February 13, 2011

Dallas Jackson
Senior Analyst

Dallas Jackson is the Senior Analyst for RivalsHigh. Email him your question, comment or story ideas to DallasJ@Yahoo-Inc.com and follow him on Twitter.

Call it "Jekyll and Hyde" syndrome.

In a classic look-ahead game, the previously No. 5-ranked Rockville (Md.) Montrose Christian lost its first game of the season Friday, falling 57-53 to Linden (N.J.) High at the PrimeTime Shootout in Union, N.J.

The loss likely ended the team's hopes for a national title, but the loss did not become a trend.

In fact, it responded emphatically, as Montrose Christian rebounded to hand previously No. 11-ranked Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep a 63-37 loss Saturday evening.

The loss was the third on the season for Findlay Prep - and the worst in program history.

The Pilots had only lost three games in the last three years under head coach Mike Peck and won a national championship in that span.

For Montrose Christian, it was a much needed win on the heels of the stunning loss. Last season, Montrose suffered a horrible end to the season, losing five of its last eight once the calendar flipped to February.

Led by Villanova-bound guard Tyrone Johnson's game-high 25 points, the Mustangs likely will not fall too far in the RivalsHigh 100 which will be released later this week.

ANOTHER UNDEFEATED FALLS

The list of unbeaten teams at the top of the RivalsHigh 100 was decreased by one as previously-ranked No. 4 Long Beach (Calif.) Poly fell 58-53 to Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman, at the Nike Extravaganza.

The Jackrabbits had been as high as No. 3 in the rankings and climbed to 22-0, winning three December basketball tournaments before falling to Gorman.

Shabazz Muhammad, a five-star junior, led the Gaels upset with 31 points including 22 in the second half and hit all four of his free throws in the last 30 seconds of the game.

Poly, which is paced by four seniors, struggled throughout the game.

The team shot just 31 percent and was outrebounded 39-33. Despite entering the final quarter with a five-point lead, it was unable to make the plays down the stretch to win.

The win was a potential signal of things to come for Gorman, which could enter next season as a top-ranked team.

All five of the Gaels losses this season have come to ranked teams: West Palm Beach (Fla.) Dwyer, Reserve (La.) Riverside, Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha, Elizabeth (N.J.) St. Patrick, and Findlay Prep.

Poly has completed its regular season and will begin its march toward a state title next week.

THEY DID THE MUNSTER MASH

Munster (Ind.) High entered the RivalsHigh 100 at No. 53 - and as the No. 2 team in Indiana - to start February.

It was second in the state only to previous No. 24-ranked Merrillville (Ind.) High.

But those two figure to switch positions following Munster's 75-64 win at Merrillville last week.

Both Munster's tight defense and strong outside shooting were the undoing for Merrillville.

The game was tight early but Munster showed it was the better team, leading nearly the entire game.

The Mustangs took a five-point lead into halftime. It was never closer than that, as the team expanded its lead in the second half to as many as 13 before closing with the 11 point win.

The game knocked Merrillville out of the unbeatens and leaves just Munster as the lone Class 4A unbeaten.

WHAT'S LEFT

Certainly there will be plenty of great playoff battles - with the most anticipated being a potential showdown between No. 1-ranked Jersey City (N.J.) St. Anthony and No. 2-ranked St. Patrick - but there are also a few regular season games worth paying attention to.