SBLive Arkansas Top 25 high school boys basketball rankings (Feb. 6)

By Kyle Sutherland | Photo by Braeden Botts 

For the second week in a row, Mother Nature halted games, with many teams statewide having to wait until the end of the week - and into the weekend - before they were able to play. The Top 12 stayed the same with a good bit of movement behind them, while a squad from Class 4A makes its debut in the Top 25.

1. Bentonville West (20-2) 

Survived a road fight with Fort Smith Northside on Friday and returned home in a rescheduled Saturday contest to defeat Fayetteville. Crosstown rival and fifth-ranked Bentonville comes to campus on Tuesday.

2. Blytheville (24-1)

Did not play last week. Tips off against Wynne on Tuesday.

3. Jonesboro (21-3)

Handled Bryant during a fourth-straight road trip and will get the season’s third opportunity against No. 10 North Little Rock on Friday after falling twice to the Charging Wildcats.

4. Central (20-4)

Did not play last week. Tips off against No. 21 Bryant at home on Tuesday.

5. Bentonville (18-4)

Performed well with heavy hearts in victories over Fort Smith Southside, as well as a Top 10 contest with Springdale. A massive Top 5 matchup looms against top-ranked rival Bentonville West on Tuesday.

6. Marion (18-6)

Did not play last week. Tips off against No. 18 Nettleton at home on Tuesday.

7. Pine Bluff (17-6)

Traveled down to El Dorado on Saturday and took care of business. The Zebras are now 11-0 in 5A-South play.

8. Har-Ber (16-5)

Continue to be one of the state’s most surprising teams having won six consecutive. More chances to make a statement await with all Power 25 matchups ahead this week.

9. Springdale (18-6)

Split games over the hectic week first with dominating victory over Rogers Heritage before falling to Bentinville in a seven-point loss.

10. North Little Rock (15-6)

Got revenge over Conway from the January 6 loss in a physical battle. A road trip to Little Rock Southwest looms before heading to No.3 Jonesboro with hopes of calming the Hurricane for the third time this year.

11. Cabot (16-6)

Had no issues with Little Rock Southwest and now looks forward to back-to-back challenging road trips to No. 15 Conway and No. 4 Central.

12. Fort Smith Northside (13-10)

Showed its record is misleading after going wire-to-wire with top-ranked Bentonville West on Friday. The Grizzlies have victories over Pine Bluff, North Little Rock, Har-Ber, and Fayetteville, along with multiple quality out-of-state wins, deserve their proper respect.

13. Farmington (27-0)

Everyone wondered if Huntsville might creep up on the Cardinals after hanging with them on January 17, but that question was quickly answered as Farmington won by 29 points the day after pummeling Gentry by 40.

14. Fayetteville (14-8)

Had three-game win streak snapped at the hands of top-ranked Bentonville West on Saturday. The Purple Dogs have two big opportunities to gain some momentum back this week at No. 8 Har-Ber and No. 12 Fort Smith Northside.

15. Conway (14-9)

Fell in a close fight against North Little Rock. The Wampus Cats have now dropped four of their past five contests and it does not get any easier for the remainder of the season.

16. Lake Hamilton (18-4)

Dropped two of past three games after winning 11 straight prior to that. The Wolves hit a three-game skid around this time last year and ended up making a deep state tournament run, so it remains to be seen how they will respond.

17. Hot Springs (14-7)

Don’t look now, but the Trojans have won six of their past seven games, including the latest revenge victory over a previously Top 15 Lake Hamilton squad moving them up six spots.

18. Nettleton (18-5)

On a six-game win streak, the Raiders are rolling and have their eyes set on a road trip to No. 6 Marion with a chance to tie the Patriots for first place in the 5A-East.

19. Maumelle (16-9)

Came out flat against Sylvan Hills but quickly got things rolling to take a brief lead in the second quarter and go on a huge run in the third that ultimately sealed the deal.

20. Magnolia (16-1)

After drubbing Ashdown by 29 points on Friday, it still remains to be seen if the defending 4A champions will be pushed in conference play from this point until the postseason.

21. Bryant (17-8)

Dropped third-straight contest - and fifth in past seven games - to No. 3 Jonesboro in a dog fight and must regroup fast with a road trip to a rested No. 4 Central squad up next.

22. Little Rock Christian (18-7)

On a two-game win streak after most recently thrashing Bauxite 58-18 as the Warriors look to finish on top of the 4A-5 in the final weeks of the regular season.

23. Watson Chapel (19-7)

Stay undefeated in 2023 following a road victory over Stuttgart to win 10th-straight game and advance to 9-0 in 4A-8 play.

24. Vilonia (17-6)

Did not play last week. Tips off against Catholic at home on Monday.

25. Joe T. Robinson (15-8)

The talent of the Senators seems to have come together having won 11 of their past 12 games - including a buzzer-beating victory over Little Rock Christian - and hope to keep building on the momentum.