Nebraska high school boys basketball Top 25 rankings (1/30/2024)

Once again, only slight movement in the Top 25. Top-rated Bellevue West won twice against Top-25 foes, Millard North did the same, and Central took down Skutt. There was a little bit of a shakeup in the middle of the rankings, where Westview, North Star, Southwest and Millard West lost. Papillion-La Vista jumped onto the list for the first time this season. 

1. Bellevue West (15-1, Last Week #1)

The T-Birds keep piling up the wins, last week completing a tough two-game stretch that included ranked foes Creighton Prep and a road game at Kearney. Senior Jadyn Cascio Jensen was having a tough shooting year then went off for eight threes in the win over Prep. Robby Garcia (20), Jaden Jackson (18) and Steven Poulicek (12) combined for 50 in the road victory. 

This Week: Saturday vs. #9 Southeast

2. Millard North (14-2, Last Week #2)

Games against Westside and Papio South offered Millard North the chance to build some momentum for the final three weeks of the season. The Mustangs responded thanks to Elijah Gaeth in a win over Westside then made it three wins in a row behind the combination of Gaeth, Derek Rollins and Neal Mosser against Papio South. Gaeth had 29 in the victory over the Warriors. The Mustang senior plus Mosser and Rollins totaled 43 of the 71 points for the win over the Titans.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Millard South, Friday at #18 Millard West

3. Omaha Central (13-3, Last Week #3)

Central is on a four-game winning streak and has defeated two top-25 teams during that span. The second was last week, 49-42 over Class B Skutt. The Eagles overcame 34% shooting and 5 of 22 from beyond the arc with defense and rebounding. Central pulled down 15 offensive rebounds and held Skutt to just five second-quarter points.

This Week: Friday at #6 Gretna, Saturday at Fremont

4. Omaha Westside (12-4, Last Week #3)

The Warriors were looking for back-to-back wins over teams in the SBLive Top 25 but Westside was unable to contain Millard North senior Elijah Gaeth. Gaeth had 29 and made his first five shots of the third quarter. Westside led only briefly in the game, trailed by just six to start the fourth but lost by 20. It was an offensive struggle the next time out against Millard West, but Westside forced 17 turnovers.

This Week: Friday vs. #5 Prep

5. Creighton Prep (11-4, Last Week #5)

It was a tough week for the Junior Jays. Prep faced two road games at teams rated inside the top 11 and dropped both. A poor start at Bellevue West had Prep trailing by nine after the first then 14 at halftime. It was an eight-point first-quarter deficit the next night at Pius. Prep fought back to get within three at the half but then went cold and scored just five points in the third.

This Week: Friday at #4 Westside, Saturday vs. Millard South

6. Gretna (12-4, Last Week #6)

Teams in front of Gretna suffered losses but the Dragons have yet to beat Central, Prep or Westside and thus remain at No. 6. Gretna knocked off top-20 team Papio South by scoring 45 first-half points, shooting 10 of 17 from three and getting 24 from senior Kade Cook. A slow start generated just nine points in the first eight minutes at Millard South. Gretna picked it up in the second quarter, scored 24 to take a seven-point halftime lead then allowed just seven from the Patriots in the third.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Omaha Northwest, Friday vs. #3 Central

7. Omaha North (11-2, Last Week #7)

Both teams settled for threes in a game against Elkhorn South and combined to hit 9 of 35. The Vikings never pulled away because of that but earned an 18-6 advantage in free throws. Mynor Strong had 26 and was 5 of 7 for three the next night while North was 7 of 13 from long range overall. That plus a defense that gave up just 16 combined points in the middle two quarters gave the Vikings a 19-point win at Fremont.

This Week: Tuesday at #25 Papio, Friday at Benson

8. Omaha Bryan (12-4, Last Week #8)

A tough loss to No. 1 Bellevue West led into a week with three games on the schedule. Bryan took down Grand Island, Omaha Northwest and Papio on the road and won each game by double digits. An 81-59 win over Northwest was the second-highest scoring game of the season and included 22 by A’mare Bynum and 21 of 25 shooting at the line as a team.

This Week: Friday at #14 Kearney, Saturday at Benson

9. Lincoln Southeast (14-4, Last Week #10)

Southeast looks like it's rounding into a group that can challenge for the state tournament following three wins, two on the road. The Knights shot 50% and pulled down 11 offensive rebounds at East, hit 52% and had 12 more offensive boards at Fremont then shot 54% and forced Westview into taking 31 of its 48 shot attempts from the perimeter. The Wolverines hit just five, and Southeast won a 70-47 blowout.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Norfolk, Saturday at #1 Bellevue West

10. Lincoln Pius X (11-4, Last Week #11)

Pius put together arguably its two best wins since a revenge win over Southeast on Jan. 11. The Bolts took down Class B Skutt 64-54 then top-10 Prep 63-58. Pius shot just 39% overall but made its threes at 50% and cashed in nine of those to knock off Skutt. A hot start against Prep faded in the second quarter. Pius then gave up just nine in the third and held onto a nine-point lead going into the fourth.

This Week: Tuesday vs. #14 Kearney, Friday at #19 North Star, Saturday vs. Omaha Northwest

11. Papillion-La Vista South (10-6, Last Week #9)

A difficult set of opponents continued for the Titans, and so did the losing skid. Following losses to Central and Westside the week before, Papio South suffered setbacks at Gretna and Millard North. The Titans finally snapped the skid during a win at Northeast. That win also ended a skid of six losses in a row to teams with winning records.

