Many high school boys basketball teams break down the season into four segments.
They start with the regular season and do well enough to qualify for league tournaments. Then you have the league tourneys, followed by districts, and then the state tournament.
If you look at the season that way, we’re at the halfway point – the time between league and district tournaments , and what has been learned over the years is that league champions don’t necessarily do well in districts and district champs don’t always fare well in states.
In District 1 Class 6A, Coatesville hosts Chester at 6:45 p.m. tonight in a second round game. Chester defeated Wissahickon 59-59 in the first round and the third-seeded Red Raiders had a bye.
That said, here are the best teams in each classification in Eastern Pennsylvania boys basketball (Districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 11, and 12), with tournaments now underway in many districts. Local basketball guru Toomey Anderson, who has connections throughout the East, has provided the rankings:
Class 6A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Archbishop Wood (12) 17-6, 1
(2) Imhotep (12) 18-6, 4
(3) Coatesville (1) 19-5, 5
(4) Central Dauphin (3) 20-4, 6
(5) Plymouth-Whitemarsh (1) 19-5, 3
(6) Father Judge (12) 13-10, 9
(7) Methacton (1) 19-3 19-3, 7
(8) Central York (3) 20-3, 8
(9) Abington (1) 18-6, NR
(10) Red Lion (3) 20-4, NR
Notes: Central Dauphin’s Khalil Roberts made the game-winning basket in a 53-52 win over Bishop McDevitt to give the Rams their first Mid-Penn title since 2020. Coatesville won its third straight Ches-Mont League title with a 90-79 overtime win over Bishop Shanahan. ESPN’s No. 3 Class of 2028 prospect Colton Hillier reached the 1,000-point milestone in the victory. Central York lost to York Suburban 70-55 in the YAIAA semifinals.
Class 5A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Neumann-Goretti (12) 18-4, 1
(2) Bonner-Prendergast (12) 17-5, 2
(3) Upper Dublin (1) 21-4, 3
(4) Holy Ghost Prep (1) 17-2, 4
(5) West York (3) 21-2, 5
(6) Milton Hershey (3) 20-3, 7
(7) Abington Heights (2) 17-5, 8
(8) Penncrest (1) 19-4, 6
(9) Hershey (3) 19-2, 9
(10) Springfield-Delco (1) 20-3, 10
Notes: Neumann-Goretti junior Marquis Newson scored 16 points in his team’s Catholic League quarterfinal-round win over Archbishop Carroll. Bonner-Prendergast junior Korey Francis had 34 in a win over Archbishop Ryan in another Catholic League quarterfinal. Bonner and Goretti meet in Tuesday’s PCL semifinal at the Palestra. Upper Dublin junior Horace Jackson had 21 points in a win over Cheltenham for its third straight Suburban One Colonial title.
Class 4A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Berks Catholic (3) 22-2, 3
(2) Â Archbishop Carroll (12) 13-10, 2
(3) Carver Engineering & Science (12) 20-5, 1
(4) Pope John Paul II (1) 19-4, 4
(5) Scranton Prep (2) 17-5, 6
(6) Bishop McDevitt (3) 19-3, 7
(7) Dallas (2) 21-3, 8rr
(8) Bishop Shanahan (1) 16-7, NR
(9) West Philadelphia (12) 20-5, 5
(10) Northwestern Lehigh (11) 20-5, NR
Notes: Northwestern Lehigh repeated as Colonial League champions. Berks Catholic beat Reading 62-57 in overtime to win the Berks County League title. The Saints have won 16 straight. Kingston McCoy scored 29 points and added six assists in the title game. Carver was disqualified for players going out on the court during an altercation in the final minute of its Philadelphia Public League quarterfinal game against Constitution. E&S was leading 61-49 with just over a minute left when the incident took place. Constitution advanced to Tuesday’s semifinal. E&S is urging league officials to reconsider its decision to call it a forfeit loss and, in effect, end the E&S season.
Class 3A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Riverside (2) 21-1, 1
(2) Trinity (3) 20-2, 2
(3) West Catholic (12) 11-12, 3
(4) Lancaste-Mennonite (3) 22-2, 4
(5) Minersville (5) 22-1, NR
(6) Warrior Run (4) 21-2, 6
(7) MaST Charter (1) 21-3, 8
(8) Catasauqua (11) 19-6, NR
(9) Dunmore (2) 19-3, 7
(10) Notre Dame-Green Pond (11) 21-3, 5
Notes: Minersville stunned Pottsville 47-44 for the program’s first Schuylkill League title. Shazier Bethea had 14, Jonathan Bowers added 11, and Chase Zimerofsky blocked a potential game-tying 3-pointer by Pottsville at the buzzer. Lancaster Mennonite won the Lancaster-Lebanon League title. Dunmore’s Brayden Canavan scored his 1,000th career point in an 88=61 win over Holy Cross. Earlier in the season, Canavan hit a game-winning half-court 3-pointer to beat Old Forge, a shot highlighted by ESPN.
Class 2A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Delone Catholic (3)Â 22-1, 1
(2) Church Farm (1) 20-1, 2
(3) Constitution (12) 13-10, 3
(4) York Catholic (3) 18-5, 4
(5) Paul Robeson (12) 19-5, 5
(6) Tri-Valley (11) 20-3, 6
(7) Steelton-Highspire (3) 11-9, 8
(8) Northeast Bradford (4) 19-2, 9
(9) Old Forge (2) 16-6, 7
(10) Linville Hill Christian (3) 14-8
Notes: Constitution’s Nick Young reached the 1,000-point milestone in an 89-67 win over Olney. Church Farm has won 14 straight since a 57-42 loss to MAST Community Charter on Jan. 7. Tri-Valley lost to Pottsville, a 5A school, 70-44 in the Schuylkill League semifinals. It was the Bulldogs’ second straight loss after they won 14 in a row.
Class 1A rankings
Team, District, Record, Last time
(1) Sankofa (12) 17-8, 1
(2) Bethlehem Christian (11) 23-2, 2
(3) York Country Day School (3) 19-3, 3
(4) Chester Charter (1) 17-7, 4
(5) Coventry Christian  (3) 21-3, 5
(6) Sullivan County (4)Â 17-3, 6
(7) Lancaster Day School (3) 14-7, 7
(8) Weatherly (11) 15-7, 8
(9) LaAcademia Charter (3)Â 11-9, 9
(10) Lincoln Leadership (11) 12-10, 10
Notes: Coventry Christian beat Ephrata Mennonite 57-51 to win the Commonwealth Christian Athletic Conference championship. Bethlehem Christian rolled to the Atlantic Coast Christian Athletic Conference title, beating Calvary Baptist 73-18, Alliance Christian 78-44, and Salem Christian 79-46 in the league tournament. Myles Harris was selected league MVP, and Gabe Transue was voted the tournament MVP. Deion Swift and Nick Kasper earned second-team all-conference honors.
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