Southeastern Pennsylvania basketball rankings: West Chester East jumps into Top 10

Undefeated in 2020.

Winners of 11 in a row.

Winners of 15 of 16, with the lone loss to Inter-Ac League power Malvern Prep.

That’s the resume for West Chester East and the reason the Vikings have jumped into The Inquirer’s Southeastern Pennsylvania Top 10 for the first time this season.

West Chester East, which will meet Unionville in the Ches-Mont League title game Tuesday night at West Chester University, debuts at the No. 10 spot after a wild week of Philadelphia Catholic League action shook up much of the rest of the rankings.

Here’s the new Top 10, with last week’s rankings in parentheses:

1. Archbishop Wood (1) 18-4: For a team with five junior starters, the Vikings have been remarkably consistent. They’ve won 16 of 17, with the lone loss to then-No. 1 Neumann-Goretti. In their last four Philadelphia Catholic League victories, they’ve scored 80, 80, 79 and 81 points. As the regular-season champion with a 13-1 record, Archbishop Wood will face the lowest-seeded remaining team in the PCL quarterfinals Friday.

2. Bishop McDevitt (6) 16-6: The Lancers finished the regular season with a flourish, beating Top 10 teams Neumann-Goretti, Bonner-Prendergast and Roman Catholic in the space of eight days. They beat Roman Catholic, 74-69, at Cristo Rey on Sunday as senior center Jamil Manigo went for 23 points, senior guard Robert Smith scored 15 and senior guard Ahmir Harris generated 13 points and four assists. As the No. 2 seed courtesy of a 12-2 mark and a victory over Neumann-Goretti, Bishop McDevitt on Friday will host the highest remaining seed after Wednesday’s preliminary-round games.

3. Westtown (3) 18-7: Junior guard Jalen Warley scored 14 and senior swingman Noah Collier added 13 as the Moose won their seventh Friends Schools League title, beating rival Academy of the New Church, 69-66, at La Salle. Junior center Franck Kepnang added 11 and senior guard T.J. Berger scored 10 in the balanced attack. Westtown is the top seed in the Pennsylvania independent schools tournament and will host the Solebury-Penn Charter winner on Friday.

4. Neumann-Goretti (2) 18-4: The Saints went 2-2 down the stretch with a series of injuries stealing some of the swagger that had marked this squad for most of the season. Neumann-Goretti finished with an 88-65 win Sunday over West Catholic, a point total that could bode well for the Saints in the PCL playoffs. As the No. 3 seed, Neumann-Goretti will host No. 6 Cardinal O’Hara on Friday night in a rematch of a game won, 61-54, by the visiting Lions exactly a week earlier.

5. Methacton (5) 21-2: Colgate recruit Jeff Woodward with 10 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks in a 65-41 win over Phoenixville in the Pioneer Athletic Conference semifinals. Senior guard Erik Timko added 19 points for the Warriors, who have earned the No. 1 seed in the District 1 Class 6A field. Methacton will be seeking its third PAC title in a row in the league championship game vs. Pope John Paul II on Tuesday night at Spring-Ford.

6. Malvern Prep (7) 24-4: The Friars have won 18 in a row. They finished the regular season with a 66-55 win over Timber Creek at the Winter Classic at Paul VI on Sunday behind 20 points from Deuce Turner, 15 from Spencer Cochran and 13 from Fran Oschell. Malvern Prep will be the No. 3 seed in the Pennsylvania independent schools tournament and open postseason play Friday against the Episcopal Academy-Abington Friends winner.

7. Bonner-Prendergast (6) 17-4: The Friars finished the regular season with seven wins in eight games, with lone loss to Bishop McDevitt. Bonner-Prendergast made a statement with an 81-75 win at Roman Catholic on Jan. 7. The Friars, as the No. 4 seed, will host the No. 5 Cahillites on Friday with a trip to the Palestra for the PCL semifinals on the line.

8. Roman Catholic (4) 14-8: The Cahillites had won six in a row before suffering a 74-69 setback against Bishop McDevitt in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Cristo Rey. Senior guard Lynn Greer III scored 29 for Roman Catholic, which will visit Bonner-Prendergast on Friday night as the No. 5 seed in the PCL playoffs.

9. Imhotep Charter (9) 15-4: The Panthers have won 11 in a row, allowing an average of just 45.3 points. They opened the Public League playoffs with a 64-36 win over Engineering & Science and will host Academy at Palumbo in a second-round game Tuesday.

10. West Chester East (NR) 20-3: Senior forward Andrew Carr, a Delaware recruit, scored 28 and senior guard Tym Richardson added 20 with seven rebounds in a 58-52 win over rival West Chester Rustin in the Ches-Mont semifinals. West Chester East will be the No. 1 seed in the District 1 Class 5A tournament.

Under consideration (listed alphabetically): ANC (16-5) Archbishop Carroll (14-8), Archbishop Ryan (14-8), Cardinal O’Hara (16-6), Cheltenham (21-2), Chester (19-3), Coatesville (17-6), Garnet Valley (20-2), Gratz (17-4), Lower Merion (17-5), MC&S (17-5), Penncrest (17-5), Pennridge (17-6), Pope John Paul II (18-4), Unionville (17-6).