This Week: Saturday at East

12. Crete (16-0, Last Week #12)

Crete ran away with the Central Conference crown with wins over Lexington, York and Adams Central. None of the three were competitive. The Cardinals get another cupcake in a Tuesday trip to Schuyler then have two of the next three against opponents that could threaten Crete’s perfect record. It starts Thursday against Wahoo then continues Feb. 10 against Ogallala.

This Week: Tuesday at Schuyler, Thursday vs. Wahoo

13. Norris (13-1, Last Week #13)

Norris had played four of its last five against teams with winning records then went on the road to 4-10 Hastings. It looked like a chance to build momentum to start three straight road games, but Norris trailed to start the fourth and had to put together a solid fourth. Shooting 24 threes, and hitting just 33%, allowed Hastings to hang around.

This Week: Tuesday at Beatrice, Friday at Lincoln Christian

14. Kearney (10-4, Last Week #14)

Kearney picked up its first win over a team above .500 on Friday, blowing out North Star 67-51. Jacob Webber (28) and Asher Endorf (22) combined for 50, and Webber had seven threes. Long-range shooting the next afternoon against top-rated Bellevue West proved to be the difference in a 74-63 T-Birds win. The visitors were 10 of 22 from distance while Kearney went 6 of 21.

This Week: Tuesday at #10 Pius X, Friday vs. #8 Bryan, Saturday at Northeast

15. Omaha Westview (8-7, Last Week #15)

A win over Gretna East that included poor (3 of 16) three-point shooting perhaps signaled future trouble for Westview. The Wolverines found a way in that one but scored fewer than 50 points The next time out, Westview went 5 of 16 from beyond the arc and lost 70-47 to Southeast. Westview hangs on to No. 15 thanks to losses by four of the next five teams in the rankings below the Wolverines.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Buena Vista, Friday vs. Grand Island

16. Elkhorn (12-1, Last Week #17)

Elkhorn needed a confidence-building win following a blowout loss to Crete but the Antlers had to battle against 9-7 Bennington. It was a three-point halftime lead that turned into a seven-point hole to start the fourth. The defense picked it up over the final eight minutes and gave up just five to start the comeback. A 15-4 start against Lincoln Northwest started a 60-41 win.

This Week: Saturday at Hastings

17. Lincoln Southwest (8-6, Last Week #19)

Southwest moves up two spots despite losing to 7-8 East. Compared to the teams around the Silver Hawks – Skutt, North Star and Millard West each lost twice – that one was less damaging. Southwest also beat one of those three (Millard West) and blew out Bellevue East by 27.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Northeast, Friday at Gretna East

18. Millard West (8-7, Last Week #20)

Millard West also rises slightly because its losses have been to teams above the Wildcats in the ratings. They hung around with No. 17 Southwest but committed a late foul and lost on free throws. Millard West shot the ball well against Westside but committed 17 turnovers and went 5 of 14 from the line. The Wildcats broke a four-game losing streak at Lincoln High in a wild one that included a nine-point lead that became a seven-point deficit and swung back to another nine-point lead.

This Week: Tuesday vs. Burke, Friday vs. #2 Millard North, Saturday a #25 Papio

19. Lincoln North Star (7-6, Last Week #16)

North Star has plenty of games remaining but the Navigators have yet to beat a team above .500. That trend continued last week in a loss to Kearney but also included a loss to 6-11 Elkhorn South. North Star generated 10 more shots than Elkhorn South but hit just 34%. The Gators couldn’t contain Kearney’s Jacob Webber and he made them pay with eight threes. Twelve threes and 44% from the perimeter added up to a 13-point win over Benson.

20. Skutt Catholic (9-5, Last Week #18)

Skutt faced two top-10 teams and hung around but couldn’t close the deal. Pius sank nine threes and grabbed 13 offensive boards during a 64-54 Thunderbolt win. Rebounding was an issue again when Central shot 34% overall and 23% from three but still beat Skutt 49-42 because of 15 offensive rebounds.

This Week: Tuesday at Bennington, Saturday at Mount Michael

21. Auburn (16-0, Last Week #21)

The Bulldogs are the last remaining unbeaten team in Class C-1 and one of just four across the state of Nebraska. Auburn picked up three wins last week and none were competitive. Victories included by 60 over Falls City, by 39 against Lourdes Central Catholic and by 55 against Palmyra.

This Week: Thursday vs. Mead (East Central Tournament)

22. Ogallala (18-1, Last Week #22)

Ogallala rolled to a Southwest Conference title by beating the likes of Valentine, Holdrege and Cozad by an average of 23 points. The Indians took the championship 62-52 over 14-4 Cozad by forcing 12 turnovers and holding the Haymakers to 36% shooting.

This Week: Friday at McCook, Saturday vs. Broken Bow

23. Scottsbluff (14-4, Last Week #25)

The Bearcats won three in a row on three consecutive days and claimed the Western Conference Championship over Sidney 67-60. Scottsbluff executed well in that one, shot 51%, 44% from the three-point line and earned 15 trips to the foul line. Rylee Meininger had 23 in the victory.

This Week: Friday vs. Alliance, Saturday at Sidney

24. Sidney (16-2, Last Week #24)

The Red Raiders remain in the same spot but were jumped by Scottsbluff due to a head-to-head win in the conference tournament. It was the second loss in eight days following a road defeat in Colorado. Sidney gets a chance to answer back at home on Saturday.

This Week: Friday at Gering, Saturday vs. #23 Scottsbluff

25. Papillion-La Vista (8-6, Last Week Unrated)

Papio lost its only game last week – not normally a result that would get a team in the top 25 for the first time all season. However, the Monarchs are the final Class A team on this list with a winning record. Northeast drops out after losing twice and falling to 7-9. If East hadn’t lost to Elkhorn South, the Spartans likely would have been the final team in the ratings.

--Nathan Charles I @SBLIveNeb