The Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) is touted as the best high school basketball league in the country. The league features top 25 teams going at it almost every night. This year the conference has three teams in the top 15 of MaxPreps “Xcellent 25” rankings. But, the crazy part about the WCAC is, everyone beats everyone, regardless of your ranking, record, etc., every game is up for grabs, and that is what makes this league so special. So, without anymore introduction, I’m going to give you my top five teams and why.
1. Paul VI (12-2 conference)
Key results: L @ St. John’s (77-48)
W vs. Gonzaga (83-73)
Paul VI is my pick to win the WCAC, not because they have the best talent, but because they are the best team. And, that’s not to say they don’t have talent, they do…the catalyst Aaron Thompson (Pittsburgh) is a great leader. And, they most likely have two high major players in Brandon Slater and Jeremy Roach. The problem for Paul VI is their bigs, and that’s why DeMatha was a real dogfight for them, which they ended up losing. But, they have the deepest and most consistent guard play in the WCAC, which makes up for their lack of size. The two stars Jeremy Roach and Aaron Thompson carry the backcourt, but they have a really good supporting cast with Anthony Harris and Miles Latimer. And even though he’s not considered a “guard,” swingman Brandon Slater is having a breakout junior campaign. I’m not ignoring the almost 30 point loss to St. John’s, because you can’t not acknowledge it. But, this team has grown from that, and if they put it behind them, why shouldn’t we?
2. DeMatha (12-1 conference)
Key results: W vs. Paul VI (75-70)
L @ Gonzaga (76-63)
This was an extremely tough decision for the number one spot, and what eventually made the difference is the loss of 2019 guard Justin Moore. Although they have been just fine without him so far, they were a complete team with him, now they lack scoring from the guard position. And that’s exactly where Paul VI and Gonzaga excel. Although DJ Harvey (Notre Dame) put up 28 points against Paul VI, big man Josh Carlton (UCONN) owned the boards propelling DeMatha to the win. Each team in the WCAC has its weakness, but before Justin Moore got injured, I thought this team was unbeatable. They have talented guards, the most size in the league, and they play well together. But when Moore got hurt, it forced point guard Ryan Allen (Delaware) into a bigger scoring role, which he has handled very well. But if he is off one game, there really is no backup.
3. St. John’s (10-4 conference)
Key results: W vs. Paul VI (77-48)
L vs. Palotti (56-42)
This article is titled “Power Rankings” that means that people are ranked, based on their play recently, and recently, the Cadets have been playing very well. The problem with St. John’s is that they are extremely inconsistent, are you going to get the team that blew out Paul VI by 29 or are you going to get the team that lost to a non-conference opponent that is below .500 in Palotti, by double digits? In the Cadets defense, the Palotti game was the first game of the season. But that doesn’t change the fact that they lost to Paul VI by 25 just a couple of weeks after winning by 29, that usually doesn’t happen, and Paul VI isn’t the issue. But, I was very impressed with what I saw from St. John’s Tuesday night, they struggled to get their star Reese Mona (Maryland) going on the offensive end, but others stepped up. Junior Tre Wood played a very good game, controlling his team and the tempo, while also providing big buckets. Senior guard Emmanuel Hylton also came up big as a scorer for St. John’s down the stretch. The Cadets have a chance to make some noise in the WCAC tournament, but the trio of Mona, Wood and Hylton will definitely need to come up big for them if they want to make a run at defending their title.
4. Gonzaga (11-2 conference)
Key Results: W vs. DeMatha (76-63)
L vs. Sierra Canyon (85-81)*
W @ Georgetown Prep (70-48)
It was really hard for me to have Gonzaga this low, because I believe they could have the most talented team in the WCAC, and one of the most talented backcourts in the country in Chris Lykes and Prentiss Hubb. But, my perception of this team, like many talented teams, is that when adversity comes, they get startled. When it’s all going well and smooth (ex. Georgetown Prep) Gonzaga will run up the score very quickly, because they have the talent to do so. But, when the other team goes up early (@ Paul VI) or when the other team shows some fight in a comeback (@ St. John’s) the Eagles tend to take some bad shots, and drift away from their play style. Also, in both of the Eagles losses in WCAC play, they needed to get Prentiss Hubb the basketball a little more, he is a very consistent scorer, but scorers need touches. But, if this Gonzaga team gets rolling, it’s hard to see a lot of teams beating them just because of their talent.
5. Bishop O’Connell (10-5 conference)
Key results: L vs. Paul VI (67-66)
W vs. St. John’s (72-61)
L @ DeMatha (73-71)
Even though the Knights have five losses in conference, they are all by six points or less. The point of that stat is that, although O’Connell only has that one signature win, a double digit win against St. John’s, they have played all of the top teams in the league tough, and you have to believe that one night they are going to finally catch a break. I don’t know who they will beat, but I think O’Connell is going to upset someone in the WCAC tournament. Their big man, Nate Watson (Providence) is very skilled in the post and on the glass, and provides a presence that is unmatched by any other team in the league, other than DeMatha. In order for the Knights to make some noise though, they will need their guards Xavier Johnson and Matt Lewis to have big games, which they have already done multiple times this season. You would be wrong to count Bishop O’Connell out right now.
As unpredictable as the WCAC is, those are my power rankings based on how I feel teams are playing right now. The championship is truly up for grabs.