Mike Ridaught
The Providence (Jacksonville) boys basketball team continues to remain No. 1 in the all-classification regional rankings.
But defending 1A state champion Williston is closing in, with 181 total voting points to Providence’s total of 196.
The top-ranked Stallions, winners of 14 in a row, are one win away from a spot in the FHSAA Class 3A state semifinals, but the new No. 2 Red Devils are already there.
Providence (23-5), which received nine of the 10 first-place votes to stay on the top, defeated Florida High (Tallahassee), 43-41 in overtime, in Tuesday’s 3A-Region 1 Semifinals. They also defeated P.K. Yonge, 69-22, in the regional quarterfinals.
The Stallions, who were state semifinalists last year, are ranked 11th overall in Florida by MaxPreps and No. 3 in 3A. They will host No. 7 Episcopal (Jacksonville) in Friday’s regional final.
Williston moved up one spot to second after previous No. 2 Paxon (Jacksonville) had its season come to an end with a 48-46 loss against previous No. 8 Raines (Jacksonville) this past Tuesday in the 4A regional semifinals.
The Red Devils (27-2), who are ranked No. 23 overall in Florida, took care of business with a dominating 95-37 win against Trenton in the 1A-Region 4 Final. They will face Chipley at 9 a.m. on Friday, March 1, in the Class 1A state semifinals at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
Their only two losses this season have come against nationally ranked Winter Haven and Mater Lakes Academy (Miami), the No. 16 overall team in Florida.
Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville), which has won 19 in a row, moved up one spot to third.
The Tigers (24-3) defeated Ribault, 56-46, in the 4A regional semifinals and Bolles (Jacksonville), 62-47, in the regional quarterfinals.
Jackson, which will host Raines (Jacksonville) for a spot in the final four, is ranked 12th overall in Florida & No. 1 in 4A.
Class 5A Mainland (Daytona Beach) is ranked fourth, while Episcopal (Jacksonville) rounds out the top five.
Raines is sixth, followed by Ponte Vedra, Paxon, Leesburg, and Ribault in the top 10.
Williston, which received the other first-place vote, is one of six teams in the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area who are either ranked or receiving votes.
Fort White, which upset Hawthorne, 56-51, in a Class 1A-Region 3 Semifinals, but lost at previous No. 13 Hilliard, 64-51, in the region final, dropped two spots and is ranked 19th.
Gainesville High remained 20th after winning its first postseason game, 47-46, against previous No. 11 Oakleaf (Orange Park) in the 6A regional quarterfinals.
The Hurricanes (18-12) had their season come to an end on Tuesday with a 58-44 loss at previous No. 9 Ponte Vedra in the regional semifinals.
GHS defeated Buchholz, 48-46, to win the 6A-District 2 title after two regular season losses to the Bobcats (18-11), who are receiving votes in the poll.
Buchholz’s season ended on Tuesday when the Bobcats fell at Wiregrass Ranch (Wesley Chapel), 71-62, in a Region 1-6A semifinal.
Previous No. 15. Newberry (15-9) dropped out of the rankings after losing at Hilliard in overtime, 68-67, in the 1A regional semifinals to end their season. The Panthers, who also lost in overtime, 76-74, to Hawthorne in the 1A-District 6 championship game, lost five of their last seven games.
Hawthorne (16-5), which advanced to the 1A state semifinals last season, is receiving votes.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, girls basketball, boys basketball, softball & baseball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on by sportswriters and sportscasters and it is powered by Anytime Fitness of Gainesville.
THE PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2023-24 BOYS BASKETBALL POLL #4
(School, followed by classification, first-place votes, current record, and total voting points)
Teams in bold are inside the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area
1. Providence (Jacksonville) (3A) (9) (23-5) – 196
2. Williston (1A) (1) (27-2) – 181
3. Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville) (4A) (24-3) – 178
4. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (5A) (21-6) – 167
5. Episcopal (Jacksonville) (3A) (24-4) – 155
6. Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (21-7) – 148
7. Ponte Vedra (6A) (22-7) – 140
8. Paxon (Jacksonville) (4A) (2) (21-4) – 135
9. Leesburg (5A) (18-4) – 122
10. Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (21-8) – 109
11. Hilliard (1A) (24-2) – 102
12. Eustis (4A) (22-6) – 60
13. The Villages (4A) (19-11) – 53
14. Oakleaf (Orange Park) (6A) (19-7) – 51
15. Riverside (Jacksonville) (5A) (18-9) – 44
16. Forest (Ocala) (6A) (20-8) – 43
17. University Christian (Jacksonville) (2A) (17-11) – 33
18. Impact Christian Academy (Jacksonville) (2A) (17-10) – 32
19. Fort White (1A) (17-7) – 28
20. Gainesville (6A) (18-12) – 25
Also receiving votes: Buchholz (Gainesville) (6A) (18-11) – 16; New Smyrna Beach (6A) (19-6) – 13; Newberry (1A) (15-9) – 11; Central (Brooksville) (4A) (22-7) – 11; San Jose Prep (Jacksonville) (3A) (13-12) – 10; Mount Dora Christian Academy (2A) (16-13) – 9; Palatka (4A) (23-5) – 8; Father Lopez (Daytona Beach) (3A) (19-7) – 8; Hawthorne (1A) (16-5) – 7; Deltona (5A) (16-9) – 3; Creekside (St. Johns) (7A) (18-10) – 2.