Well, besides the daunting challenges for all navigating this 2020-21 VHSL Hoops season unlike any other while COVID-19 is still prevalent in our nation, the wintry weather is now having an effect on things, too. Postponements and even cancellations have come rolling out due to that, though we still got enough results in from the past six days to put out another rankings release - our first for the month of February.
This is the final week of the regular season for some, the start of playoffs for others that are partaking in district tournaments (why those are happening in a year like this, that's another story for another time) before regional play commences on February 8th.
Then there are schools such as Halifax County, which held the No. 1 spot in Class 4 after King's Fork and Menchville officially saw their hopes of having a season dashed by respective school divisions, that will get its first taste of basketball action this week. The Comets, who have won back-to-back regional titles and return major contributors Kevon Ferrell and Kameron Roberts, are slated to play a pair of games against GW-Danville on Thursday and Friday.
With the addition of Dan River joining the list of programs opting out of winter activities, the total of Top Ten teams that were ranked at the start that we don't anticipate seeing in postseason basketball is 16, ten of which have captured a State Championship since the turn of the century.
So what to do with those that haven't played yet - such as Halifax, Jefferson Forest (who expects to know its fate around Thursday) and Martinsville - has been a conundrum for yours truly in these rankings. There are some regions reportedly allowing teams to compete in the playoffs, even if they haven't played a single regular season contest. Needless to say, it's a complex situation.
*** Color coded sheet with list of Who's In / Who's Out Here ***
Nonetheless, we have some changes at the top of four different classifications, but they aren't strangers. In fact, three of the teams new to the No. 1 ranking - Keith Honore's Potomac Panthers, Billy Pope's Northside Vikings and Mike Cartoloaro's Parry McCluer Fighting Blues - are led by coaches that have won state titles before.
Note - All records are through games played on Monday, February 1, 2021. *
Honorable Mention:
Patriot (9-2)
Woodbridge (8-1)
Annandale (7-2)
Battlefield (7-3)
Opted Out:
2. Western Branch
9. Oscar Smith
Opted Out:
3. Varina
4. Kecoughtan
6. Maury
8. Norview
9. Douglas Freeman
Honorable Mention:
Opted Out:
1. King's Fork
2. Menchville
6. Woodrow Wilson
Honorable Mention:
Fluvanna (8-3)
Heritage-Lynchburg (7-1)
Spotswood (3-1)
Wilson Memorial (9-2)
Opted Out:
7. Armstrong
Honorable Mention:
Opted Out:
1. John Marshall
3. Dan River
6. Brunswick
Honorable Mention:
Honaker (8-4)
Holston (9-5)
Chilhowie (9-4)
Bland County (6-3)
Opted Out:
7. Colonial Beach
10. Lancaster
Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him from 10 AM to Noon on 757 Saturday Sports Talk on ESPN Radio 94.1.
