CSN Preps Boys Basketball Power Rankings: Week 4

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The top six remain the same in this week's @CSNPreps Power Rankings as we begin two weeks of holiday tournament action.

The holiday tournaments of the next few weeks will give us a great glimpse at which teams are for real and which ones need to improve before the real tournament begins in March.

As a reminder, High School Lites will air on Saturday the next two weeks as we'll have plenty of holiday tournament highlights and some more player features.

1. Morgan Park (6-1, 3-0) (1) - The Mustangs had another impressive road win at No. 9 Bogan and now own conference road wins over their two biggest rivals. Proviso West will be a great test.

2. Simeon (4-1, 2-1) (2) - Nice week for the Wolverines as they knocked off No. 25 Vocational and also earned a nice national win over Washington powerhouse Rainier Beach.

3. Fenwick (7-0, 2-0) (3) - Fenwick had another slow start on the road against No. 23 De La Salle but ultimately pulled out the victory. Senior guard Mike Smith stepped up nicely in the win.

4. Curie (5-1, 4-0) (4) - Curie had to forfeit its win over Orangeville Prep in Kentucky, but they're still unbeaten in the area. Pontiac will be huge for them with talented teams like Simeon, Benet and Peoria Manual in the field.

5. St. Joseph (8-0, 3-0) (5) - The Chargers are still unbeaten and will definitely get tested at Proviso West. Hopefully senior center Nick Rakocevic (ankle) will be fully healthy by the time the tournament starts.

6. Kenwood (5-1, 4-0) (6) - Kenwood picked up two double-digit wins in the Red-Central this week as they await the chance to play Curie in January.

7. Riverside-Brookfield (8-1, 4-0) (8) - Two easy Metro Suburban West wins for the Bulldogs as they'll be the favorite to win the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic at York.

8. Evanston (8-1, 3-0) (9) - Evanston earned some quality wins over New Trier and Miami Senior High School down in Kentucky. The Wildkits are playing the King of the Bluegrass tournament this week.

9. Bogan (7-2, 3-1) (7) - Bogan lost at home to No. 1 Morgan Park but earned an overtime win over Christian Brothers, a good program from Missouri. Proviso West will be a great test for the Bengals.

10. Glenbard West (8-0, 1-0) (13) - Another win for unbeaten Glenbard West, as they don't have many tough tests at their own holiday tournament.

11. Marian Catholic (7-3, 2-0) (15) - Huge ESCC home win for Marian Catholic as they knocked off No. 12 Benet in overtime. The Spartans will be one of the favorites at the Big Dipper.

12. Benet (8-1, 1-1) (11) - Benet dropped its first game of the season in a loss to No. 11 Marian Catholic but bounced back with a convincing win over Conant. Pontiac will be huge for Benet since they'll likely get a crack at one of the state's elite teams.

13. Mount Carmel (9-1, 3-0) (NR) - The Caravan enter the CSN Preps Power Rankings (probably a week too late) as they earned another three wins this week. Now alone atop the Catholic Blue, Mount Carmel looks like one of the city's best teams.

14. Notre Dame (7-2, 1-1) (12) - Tough loss for the Dons at the buzzer to rival St. Patrick. Now they'll try to win the Wheeling Hardwood Classic this week, in which they are the favorite.

15. Joliet West (7-1, 2-1) (17) - Joliet West picked up a SouthWest Suburban Blue win and will now get a potential second-round game with No. 12 Benet at Pontiac.

16. Oswego (7-1, 3-0) (18) - Oswego outlasted rival Oswego East as they played well without point guard Malique Ross. The Panthers will participate in the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic at York.

17. Stagg (6-1, 2-0) (19) - Stagg had the week off as they prepare for the Jack Tosh Holiday Classic.

18. West Chicago (8-1, 2-0) (23) - West Chicago junior guard Tai Bibbs is having a great season and the Wildcats will be a team to watch at the DeKalb Holiday Tournament.

19. Naperville Central (7-2, 4-0) (NR) - With only two losses on the season to No. 16 Oswego and No. 10 Glenbard West, the Redhawks are looking like a strong contender in the DuPage Valley Conference.

20. Thornton (5-1, 3-0) (NR) - New head coach Tai Streets has done a nice job early at his alma mater as the Wildcats will be one of the favorites at the Big Dipper.

21. Downers South (6-3, 3-0) (21) - It was an up-and-down week for talented Downers South as they came back to beat No. 22 Hinsdale South before falling to Downers North the next night.

22. Hinsdale South (6-2, 2-1) (14) - Hinsdale South fell to Downers South but senior center Barret Benson is looking like a very strong Player of the Year candidate with his early play.

23. De La Salle (6-3, 1-1) (16) - Rough week for the Meteors as they lost at home to No. 3 Fenwick before falling to Thornwood at the Crete-Monee Shootout.

24. Hillcrest (7-2, 4-0) (NR) - Hillcrest joins the CSN Preps Power Rankings after a very strong start. They open the Proviso West Holiday Tournament with a tough test in Larkin.

25. Vocational (7-2, 1-2) (24) - Vocational fell to No. 2 Simeon but the Cavaliers still look like one of the premier teams in the Public League. They play next at the Kankakee Holiday Tournament.

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