By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Four Shawnee County high school basketball teams have earned spots in the first Kansas Baskeball Coaches Association state rankings of the season.
Washburn Rural's girls, the 2019 state champion, begin the 2021-2022 season ranked No. 2 in Class 6A behind defending state champion Shawnee Mission Northwest, while Topeka High, last year's runner-up is ranked eighth. Topeka High has advanced to the 6A semifinals the past three seasons, with a pair runner-up finishes in '19 and '21.
Silver Lake, which advanced to the state tournament a year ago, is No. 5 in the 3A girls rankings.
Seaman, which is coming off a 13-9 season, holds down the No. 8 spot in the 5A boys rankings.
KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS
GIRLS
Class 6A
1. Shawnee Mission Northwest; 2. Washburn Rural; 3. Olathe North; 4. Shawnee Mission West; 5. Blue Valley North; 6. Derby; 7. Dodge City; 8. Topeka High; 9. Wichita Heights; 10. Olathe Northwest.
Class 5A
1. St. Thomas Aquinas; 2. Andover Central; 3. Salina Central; 4. Lansing; 5. Maize; 6. Bishop Carroll; 7. St. James Academy; 8. Maize South; 9. Kapaun Mt. Carmel; 10 Emporia.
Class 4A
1. Bishop Miege; 2. McPherson; 3. Labette County; 4. Andale; 5. Louisburg; 6. Paola; 7. Clearwater; 8. Wellington; 9. Eudora; 10. Wamego.
Class 3A
1. Hugoton; 2. Cheney; 3. Nickerson; 4. Goodland; 5. Silver Lake; 6. Phillipsburg; 7. TMP-Marian; 8. Hesston; 9. Eureka; 10. Haven.
Class 2A
1. Sterling; 2. St. Mary's Colgan; 3. Garden Plain; 4. Valley Heights; 5. Smith Center; 6. Hillsboro; 7. Trego Community; 8. Wabaunsee; 9. Atchison County; 10. Moundridge.
Class 1A-Division I
1. Little River; 2. Burlingame; 3. St. John-Hudson; 4. Spearville; 5. Pretty Prairie; 6. Centralia; 7. South Central; 8. Doniphan West; 9. Victoria; 10. Osborne.
Class 1A-Division II
1. Central Plains; 2. Hanover; 3. Lebo; 4. Golden Plains; 5. Hutchinson Central Christian; 6. Dighton 7. Wheatland-Grinnell; 8. St. John's-Beloit; 9. Bucklin; 10. Attica.
BOYS
Class 6A
1. Free State; 2. Shawnee Mission Northwest; 3. Wichita Heights; 4. Blue Valley Northwest; 5. Blue Valley West; 6. Blue Valley North; 7. Derby; 8. Lawrence; 9. Olathe South; 10. Blue Valley.
Class 5A
1. Maize; 2. Basehor-Linwood; 3. Bishop Carroll; 4. Andover; 5. Blue Valley Southwest; 6. Kapaun Mt. Carmel; 7. Hays 8. Seaman; 9. Maize South; 10. St. James Academy.
Class 4A
1. Bishop Miege; 2 Louisburg; 3. Tonganoxie; 4. Rose Hill; 5. McPherson; 6. Abilene; 7. Buhler; 8. Wamego; 9. Parsons; 10. Holton.
Class 3A
1. Hesston; 2. Galena; 3. TMP-Marian; 4. Royal Valley; 5. Wichita Collegiate; 6. Nemaha Central; 7. Hugoton; 8. Cheney; 9. Wichita Trinity; 10. Haven.
Class 2A
1. Hillsboro; 2. St. Mary's; 3. Wabaunsee; 4. Lyndon; 5. Inman; 6. Valley Falls; 7. Ellinwood; 8. Jefferson County North; 9. Erie; 10. Trego Community.
Class 1A-Division I
1. Olpe; 2. South Gray; 3. Troy; 4. Little River; 5. Meade; 6. Centralia; 7. Wichita Classical School; 8. Solomon; 9. Frankfort; 10. Osborne.
Class 1A-Division II
1. Hanover; 2. Northern Valley; 3. Wheatland-Grinnell; 4. Pawnee Heights; 5. Axtell; 6. Elyria Christian; 7. Waverly; 8. Logan-Palco; 9. Attica; 10. South Barber.