Latest KBCA Rankings (Feb. 23rd) -- click here

One week left of the regular season and only one or two games left before Sub-State brackets are released; the high school basketball season is winding down. The KBCA has released its latest rankings and second to last rankings before postseason play.

This week 18 area teams find themselves in the rankings between Class 4A-Division II to 1A-Division II.

Four teams are ranked this week in Class 4A-DII; all four of which have been ranked for a good portion of the season. The Holton Wildcat girls and boys both continue to be ranked and are one of four area teams to have both girls and boys teams ranked. The lady Wildcats after splitting a pair of games last week with a win over Jeff West and loss to Nemaha Central are 11-7 on the season and remain ranked eighth, while the Holton boys earned wins over Jeff West and Nemaha Central to improve to 12-6 and jumped up two spots to sixth in the rankings. The Atchison Redmen boys are back in the rankings at number eight after falling out of the polls last week. Atchison after beating KC Schlagle and Harmon are now 11-8 on the season. Royal Valley picked up a big up at Nemaha Central last week but fell to Sabetha also moving to 12-5 on the season and rank ninth this week in the polls, moving down three spots in the rankings.

Both Sabetha Bluejay teams, along with the Nemaha Central boys remain ranked in Class 3A this week, as all three move up in the polls. The Sabetha boys jumped up one spot to second in the rankings with their 17-1 record after beating Royal Valley and Riverside last week, while the Sabetha girls also picked up a pair of wins to move to 16-2 on the year and moved up two spots to sixth in the polls this week. The Nemaha Central boys had a rough week taking losses to Royal Valley and Holton, putting them at 14-4 on the year, but despite the 0-2 week the Thunder moved up one spot to seventh in the 3A polls.

Five teams are ranked in Class 2A from the area this week, but only one made a move from their previous rank last week. The Washington County Tigers like Holton and Sabetha have both their girls and boys teams ranked in the polls as the lady Tigers are 18-1 and ranked third again this week after beating Frankfort and Linn, while the boys come in at eighth again and are 16-3 on the year with wins over the same two teams last week. The Valley Falls lady Dragons are the only area team in 2A that moved up in the polls this week up one spot to seventh as they are 16-2 after beating Jackson Heights, Immaculata and Pleasant Ridge last week. While on the boys side, Jackson Heights boys earned wins over McLouth and Valley Falls to improve to 16-2 and stay ranked sixth and Troy ranks seventh just behind the Cobras as the Trojans are 16-3 after beating Axtell last week.

The Twin Valley League highlights the Class 1A-Division I rankings especially on the boys side with four of the Top 10 teams hailing from the TVL. The Hanover boys despite suffering their first loss of the year remain ranked number one with their 17-1 record, after falling to Centralia last week and beating Doniphan West and Clifton-Clyde. The Centralia boys shot up the rankings after a 3-0 week beating Hanover, St. Mary's and Marysville to improve to 13-5 and move up four spots to third in the polls this week. The Panthers are one of the four area schools to have both the boys and girls teams ranked, but unlike the boys the lady Panthers fell in the rankings down four spots to seventh this week. The lady Panthers are 15-3 on the year after beating Marysville and St. Mary's but taking a loss to Hanover. Doniphan West and Valley Heights boys both remained ranked this week as they fell one spot and move up one spot, respectively to rank sixth and seventh in the polls. Doniphan West is now 13-7 on the year after beating Axtell and falling to Hanover last week, while Valley Heights sits at 12-7 on the season after a win over Cair Paravel last week.

The Axtell lady Eagles continue to be the only area team in the rankings in Class 1A-DII and the Eagles moved up to fourth this week as they are 16-4 on the season. Axtell notched wins over Doniphan West and Troy last week to improve to 16-4 on the year.

Many teams still have plenty of things up for grabs with Sub-State seeding’s to solidify yet and games to go before the brackets are released Wednesday, while closing out the regular season with momentum is on the mind of teams, as well.