An 85-80 victory over UConn-bound Braylon Mullins and last year's 4A state runner-up Greenfield-Central.

21. Allen (Tex.)

Record: 20-1 | TEAM PAGE

The Eagles have beat a lion's share of Texas powers and took the UIL's best team — Brennan — to overtime in its lone loss. Antoine Shannon (13.5 points, 5.7 boards, 1.6 steals per game) leads the way for an experienced grouip.

22. Mt. Zion Prep Academy (Md.)

Record: 15-1 | TEAM PAGE

Wins over Prolific Prep and Utah Prep overshadow its lone loss to Boys Latin (Maryland), which came by two points on Dec. 22.

23. DeMatha (Md.)

Record: 10-2 | TEAM PAGE


Dealt Texas power Brannan a 15-point loss in early December and is 4-0 since ahead of the start of WCAC play.

24. St. John's (D.C)

Record: 11-3 | TEAM PAGE

Brennan's lone losses came back-to-back to WCAC powers, the first being a 85-66 drubbing by St. John's on Dec. 6. WCAC play looms and the conference appears strong as ever.

25. Sidwell Friends (D.C.) (7-3)

Record: 11-3 | TEAM PAGE

The Quakers' Power 25 candidacy is bolstered by early wins over WCAC DeMatha and Paul VI, but they tripped up against Southern School of Energy and Sustainability in a three-point loss on Dec. 27.

DROPPED

Long Island Lutheran (N.Y.) (7-5)

AZ Compass Prep (Ariz.) (2-3)

Oak Ridge (Fla.) (7-5)

Greenfield Central (Ind.) (8-2)

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-- Andy Buhler | andy@scorebooklive.com | @Andy Buhler

-- Tarek Fattal | tarek@scorebooklive.com | @Tarek_Fattal

Published
Andy Buhler
ANDY BUHLER

Andy Buhler is a Portland, Oregon-based sportswriter with more than nine years of experience covering high school sports across the country. He's covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason, served on state tournament seeding committees and launched the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a journalism degree from Gonzaga.

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