1. Gonzaga (moved up)
After a loss to St. Johns to bring in the new year on Jan. 5, Gonzaga bounced back and turned things around. Led by point guard Chris Lykes, the Eagles went into Hyattsville and pulled of an upset against DeMatha on Jan. 20. DeMatha was ranked No.8 in the country and were the clear cut pre-season favorites to walk away with the WCAC. We’ll see if the Eagles can keep up the level of play they brought into to Hyattsville to take down the Stags. As of now, Coach Turner has shown his team cannot just compete with the best, but beat the best.
2. DeMatha (moved down)
DeMatha got off to a great start this season. Led by returning WCAC Player of the Year Markelle Fultz, the Stags found their way into the No. 5 spot of the USA Today high school rankings. But loses to Oak Hill and Montverde Academy knocked the down in the rankings.
DeMatha had big win over Jayson Tatum and Chaminade before they played against rival Gonzaga. In a game that came down to the final seconds, DeMatha suffered their first conference loss of the season. The Stags are easily the most talented team in the conference. Along with Fultz, DeMatha has Junior phenom DJ Harvey and sharp shooter Nate Darling.
3. St. John’s (moved down)
This team could be atop the division in a matter of days. Anthony Cowan Jr. is good, really good. The Maryland commit has led his team to an overall record of 17-2 and 9-1 in Conference. Their only two losses come to last year’s national champion Montverde, and DeMatha.
With Anthony Cowan and players like Jeff Dowtin, Kylia Sykes and Dejuan Clayton, opponents should be worried when going up against this high-powered Cadet team. St. John’s, DeMatha, and Gonzaga are in a deadlock for first place, all having one conference loss. St. John’s could easily climb to one of the top two spots in the coming weeks with another quality win and no more losses.
4. Paul VI (moved up)
Although they suffered an unneeded skid of losses to Bishop McNamara and Good Counsel, The Panthers have played very good basketball led by WCAC top-scorer VJ King. They recently won their first rivalry game against O’Connell on Jan. 14.
In order to stay atop the Conference, Paul VI will need to pull off an upset at home against St. John’s or on the road against DeMatha or Gonzaga nearing the end of the season. The Panthers are going to have to fight to get a fourth seed this year, and it won’t be easy. The Panthers record doesn’t put them at the No.4, and it does not represent them well. Their recent style of play has looked like the Paul VI we’ve seen over the past years, as opposed to the skid early in the year.
5. Bishop McNamara (moved down)
Bishop McNamara were able to pull off a win against Paul VI, but fell to O’Connell. Jamir Moultrie has established himself as a star player in the WCAC, and could be the reason that McNamara can finally prove themselves to be a top tier team in the WCAC.
6. Bishop O’Connell
Although O’Connell beat McNamara, they are ranked No.6 because the simply have not been a force in the WCAC this year. They have been irrelevant to the top four teams. The closest O’Connell has come to beating a top four team is by eight points in their second game against Paul VI. This season has not been up to the standard previous Bishop O’Connell teams have set.
7. St. Mary’s Ryken (moved up)
Ryken has proven they might be moving up a tier within the WCAC this year. They’re playing at a level that can really contend with teams like McNamara and O’Connell, which is something we have not seen the last few years.
8. Good Counsel (moved down)
Good Counsel was able to pull off a win against a much more talented Paul VI team. However, the Falcons have not looked promising aside from that victory. The have lost by double digits to all the other top six teams. Who knows, but to prove their worth they’ll need a win against another top six team to show they can consistently compete with the top of the conference.
9. Archbishop Carroll
It has been a dismal season for the Lions. Their sole conference win was when the squeaked by Bishop Ireton by two at home. Carroll is 0-5 on the road so far this season. That has to change as they approach the heart of the season.
10. Bishop Ireton
Ha not won a single conference game. Enough said.
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