Florida's Week 5 Team Rankings

1. DME Academy (15-0) DME moves up to the top spot in our rankings with their impressive, undefeated run on the season so far. They’ve won their last 3 since the previous rankings, and it was against some of the best in the nation. They knocked off Camden (SC) by 19, St Paul VI (VA) by 12, and once again beat Lake Highland Prep by 13 this time. [player_tooltip player_id="91653" first="Chloe" last="Kitts"] was named UBHI tournament MVP after a 24 point/10 rebound performance in the championship game and double digits in the two games prior. [player_tooltip player_id="91557" first="Sydney" last="Shaw"] was also named to the all tournament team with some double digits performances and distributed the ball well. They’ll be staying in the top 10 nationally for the foreseeable future. Their holiday matchups will be fun with St. John Vianney out of NJ for their first round matchup on the 29th. On Deck: Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational 2. Montverde (11-1) MVA has won two in a row since the last ranking, but they move to #2 with the lone loss to one of the best teams in the country by 5. They recently beat a very good The Webb School team out of Tennessee by 8, and they also beat Palm Bay handily by 23. [player_tooltip player_id="91554" first="Janiah" last="Barker"] had a double double in both of those game with 19/13 and 24/11, respectively. [player_tooltip player_id="219933" first="Mjracle" last="Sheppard"] has dished 10 assists total in the last two games as a very effective true PG who looks to pass first, and she’s also brought down a total of 13 boards showing her versatility and hustle. [player_tooltip player_id="219954" first="Fatima" last="Diakhate"]’s size has come up huge on the boards agianst these tough teams with 15 rebounds total in the last two contests. There’s a chance we get to see them take their shot at DME at the TBCI before their regularly scheduled game on January 12. They’ll have to get by Bearden (TN) on Dec. 29th first. On Deck: Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational 3. Lake Highland Prep (10-2) LHP lost in the UBHI championship game to DME by 13 which keeps them at this #3 spot with both of their losses coming to the same DME squad. They did win two since the last rankings though with a hard fought 4 point win over Cardinal Newman (SC) after being down 7 after 3 quarters, and they also picked up a 30 point win over Keenan (SC). [player_tooltip player_id="91555" first="Nyla" last="Harris"] would have probably been MVP if they had won with an average of 17.3 points and 12.7 rebounds per game at UBHI. She had a monster game against Keenan with 21/18, and a strong performance in the ship with 19/13. [player_tooltip player_id="91649" first="Eleecia" last="Carter"] knocked down five 3’s against Keenan and finished with 21 total. [player_tooltip player_id="217664" first="Lexi" last="Blue"] was impressive against Keenan as well with 17 and 7. [player_tooltip player_id="217666" first="Briana" last="Rivera"] continued her excellence with 20 points against Cardinal Newman and four 3’s against Keenan. They’ll face Centennial (NV) in their first game at TBCI, and they could have a shot at the top two FL teams over the break. On Deck: Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational 4. IMG Academy (8-1) IMG has went 4-1 since the last ranking with their one loss coming to powerhouse Duncanville (TX) by 9 points. They did get two really nice wins over St Paul VI (VA) by 5 and Minnetonka (MN) by 7. They’ll continue their national schedule with teams from TN, AL, GA, NC, OH, and some matchups against top FL teams like DME. On Deck: Ballin Prep National Showdown 5. St. Thomas Aquinas (7-0) STA has won 3 in a row since the last ranking against Dr. Phillips by 10, Boyd Anderson by 34, and Spruce Creek by 9. Their bracket is tough at TBCI, so they will continue to get tested as someone looks to give them that first L. On Deck: Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational 6. Wekiva (12-0) Wekiva has won four more and continue their undefeated season which is why they move up two spots in the rankings. No one came within 20 points even though they played a very good Colonial team who they beat by 26 thanks to [player_tooltip player_id="243885" first="Jada" last="Eads"] dropping 47 points! They will be one of the best teams at the Florida Prospects Holiday Classic, and everyone will be gunning to give them their first loss of the season. On Deck: FL Prospects Holiday Classic 7. American Heritage (Plantation) (9-1) AH is 4-0 since the last ranking and is up two spots because of it. They narrowly beat Dillard by 4, and took down Dr. Phillips by 17 in their two best wins since then. They have been dominant in 5A in recent years, and they have a solid chance of repeating that success with the squad they’ve put together. On Deck: Kreul Classic 8. Central Pointe (13-3) CP has lost one since the last ranking and dropped a couple spots due to that loss to Life Center Academy. They’ve got a massive schedule with a lot of big games left including some potentially great matchups at the TBCI. They are a really deep team full of college players that will continue to rise on a national scale. On Deck: Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational 9. Blanche Ely (8-4) The Tigers have won 4 of their last 5, but dropped a spot with that 15 point loss to Valley Vista (AZ). They did pick up a tough W over Centennial from Las Vegas, and they get a tough matchup against New Hope Academy (MD) at the ToC. This team will be a force in 7A when it’s all said and done. On Deck: Nike Tournament of Champions 10. Brooks DeBartolo (8-2) BDCHS pops into our rankings for the first time this year with 4 wins in a row. Three really good wins against Miami by 6, Gulf Coast by 9, and Plant by 1. This team relies on [player_tooltip player_id="91581" first="Jaela" last="Davis"] and [player_tooltip player_id="243947" first="Tyra" last="Kennedy"] to make some plays and score some points, but they have a number of other players who step up when called on. [player_tooltip player_id="166174" first="Maia" last="Lewers"] is growing as a player, [player_tooltip player_id="247224" first="Alaina" last="Williams"] has some big plays in the post, and Skye McCloud is an underrated piece on their team. On Deck: FL Prospects Holiday Classic <hr /> On the Bubble: Cardinal Mooney, Colonial, Palm Bay, Carrollwood Day, Westminster Academy, Seminole Ridge, Florida State, Miami Country Day, Gulf Coast, Clearwater, Spruce Creek