The SMAA basketball boys rankings remain unchanged as the top five teams from a week ago all won both their games this week. Interestingly, the top three teams all had to play at least one game without their top player – Cheverus’ Indiana Faithfull was serving a one-game suspension for getting ejected for his part in a fracas during the Stags’ blowout win over city rival Portland, South Portland’s Keegan Hyland is still out with a stress fracture and Westbrook’s Dominic Borelli missed a third straight game with an unspecified lower body injury. What we’ve learned is none of these teams is a one-man show.

Over on the girls side, things are a bit more interesting. Scarborough remains on top and is the only unbeaten team left. Deering got a big win over Biddeford to leapfrog the Tigers for the No. 2 spot. McAuley edged Cheverus in part one of the Holy War and the two teams trade places in the four and five slots.

For games played through Dec. 19

Boys Basketball Front Five:

1. Cheverus (5-0): It doesn’t matter who is on the court, the Stags just continue to roll. Faithfull, their all-state Aussie point guard, was tossed in the first half of Tuesday night’s game with Portland after getting tangled up and scuffling with Jake Alexander, who was also ejected. After losing its leader, Cheverus responded by coming out in the second half and blowing the doors off the Bulldogs, winning 63-35. With Faithfull automatically suspended for the next game, the Stags jumped on Windham – a team expected by many to contend in the league this season – early and cruised to a 61-43 win.

2. South Portland (6-0): The Red Riots continue to beat up on the York County schools, defeating Sanford and Marshwood during the past week. If they can top Noble this week, they’ll take an unblemished record into 2010, which would be quite a feat since Hyland, the league’s top scorer the past two years, has yet to play. Once he returns, this South Portland team will be one to be reckoned with.

3. Westbrook (4-1): With Borelli out, Sean Murphy is taking up some of the scoring slack. In the Blue Blazes’ two wins during the week (over Massabesic and Scarborough) Murphy hit 10 3-pointers, five in each game. He’s got serious range and doesn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. Westbrook also lost starting point guard Jose Nouchanthavong to a sprained ankle late in the first half against Scarborough, so the upcoming holiday break will be welcomed as the Blazes look to heal up for the second half of the season.

4. Thornton Academy (5-0): The Golden Trojans have done what they’ve needed to do through the first five games, but the next five games will be very telling. Deering is on tap this week, then road games against Cheverus, Scarborough and South Portland kick off the New Year, followed by Westbrook at home. How good are the defending state champs? We’ll have a much better idea in mid-January.

5. Deering (5-0): The Rams weren’t getting a lot of preseason accolades, and they might just be taking it personally. While their early schedule hasn’t exactly been brutal, they’ve been the most dominant team thus far, winning every game by double figures. Deering’s last two wins – both on the road – were especially impressive, 74-40 over Gorham and 80-50 over Biddeford. In each of those games, the Rams had four players score at least 10 points.

The rest of the pack: Portland (3-2) bounced back from its bad loss to Cheverus with a win over Gorham (1-5). … Scarborough (3-2) split during the week. … Windham (2-3) has lost to Cheverus, South Portland and Westbrook. … Biddeford (2-3) had a rough week, losing to Windham by 25 and to Deering by 30. … Bonny Eagle (2-3) topped Kennebunk (0-5) at home and now embarks on a three-game road stretch. … Massabesic (1-4) got its first win this week, crushing Noble (1-4). … Sanford ended the week at 1-4. … Marshwood (0-5) remains in search of its first win.

Girls Basketball Front Five:

1. Scarborough (5-0): The Red Storm had no trouble this week, topping Marshwood by 26 and Westbrook by 32. McAuley is up this week, then the Storm visits Biddeford after Christmas. If Scarborough can win the next two, it will be in prime position to start January.

2. Deering (3-2): The Rams have responded well to their two early setbacks (against Sanford and Scarborough), handling Gorham by 20, then knocking Biddeford from the ranks of the unbeaten, 47-31 on Friday.

3. Biddeford (4-1): The Tigers started the week with a solid win over Windham, 64-42 in which Keila Grigware scored 31 points for the second game in a row. Deering held Grigware in check, though, on Friday, as she managed only eight points. Biddeford relies heavily on Grigware and Lauren Rousseau for scoring. If the Tigers can get some other players consistently contributing on the offensive end, they’ll be capable of beating anyone.

4. McAuley (4-1): The Lions got a monster performance from 6-foot-2 sophomore Alexa Coulombe in Tuesday’s 46-39 win over rival Cheverus. Coulombe was a force in the paint, notching a triple-double with double-digit points, rebounds and blocks. This is a talented team that should only get better as the season progresses.

5. Cheverus (5-1): The Stags regrouped after the loss to McAuley to knock off Windham (which handed McAuley its only loss) on the road, 53-50. Sophomore guard Alexandra Palazzi-Leahy continues to lead the team in scoring.

The rest of the pack: South Portland (4-2) had a good week, beating Sanford (1-3) and Marshwood (2-3). … Thornton Academy (4-1) also won twice, getting past Bonny Eagle (2-3) and Sanford. … Gorham (2-4) fell to Deering and beat Portland (0-5) during the week. … After losing a close one to Cheverus, Windham (2-4) bounced back with a win over Westbrook (0-4). … Noble (2-3) split during the week, getting its win against Kennebunk (1-3). … Massabesic (1-2) did not play during the week.

Each week during the regular season, Tom Minervino will compile his SMAA Power Rankings based on results, performance, observations and conversations. The rankings will be posted on keepmecurrent.com each Monday and will run in Current Publishing’s six weekly papers later in the week.

Agree? Disagree? Think Minervino has gone mad? Let him know. Send comments and questions to tminervino@keepmecurrent.com.

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