Section III girls basketball rankings (Week 7): Top teams retain pole positions in latest polls

Syracuse, N.Y. — There was very little change among the top teams of each class in this week’s Section III girls basketball rankings.

All six No. 1 teams from last week held on to their positions, but there were a few changes among the teams nipping at their heels. Fulton moved from fourth to third in Class AA, Oneida made a similar move in Class A, and Sackets Harbor moved up one spot from No. 3 in Class D.

We’ve asked area media professionals who cover high school sports to participate in a weekly girls basketball poll. We reward five points for a first-place vote, four points for a second-place vote, etc. The girls basketball polls will be published on Mondays from now until the end of the season.

The voters

Lindsay Kramer, high school sports reporter for syracuse.com

Kenny Lacy Jr., high school sports reporter for syracuse.com

James McClendon, high school sports reporter/editor for syracuse.com

Pat Spadafore, high school sports producer for syracuse.com

Class AAA

1. Liverpool (12-1)

Last week: 1

2. Baldwinsville (10-3)

Last week: 2

3. Bishop Ludden (8-2)

Last week: 3

4. Cicero-North Syracuse (7-5)

Last week: 4

5. Rome Free Academy (8-4)

Last week: 5

Dropped out: None

Others receiving votes: Henninger (7-4)

Class AA

1. Central Square (8-2)

Last week: 1

2. Christian Brothers Academy (7-3)

Last week: 2

3. Fulton (7-3)

Last week: 4

4. Auburn (6-5)

Last week: Not ranked

5. West Genesee (6-6)

Last week: 3

Dropped out: No. 5 Whitesboro (5-5)

Others receiving votes: None

Class A

1. Indian River (7-1)

Last week: 1

2. Cortland (10-1)

Last week: 2

3. Oneida (8-2)

Last week: 4

4. Mexico (7-3)

Last week: 5

5. Central Valley Academy (7-3)

Last week: Not ranked

Dropped out: No. 3 Westhill (6-4)

Others receiving votes: Westhill

Class B

1. Little Falls (10-0)

Last week: 1

2. Utica Notre Dame (9-2)

Last week: 2

3. General Brown (9-2)

Last week: 3

4. Marcellus (10-2)

Last week: 4

5. Phoenix (9-3)

Last week: 5

Dropped out: None

Others receiving votes: Bishop Grimes (7-4), Sherburne-Earlville (10-4)

Class C

1. West Canada Valley (11-0)

Last week: 1

2. Hamilton (10-2)

Last week: 2

3. Tully (9-2)

Last week: 3

4. Westmoreland (7-3)

Last week: 4

5. Dolgeville (7-3)

Last week: 5

Dropped out: None

Others receiving votes: Cooperstown (8-5), Weedsport (7-3)

Class D

1. LaFargeville (9-1)

Last week: 1

2. Sackets Harbor (8-2)

Last week: 3

3. Copenhagen (8-4)

Last Week: 2

4. Madison (7-6)

Last week: 4

5. Stockbridge Valley (5-5)

Last week: Not ranked

Dropped out: No. 5 Watertown IHC (6-7)

Others receiving votes: Watertown IHC

Comments

Lindsay Kramer: Liverpool and Central Square are my No. 1s in AAA and AA, respectively, so I’m curious to see what happens when they meet for a cross-division matchup on Tuesday. In A, Indian River and Cortland still look like the leaders of that group, but there appears to be a wild scramble right behind them. Mexico is one of those challengers, and the Tigers will get a chance to dive right in with upcoming tests against Cortland and Westhill. Class D gets a heavyweight rematch when No. 1 LaFargeville visits No. 2 Sackets Harbor. LaFargeville took the first meeting between the teams earlier this season.

Kenny Lacy Jr.: Bishop Ludden took down Utica Notre Dame in a big-time interclass matchup over the weekend to move up in Class AAA. The Jugglers showed they can play with anyone despite taking the loss, so they’re still No. 2 in B for me. With two more games against AAA opponents this week, the Jugglers will have plenty of opportunities to make their case for the No. 1 team in Class B.

James McClendon: Without question, the biggest matchup of this week is between state-ranked Liverpool and Central Square on Tuesday. Liverpool has been my top pick for Class AAA for almost the entire season and the Redhawks have consistently proven to be the top team in Class AA. I’ll also be curious to see if any team poses a real threat to the unblemished records of Little Falls (10-0) in Class B and West Canda Valley (11-0) in Class C as the regular season heads into the final few weeks.

Pat Spadafore: A big game involving two Class D Frontier League teams will take place on Tuesday when LaFargeville (9-1) visits Sackets Harbor (8-2). The Patriots will be looking to avenge a 63-36 loss to the Knights earlier this season that accounted for one of their two losses. Sackets Harbor had already taken revenge on Copenhagen, its other loss of the season, with a 63-25 win this past Saturday, so anything is possible.

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