November was a busy month with a full schedule of holiday showcases and tournaments over Thanksgiving weekend, causing significant movement in the initial FAB 50 National Team Rankings powered by Ballislife.com for the 2024-25 season. The biggest riser is the new No. 10 Mt. Zion Prep (Lanham, Md.), climbing from unranked to defeating two teams within the Top 12. As teams in the EYBL Scholastic play and those just beginning their seasons get underway, we can expect more changes in the rankings in the coming weeks with the start of holiday tournaments!
By Ronnie Flores
When compiling the first regular season FAB 50 National Team Rankings powered by Ballislife.com, we considered the number of games played by each team and the practice time some teams have had more than ever before. While some teams are starting their 2024-25 season this week, others in the East Region still have at least another week before their first game. Surprisingly, nine teams in the national rankings have not played a game yet.
We carefully reviewed all the results from November and the beginning of December to determine the new rankings. Despite a 66-54 loss to preseason No. 8 Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) on November 19, preseason No. 1 Columbus (Miami, Fla.) remains at the top spot. Columbus had their first game of the season in that matchup and improved to 7-0 following the win. We took into account the number of games played by both teams leading up to the early season clash, as they have more significant games ahead that will impact their rankings.
Darryn Peterson, committed to Kansas, had an impressive performance in the victory over the Explorers with 33 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three blocks. He ranked third in the preseason Mr. Basketball USA Tracker voting, behind No. 2 Cam Boozer (Duke) of Columbus and No. 1 A.J. Dybansta (undecided) of FAB 50 No. 11 Utah Prep (Hurricane, Utah).
Despite Peterson missing Prolific Prep’s next three games and the team losing all three, they move up four spots in the rankings because of their win over Columbus. It’s clear that one victory wouldn’t allow Prolific Prep to overtake Columbus in the rankings, especially after three consecutive losses. However, the win deserved recognition, leading to their upward movement in the rankings.
