The best chance for a surprise development in an Associated Press high school state poll tends to be when the first one is released. But the first Tennessee Class AAA basketball rankings for the 2017-18 season reveal developments perhaps more stunning than surprising.
Riverdale's girls, who won state championships each of the last two seasons, are ranked No. 1 nationally by USA Today's computer rankings and No. 5 in its expert rankings. Yet the Lady Warriors sit at No. 2 in the state's first AP Class AAA poll.
Riverdale received 12 of the poll's 16 first-place votes. However, Bradley Central, which is No. 21 in the USA Today computer rankings and not found in the publication's expert Super 25, had the remaining first-place votes and managed to be the top-ranked team.
Riverdale is 16-1 with its loss coming to USA Today's top-ranked team, Mitty (Calif.), in the Nike Tournament of Champions at Mesquite High School in Gilbert, Ariz. The Lady Warriors haven't lost to a team from Tennessee since Oakland beat them in February 2016 in a District 7-AAA semifinal at LaVergne.
Bradley head coach Jason Reuter calls to his players during a timeout. The Cleveland Lady Raiders visited the Bradley Central Bearettes in TSSAA basketball action on January 5, 2018.Bradley is 17-0 and was undefeated last season until losing at home to Stewarts Creek (ranked No. 7 in the newly released poll) in a state sectional.
The voting system rewards 10 points for each first-place vote, nine for second, eight for third, etc., on down to one point for a 10th-place vote. Despite the disparity in first-place votes, the Bearettes came out ahead in overall points, 148-145.
Similarly, Memphis East's boys, who also won state championships the last two years, are ranked 13th in USA Today's expert rankings and 20th in its computer rankings. The Mustangs, who are 12-3 with the losses by a combined 13 points to teams from Florida, Mississippi and Illinois in tournaments in their most recent games, received 10 first-place votes. Yet Bearden (19-1), one of six others with a first-place vote, edged them 121-120 for the top spot.
Of interest locally, McCallie (16-0) holds down the top spot in boys' Division II, where Baylor (8-3) checks in at No. 6. Cleveland (11-2) is fourth in the Class AAA boys' poll, and Brainerd's boys (11-3) are eighth in Class AA. Van Buren County (13-5) is rated No. 1 among Class A boys.
On the girls' side, East Hamilton (16-1) at No. 4 has what is believed to be the first state ranking in that program's nine-year history. Meigs County (15-2) is ranked seventh in Class AA.
Class AA Cumberland County (15-1) and Class A Tellico Plains (12-1) are third and seventh in their classifications' polls.
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.