Gramp's Braggin Rights Missouri Boys class five ratings - 3/19/2022

Updated 3/24/2022

 Congrats to #1 Webster Groves and their intense head coach, Justin Mathes.  If I could bottle coach Mathes enthusiasm on the sideline, I am sure I could sell bottles of his "juice" for a heck of a lot more than Five Hour Energy Drink does.

It's not just the energy the head coach exudes;  it is the energy that starts in warmups and continues through the entire game. The Statesmen play a high-intensity game and are relentless on both offensive and defensive ends of the floor.  Watching coach Mathes, running the coaching box back and forth for an entire game, wears me out.  And his players have worn down a lot of teams that could not keep up with the high-level energy and game speed of his players. 

Webster's toughest game in the tournament was with Cardinal Ritter, looking for a three-peat championship trophy.  Ritter had upset my #1 team, Westminster Academy, in the district three final by 50-48 and was ready for another upset of the Statesmen but it didn't happen.  Lefty PG Matty "Ice" Enright, SF Iziah Purvey, and long-range sharpshooter, Ethan Chartrand, took care of business, with 23, 15, and 9 point contributions.  I said, in my predictions, that as Matty Ice went, so would Webster Groves.  The team is deep with talent and hard-workers, but Webster has lost when someone could throw a wet blanket over Enright.  It did not happen down the stretch for Webster.  After starting the season 11-1, January was a cruel month for them, losing five of six at one point, but finishing with six straight victories for the class five title.   Enright averaged over 19 points per game during that stretch but always knew he could count on his teammates to pick him up.  

After a January 25th loss to SLUH, Webster Groves went 12-2, losing only to a very good Quincy, Illinois team and a close loss to Vashon at home.  Congrats to Webster Groves on another state championship.

My second-rated team had been rated #1 all season in Missouri boys basketball, Westminster Christian Academy.  Only a loss to De Smet in the CvC Christmas tournament and the two-point loss to Cardinal Ritter at districts were the only blemishes on a near-perfect season, which ended 26-2.  Just on raw ratings, WCA would be ahead of Webster Groves but I have to weigh the final ratings and put Webster on top of Westminster.  With a little luck in the Ritter game, the Wildcats could have been playing Webster in the semi-final instead of Ritter and they might be hanging first place medals around their heads. 

It did not happen.  Westminster's dream season ended and Webster Groves lived their dream. 

Cardinal Ritter, who were 8-8 at one point in the season, and did not look like they would go very far, got hot and played some outstanding basketball down the stretch, capturing the third-place trophy.  Based on the season Westminster had, I cannot give Ritter the nod on their district championship victory.  The ratings are based on the entire season and WCA gets the edge.

De Smet with another great team, ended up #4 on my ratings, losing to Ritter in the district semi-final.

Here are the links to all of the final Missouri boys and girls basketball ratings:

Boys   All Boys Teams (by rank)  All Boys Teams (alphabetical)

Class One    Class Two    Class Three    Class Four    Class Five    Class Six

Girls   All Girls Teams (by rank)  All Girls Teams (alphabetical)

Class One    Class Two    Class Three    Class Four    Class Five    Class Six

Here are my final class five Missouri boys ratings: