Daily Boys Basketball Power Rankings: Jan. 19

Daily Staff - sports@nvdaily.com

Northern Virginia Daily sports staff collaborated to create a basketball top 10 list. Each staffer voted, with 10 points being awarded to the top ranked team, nine to the No. 2 team and so on. Numbers in parenthesis indicate where each team was last week.

1. Handley (2) 10-3, 2-1 Northwestern -- The Judges regained the top spot by posting a pair of impressive victories following their loss to Skyline. Handley dismantled Kettle Run, 73-37, then raced past Sherando for a 77-53 victory to spoil the last unblemished record in the district race. Handley gets its first look at sharp-shooting James Wood on Friday.

2. Skyline (1) 11-3, 2-1 Northwestern -- The Hawks came back to earth following their impressive victory over Handley, dropping a 61-57 decision their next time out to Sherando. Skyline regrouped nicely beat James Wood, 81-84, but jumps right back into the district tussle with a Friday home matchup against Millbrook.

3. Sherando (3) 7-8, 3-1 Northwestern -- The Warriors followed up their impressive win at Millbrook last week with an equally strong effort to beat Skyline, but produced a dud in Tuesday's 77-53 loss to Handley. Sherando was missing the services of talented shooting guard Aaron Miller, who sat with an injury. The Warriors hope to have him back soon, perhaps even in time for tonight's stiff road test at Martinsburg (W.Va.).

4. Millbrook (4) 10-4, 2-2 Northwestern -- The Pioneers picked up their first district win by throttling James Wood, 80-65, then dealt with non-district rival Washington (W.Va.) for a 61-58 win on Tuesday night. Another tough task awaits Millbrook as the Pioneers hit the road to face Skyline on Friday.

5. Clarke County (5) 10-5, 6-2 Bull Run -- The Eagles picked up a pair of Bull Run victories last week, downing Strasburg (58-40) and Madison County (56-53). Clarke knocked off Central, 75-70, on Wednesday. A pivotal district matchup awaits on Friday night, when George Mason visits Berryville to take on the Eagles.

6. James Wood (6) 7-8, 0-3 Northwestern -- The Colonels are still searching for their first Northwestern District victory after dropping games to Millbrook and Skyline. They'll get their next shot on Friday night when they host Handley.

7. Strasburg (7) 8-7, 4-4 Bull Run -- The Rams continue to hover around that .500 mark, recovering from a disappointing 58-40 loss to Clarke County in time to deal Central a 66-56 setback and top William Monroe 51-50 in overtime Wednesday. The Rams host Rappahannock County on Friday.

8. Central (8) 4-12, 2-6 Bull Run -- The Falcons walloped Rappahannock County for a 83-29 win, but followed that up with a 10-point loss to Strasburg and a five-point setback to Clarke County on Friday. Another tough matchup awaits on Friday when Central visits Madison County.

9. Warren County (9) 3-9, 0-2 Evergreen -- The Wildcats are still searching for their first Evergreen District win after losing to Kettle Run (51-48) and Liberty (55-47) to open district play. If those scores are any indication, Warren County can compete with its district competition. The Wildcats host Brentsville on Friday night.

10. Stonewall Jackson (10) 0-14, 0-8 Shenandoah --The Generals are still working for that first victory, and last week against Stuarts Draft (106-56) and Wilson Memorial (96-29) they didn't come close to securing it. Stonewall gets another chance on Friday at Buffalo Gap.