FCP Top 25 - Jan. 24

Like many elite teams across the country, Long Beach Poly, No. 2 in the Full Court Press Top 25, is not being challenged in league play - poor preparation for a very tough postseason ahead.

PHOTOS BY GLENN NELSON

Carl Buggs and Long Beach Poly have a problem - and it's a familiar one to many elite programs.

The Moore league, in which the second-ranked Jackrabbits play, isn't what it used to be, meaning Poly is getting a steady diet of blowout wins. The problem? Forty-point victories don't prepare a team for postseason, especially the postseason the Jackrabbits are going to face.

The Southern Section, one of 10 in California, has decided to put all its best teams, regardless of enrollment, in one playoff bracket. That means No. 10 Brea-Olinda, Troy (three losses in three years), Ventura (with 6-feet-5 Kali Bennett), Lynwood (a perennial power) and Bishop Amat (a defending state champion) will have to go through each other to advance to the Southern California regionals. It's possible that as many as five teams from that eight-team bracket will advance, but it's also possible that only two or three will.

And Buggs, Poly's coach, is worried that the weakness of the Moore League will make it hard for his team to a) stay motivated, and b) stay sharp before the playoffs start. "It's a challenge," he says, and it's a challenge for a lot of top teams - and it's one reason that some of the teams listed below won't wind up winning their state championships.

1. Collins Hill (Suwanee, Ga.) 19-0: Not much new and exciting for the Eagles, who are simply waiting for the state playoffs. There, they'll see number five Stephenson and other Georgia powers like South Gwinnett - in the meantime, it's not much of a challenge. Last week: 1.

2. Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) 17-1: Wilson used to be a tough intracity matchup for the Jackrabbits, but this time it was 72-36. Millikan is another rival, but 6-2 Samantha Marez was named league MVP over Poly star Jasmine Dixon last year, so expect some debts to be paid. Last week: 2.

3. Notre Dame Academy (Middleburg, Va.) 17-1: The Dragons are dominant, with only a late-game collapse against Collins Hill between them and the number-one ranking. There's not much danger this week, but Riverdale Baptist and Pennsylvania's Germantown Academy aren't that far down the road. Last week: 3.

4. St. Elizabeth (Wilmington, Del.) 12-1: Germantown Academy pops up again, as the Patriots will face St. Elizabeth on Saturday, but the Vikings are unlikely to stumble. Their only loss, after all, is to Collins Hill. Last week: 4.

5. Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) 19-0: "We’re playing really well right now," understates coach Dennis Watkins, who lacks the post presence of many elite teams but makes up for it with cohesion. "This is the best passing team I’ve ever had." Last week: 5.

FCP Top 25

1. Collins Hill
2. Long Beach Poly
3. Notre Dame Academy
4. St. Elizabeth
5. Stephenson
6. Murry Bergtraum
7. Bolingbrook
8. Rockwall
9. Lexington Catholic
10. Brea-Olinda
11. Cy-Fair
12. Fenwick
13. Incarnate Word
14. Edison
15. Lee’s Summit
16. Archbishop Mitty
17. Christ the King
18. Winter Haven
19. Washington
20. The First Academy
21. St. Paul Central
22. Lewis and Clark
23. North Little Rock
24. Bishop McGuinness
25. Sequoyah

Dropped out:
14 St. Thomas Aquinas
25. Shelbyville Central

6. Murry Bergtraum (Manhattan, N.Y.) 17-0: The Blazers needed just about all of Erica Morrow’s 33 points to hold off Manhattan Central, 67-58, before disposing of Philly’s Neumann-Goretti 70-45. Now Bergtraum is off for finals, and won’t play again until Jan. 31. Last week: 6.

7. Bolingbrook (Bolingbrook, Ill.) 19-1: Fenwick has one loss – to Bolingbrook. Incarnate Word has one loss – to Bolingbrook. Hickman has one loss – to Bolingbrook. But Bolingbrook lost to Morton, so the Raiders must settle for seventh. Last week: 7.

8. Rockwall (Rockwall, Texas) 28-0: Lakeview Centennial is second to Rockwall in District 10, so one might expect somewhat of a challenge for the Jackets. Not so much: Rockwall 66, Lakeview Centennial 25. Last week: 8.

9. Lexington Catholic (Lexington, Kent.) 18-1: Five-eight point guard Brianna Green had 24 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals – a pretty fair night’s (or Knight’s) work – in an 85-69 win over Mason County. Dunbar might be a bit of a problem Thursday, but most likely it will be another easy one for the Knights. Last week: 9.

