Terrell Rogers, the father of No. 1 Sacred Heart Cathedral star Tierra Rogers, was killed at halftime of the team’s game Monday in downtown San Francisco. Rogers, an activist who worked to curb gang violence in the often mean streets of S.F., went out for his usual halftime smoke and was shot down in cold blood by two men in hooded sweatshirts.
Rogers, who was a familiar figure on national and regional message boards, was an outspoken supporter of the Irish and his daughter, and his passion for the game will be sorely missed.
Our condolences to Tierra Rogers, the Rogers’ family and all at Sacred Heart Cathedral.
1. Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco CA) 15-0 (1): It’s hard to say how the tragic murder of a person so close to the team will affect the Irish, but rankings fade to insignificance in this kind of situation. The school has cancelled this week’s games.
2. Long Beach Poly (Long Beach CA) 12-2 (2): Life is much easier for the Jackrabbits now. Not only have they quit traveling – for teenage girls, they have an impressive number of frequent flyer miles – but they’re playing teams of lesser caliber. That will change next week, though.
3. Notre Dame Academy (Middleburg VA) 15-2 (5): The Dragons are still rolling along, and with upsets taking out the two teams ahead of them, they move into third. They play a representative team from North Carolina next, and then a showdown with regional rival Roosevelt of Maryland.
4. Lakota West (West Chester OH) 13-0 (7): The Firebirds are an awfully good team, and as the teams they’ve beaten keep winning, their record looks better and better. But they have to face tough Central Catholic of Toledo on Sunday.
5. Murry Bergtraum (New York NY) 11-0 (9): The Blazers keep rising, and won’t really be tested until they meet H.D. Woodson of DC on Jan. 27. Since Woodson played in the Nike TOC, it will be a good measuring stick for Murry Bergtraum.
6. Regis Jesuit (Aurora CO) 11-1 (10): Another beneficiary of top ten upsets, the Raiders move up. The only loss is to Notre Dame Academy in New York – but they do have to go to 15th-ranked Highlands Ranch Feb. 5.
7. St. Mary’s (Stockton CA) 16-0 (12): The Rams are very good, and very young, so expect them to see them here for a while. They do have a challenge Saturday, however, when they visit St. Francis – a game that has ‘upset’ written all over it.
8. Wichita Heights (Wichita KS) 9-0 (20): A big win over Bishop Carroll, the top 5A team in Kansas, vaults the Falcons into the top ten. This is another young team with its glory days ahead.
9. Centennial (Circle Pines MN) 13-0 (13): Teams that remain unbeaten this deep in the season deserve praise – and high rankings. It doesn’t matter who the opponent is, winning every time out takes a special group. The Cougars, though, have a test this weekend: always tough Osseo Friday, but at home.
10. Ben Davis (Indianapolis IN) 16-1 (11): It’s possible the Giants are too high, as their big intersectional win is against Detroit Country Day, a Michigan team out on the road for the first time. But Indiana is very good this year, and Ben Davis has beaten the team (North Central) that gave the Giants their only loss.
11. Murrah (Jackson MS) 17-0 (14): The Mustangs move up three spots, as they continue to dominate in Mississippi. LaSondra Barrett is the real deal.
12. Archbishop Carroll (Radnor PA) 10-3 (16): Some say this is too high, given the three losses, but those defeats are at the hands of Long Beach Poly, Sequoyah of Oklahoma and Bishop McNamara of Maryland. A loss at once-beaten Cardinal O’Hara Saturday, though, will be one loss too many for the top 25.
13. Heritage Christian (Indianapolis IN) 16-0 (21): The young Eagles are a junior-based team – though their leading scorer is a freshman – and they’re moving up the ladder. But they do have Dunbar of Kentucky coming up.
14. Archbishop Wood (Warminster (PA) 16-1 (NR): The Vikings jump into the rankings thanks to a win over Germantown Academy and the fact that their only loss is to No. 4 Lakota West. But avoiding another loss in Philadelphia will be no simple assignment.
15. Highlands Ranch (Highlands Ranch CO) 9-3 (17): The Falcons, as is often the case, took their losses at the Nike TOC over the Christmas break. Back in Colorado, though, life is good.
16. Sapulpa (Sapulpa, OK) 12-1 (19): The Chieftains won another Oklahoma tournament, and move up three spots. But they lost to Highlands Ranch head-to-head on a neutral court, so they stay one spot behind the Falcons.
17. Oak Ridge (Oak Ridge TN) 16-1 (NR): The alma mater of one-time Stanford and WNBA star Jennifer Azzi has lost only to Lakota West (sound familiar), and has a nice win over Glory Johnson and the Webb School. But the Wildcats haven’t played any of the rest of Tennessee’s best.
18. Shabazz (Newark NJ) 9-0 (24): Shabazz moves up after a convincing win over previously unbeaten Kings Fork of Virginia. The Bulldogs are pointing to a Jan. 27 meeting with New York power St. Michael.
19. Iroquois (Louisville KY) 13-1 (6): Losing to unranked Butler knocked the Raiders down to 18, and it might have been further but for their wins over Wilson Central and Dunbar. And now they have 11 days before their next game to dwell on the loss.
20. Wilson Central (Lebanon TN) 17-1 (22): The Wildcats beat Mt. Juliet, one of Tennessee’s top teams, for the second time, as junior post Jasmine Hassell was too tough inside. More than 3,000 watched as Wilson Central moved up three spots.
21. DeSoto (DeSoto TX) 25-1 (8): As mentioned before, DeSoto doesn’t travel, so any loss will have a major impact on the Eagles’ ranking. But losing to long-time Texas power Duncanville is no disgrace, so DeSoto remains the Texas representative in the top 25.
22. Eleanor Roosevelt (Greenbelt MD) 6-0 (23): The Raiders finally got to play a couple games, moving to 6-0, but the success of their short season will primarily be determined by the outcome of just a few games. The first big one will be against Notre Dame Academy Saturday.
23. Dunbar (Lexington KY) 18-1 (25): Only a loss to Iroquois mars the Bulldogs’ record, which also includes a win over Lexington Catholic, which just beat previous No. 3 Washington of Indiana. But 11-2 Lexington Christian is on tap, and that’s far from a gimme.
24. Lexington Catholic (Lexington KY)15-2 (NR): It’s a great year for Kentucky basketball, with three teams in the top 25. The Knights move in thanks to that big win over Washington of Indiana, which offsets a loss to solid Barron Collier of Florida. Lexington Catholic has also beaten Mount Notre Dame of Ohio and Cardinal O’Hara of Pennsylvania.
25. Washington (South Bend IN) 17-1 (3): The Panthers have to fall this far because of head-to-head results, but could rise with wins over Fenwick and Buffalo Grove of Illinois. A loss to either of those teams, though, will mean sayonara to the top 25.