Wheeler’s boys and Westlake’s girls are the No. 1 teams in Class AAAAAA in The Atlanta-Journal Constitution’s first rankings since preseason.

Wheeler (13-1) defeated consensus 2014 national champion Montverde Academy of Florida 72-65 last month to win the City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla. That ended Montverde’s 45-game winning streak and launched Wheeler into the top 10 of several national rankings.

Wheeler lost a game Dec. 29 to West Linn, Ore., 70-62, in Portland, but remains Georgia’s most high-profile team nationally with a cast of Division I recruits that includes Jaylen Brown, rated the No. 2 college prospect in the country.

Tift County (15-0), which defeated Wheeler in the AAAAAA final last season, is ranked No. 2.

In the boys’ AAAAA rankings, six-time state champion Miller Grove has lost only to No. 1 Jonesboro of AAAA and two out-of-state teams. Jonesboro, the defending AAAA champion, has lost only to Montverde.

In AAA, Laney (12-1) is the defending champion and No. 1 team. Laney has beaten defending champion Morgan County in AAA and top-10 AAAAAA teams Pebblebrook and Norcross .Laney’s loss wa to No. 1 St. Francis of Class A in the season opener.

St. Francis (13-3) is the defending Class A private champion. St. Francis’ losses are to Miller Grove and two out-of-state teams. St. Francis, led by Florida State signee Malik Beasley, is ranked No. 20 nationally by MaxPreps.

AA is the only class without a clear-cut No. 1 boys team. Thomasville (10-2), a first-round state-playoff loser last year, has beaten No. 6 Bainbridge of AAAA and lost twice to Tift County. Pace Academy (10-2), which didn’t make the playoffs in Class A last year, has a blow-out victory over defending champion Greater Atlanta Christian but lost last week to unranked North Atlanta.

In the girls rankings, Westlake is 12-0 and hangs its hat on a victory AAAAA No. 1 team Stephenson (13-2). Defending AAAAAA champion McEachern (10-2) lost to Osborne (12-1) 74-70 on Saturday. McEachern was heavily favored to defend its title until Caliya Robinson (signed with Georgia) was lost to a season-ending knee injury last month.

Stephenson (13-2) has lost only to Westlake and an out-of-state team and got the No. 1 spot over unbeaten Brunswick.

In AAAA, St. Pius is unbeaten and led by the state’s top recruit, Asia Durr. Kendrick, the No. 1 team in AAA, has won 45 straight games. The AA No. 1 team is unbeaten Holy Innocents’, which won a tournament last week in Charleston, S.C.

The No. 1 team in A is St. Francis, followed by 2014 private-school champion Southwest Atlanta Christian. The two play each other on Saturday.

BOYS

Class AAAAAA

1. Wheeler (13-1)

2. Tift County (15-0)

3. Pebblebrook (11-2)

4. Shiloh (10-0)

5. Norcross (11-3)

6. Douglas County (11-3)

7. Tucker (14-2)

8. Collins Hill (12-2)

9. Pope (13-1)

10. Newton (13-1)

Class AAAAA

1. Miller Grove (12-3)

2. McIntosh (13-0)

3. Gainesville (11-1)

4. M.L. King (11-3)

5. Allatoona (11-2)

6. Brunswick (12-2)

7. Tri-Cities (11-3)

8. Northside-Columbus (8-2)

9. Richmond Hill (11-3)

10. Drew (10-2)

Class AAAAA

1. Jonesboro (13-1)

2. Johnson-Gainesville (12-0)

3. Lithonia (10-1)

4. Columbia (11-4)

5. St. Pius (11-3)

6. Bainbridge (11-2)

7. Carrollton (8-3)

8. Americus-Sumter (12-3)

9. Stone Mountain (12-3)

10. Liberty County (9-3)

Class AAA

1. Laney (12-1)

2. Jenkins (9-3)

3. Butler (14-1)

4. Cedar Grove (9-2)

5. Morgan County (10-5)

6. Johnson-Savannah (12-2)

7. Savannah (9-5)

8. North Clayton (10-4)

9. Rutland (12-1)

10. Blessed Trinity (11-2)

Class AA

1. Thomasville (10-2)

2. Pace Acdemy (10-2)

3. Greater Atlanta Christian (7-5)

4. Seminole County (10-2)

5. Holy Innocents’ (12-2)

6. Vidalia (11-1)

7. Model (12-1)

8. Harlem (12-1)

9. Bryan County (11-2)

10. Crawford County (9-3)

Class A

1. St. Francis (13-3)

2. Greenforest Christian (11-1)

3. Athens Christian (11-0)

4. Whitefield Academy (8-6)

5. Treutlen (10-0)

6. Hancock Central (9-0)

7. Landmark Christian (11-2)

8. Turner County (10-2)

9. North Cobb Christian (7-7)

10. Portal (9-3)

GIRLS

Class AAAAAA

1. Westlake (12-0)

2. Osborne (12-1)

3. McEachern (10-2)

4. Archer (11-2)

5. South Forsyth (12-2)

6. North Forsyth (14-1)

7. Parkview (8-3)

8. Norcross (12-2)

9. Woodstock (13-0)

10. Mountain View (10-3)

Class AAAAA

1. Stephenson (13-2)

2. Brunswick (14-0)

3. Greenbrier (14-1)

4. Sequoyah (13-2)

5. Forest Park (11-3)

6. South Effingham (12-2)

7. Southwest DeKalb (11-5)

8. Effingham County (12-4)

9. Jones County (13-2)

10. Cross Creek (13-2)

Class AAAA

1. St. Pius (12-1)

2. Veterans (13-0)

3. Buford (11-3)

4. Jonesboro (16-1)

5. Redan (9-2)

6. Americus-Sumter (13-1)

7. Mary Persons (12-0)

8. Griffin (13-1)

9. Marist (8-1)

10. Bainbridge (10-3)

Class AAA

1. Kendrick (15-0)

2. Dawson County (17-0)

3. Laney (11-2)

4. Decatur (14-1)

5. Morgan County (7-3)

6. South Atlanta (13-0)

7. Dodge County (9-1)

8. Peach County (11-1)

9. Central-Carrollton (12-0)

10. Calhoun (10-3)

Class AA

1. Holy Innocents' (14-0)

2. Pelham (11-1)

3. Wesleyan (10-4)

4. Darlington (12-2)

5. Vidalia (7-1)

6. Putnam County (12-3)

7. Model (13-2)

8. Lovett (9-4)

9. Early County (7-2)

10. Dade County (12-3)

Class A

1. St. Francis (10-1)

2. Southwest Atlanta Christian (9-1)

3. Taylor County (13-0)

4. Turner County (11-1)

5. Savannah Country Day (10-1)

6. Mitchell County (8-0)

7. Tattnall Square (11-2)

8. Mount Pisgah Christian (7-1)

9. Calvary Day (9-1)

10. Stratford Academy (10-3)

Rankings and won-lost records are based on scores reported to the GHSA through MaxPreps, or by other media, prior to deadline.

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Mack Jackson and Tracy Wheeler

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