10. Brea-Olinda (Brea, Calif.) 19-0: Another big SoCal game Saturday against 16-4 San Clemente, as the Wildcats prepare for the harrowing Southern Section playoffs. Last week: 10.

11. Cy-Fair (Houston, Texas) 29-0: Another pair of yawners for the Bobcats as Nneka Ogwumike totaled 46 points and 20 rebounds. Too bad Cy-Fair doesn’t get challenged more often. Last week: 11.

12. Fenwick (Oak Park, Ill.) 20-1: The Friars are 20-1, with the only loss to Bolingbrook, so to keep things interesting, they’re going to play two games on Saturday. It won’t slow them down. Last week: 12.

13. Incarnate Word (St. Louis, Mo.) 16-1: The Red Knights are one of three elite Missouri teams and though they have a loss (to Bolingbrook), they also won the Fort Smith Tournament of Champions, the best event in the Midwest – which keeps them ahead of Lee’s Summit and Hickman. Last week: 13.

14. Edison (Alexandria, Va.) 16-1: The Eagles recorded triple digits in three straight games, which is an impressive feat in just 32 minutes. Things probably won’t get much tougher for about a month. Last week: 15.

15. Lee’s Summit (Lee’s Summit, Mo.) 18-0: The Tigers vault into the rankings on the strength of a 53-48 win over previous number 14 and previously unbeaten St. Thomas Aquinas. Aquinas had wins over top teams in Nebraska and Oklahoma, and so Lee’s Summit is now slotted above them as well. Last week: NR.

16. Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) 14-2: The Monarchs will step outside of their league to take on NorCal power Berkeley Saturday. This is the final season for Yellowjackets’ coach Gene Nakamura, a Bay Area icon. Last week: 16.

17. Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.) 11-3: After knocking off once-beaten Red Bank Catholic, the Royals will focus on NYC opponents, and unlike years’ past, they can’t afford to relax too much. After all, Chamique Holdsclaw, Sue Bird, Shay Doron and Tina Charles, all alumnae, are no longer around. Last week: 17.

18. Winter Haven (Winter Haven, Fla.) 19-3: The Blue Devils, like so many elite teams, will coast into postseason. IMG, supposedly a tough opponent, went down 67-31. Last week: 18.

19. Washington (South Bend, Ind.) 19-1: Skylar Diggins has scored 1,000 points in her career, an impressive milestone – but remember, she’s just a sophomore. She had 31, plus eight assists, seven rebounds, and six steals in an 81-53 win over Clay. Last week: 19.

20. The First Academy (Orlando, Fla.) 19-3: Bishop Moore has lost just once, to Winter Haven in the first game of the season, and First Academy’s only in-state loss is also to Winter Haven. The winner of Thursday’s game between TFA and Bishop Moore is in the top 25; the loser fades away. Last week: 20.

21. St. Paul Central (St. Paul, Minn.) 16-0: Make it five straight games in the 90s for the Minutemen, who are just biding their time until the postseason. Last week: 21.

22. Lewis and Clark (Spokane, Wash.) 14-0: The convoluted Washington playoff system could match Lewis & Clark against University three more times – and they’ve already played twice. Last week: 22.

23. North Little Rock (Little Rock, Ark.) 16-1: Sherina Scott leads the way for the Charging Wildcats, who may be having an easy time of it now, but will have to earn an Arkansas state title. Last week: 23.

24. Bishop McGuinness (Kernersville, N.C.) 18-1: Bishop McGuiness just keeps winning, but a mediocre schedule keeps them from rising any higher. Last week: 24.

25. Sequoyah (Tahlequah, Okla.) 11-0: The ice postponed a slew of Sequoyah games, but the Indians won the one that really counted early in the year when they beat Sapulpa. Make it 22 in a row for a team with no seniors. Last week: NR

Dropped out: 14. St. Thomas Aquinas (Overland Park, Kan.), 25. Shelbyville Central (Shelbyville, Tenn.)

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Clay Kallam is the publisher of Full Court Press (www.Fullcourt.com), an online magazine devoted to women’s basketball. The author of the book “Girls Basketball: Building a Winning Program (Wish Publishing, 2002), Kallam has written about the women’s game for several national publications and is a voter for the McDonald’s All-American team, the Parade All-American team, the All-WNBA team and the Wooden Award. He is the coach of The Bentley School girls’ varsity basketball team and formerly wrote for the Contra Costa Times newspaper chain.