There’s a new No. 1 in the latest Elite 16 boys high school basketball poll
Below are the Kentucky Media Elite 16 boys high school basketball teams for the 2025-26 season, according to the latest (Jan. 27) poll of media members from each of Kentucky’s 16 regions as compiled by the Courier Journal’s Jason Frakes.
In addition, see how Herald-Leader high school sports writer Jared Peck (@HLpreps on X.com) voted and the media’s region-by-region top fives.
Boys Elite 16
Teams are listed with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Sunday’s games, total rankings points and last week’s ranking.
Rank-school (FPV)…Record…Pts…LW
1. Madison Central (8)…20-1…243…2
2. St. Xavier (5)…15-5…238…1
3. Covington Catholic (3)…19-1…229…4
4. Daviess County…18-3…203…5
5. Male…14-7…185…3
6. George Rogers Clark…15-3…172…7
7. Warren Central…15-2…148…6
8. Frederick Douglass…10-6…116…8
9. North Laurel…16-4…106…9
10. Jeffersontown…12-3…99…10
11. North Oldham…13-5…97…14
12. McCracken County…17-3…79…12
13. Ballard…12-5…72…13
14. Boyd County…15-5…36…11
15. Lexington Catholic…11-5…24…16
16. Bryan Station…14-5…21…NR
Others receiving votes: Butler 19, Highlands 19, Ashland Blazer 14, Caverna 14, Eastern 10, Seneca 8, Bell County 6, Covington Holy Cross 6, Manual 4, Christian Academy 2, Grayson County 2, Newport 2, Marshall County 1, Pikeville 1..
How @HLpreps voted
1. Madison Central; 2. Covington Catholic; 3. Daviess County; 4. St. Xavier; 5. George Rogers Clark; 6. Warren Central; 7. Male; 8. Bryan Station; 9. Frederick Douglass; 10. Jeffersontown; 11. North Oldham; 12. North Laurel; 13. Ballard; 14. Caverna; 15. McCracken County; 16. Ashland Blazer.
Boys region-by-region top fives
1st Region (Steve Springer, Murray Ledger & Times): 1. McCracken County; 2. Marshall County; 3. Murray; 4. Mayfield; 5. Carlisle County.
2nd Region (Edward Marlowe, WKDZ-FM): 1. Lyon County; 2. Henderson County; 3. Hopkinsville; 4. Webster County; 5. Hopkins County Central.
3rd Region (Mark Mathis, Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer): 1. Daviess County; 2. Grayson County; 3. Ohio County; 4. Apollo; 5. Owensboro Catholic.
4th Region (Micheal Compton, Bowling Green Daily News): 1. Warren Central; 2. Clinton County; 3. Greenwood; 4. Glasgow; 5. Bowling Green.
5th Region (Josh Claywell, Bardstown Kentucky Standard/LaRue County Herald News): 1. Adair County; 2. LaRue County; 3. Caverna; 4. Taylor County; 5. Nelson County.
6th Region (Demetrius Stanton, DeadStock Visuals): 1. Jeffersontown; 2. Butler; 3. DuBois; 4. Evangel Christian; 5. Fairdale.
7th Region (Jason Frakes, The Courier Journal): 1. St. Xavier; 2. Male; 3. Ballard; 4. Manual; 5. Christian Academy-Louisville.
8th Region (James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer): 1. North Oldham; 2. Spencer County; 3. South Oldham; 4. Woodford County; 5. Simon Kenton.
9th Region (Brendan Connelly, Cincinnati Enquirer): 1. Covington Catholic; 2. Highlands; 3. Ryle; 4. Lloyd Memorial; 5. Covington Holy Cross.
10th Region (Evan Dennison, LinkNKY.com): 1. George Rogers Clark; 2. Montgomery County; 3. Campbell County; 4. Nicholas County; 5. Bishop Brossart.
11th Region (Jared Peck, Herald-Leader): 1. Madison Central; 2. Bryan Station; 3. Frederick Douglass; 4. Lexington Catholic; 5. Great Crossing.
12th Region (Mike Marsee, Danville freelancer): 1. Wayne County; 2. Danville Christian; 3. Pulaski County; 4. Somerset; 5. Southwestern.
13th Region (Les Dixon, 13thRegionMediaNetwork.com): 1. North Laurel; 2. Bell County; 3. Whitley County; 4. South Laurel; 5. Corbin.
14th Region (Brendon Miller, Bluegrass Sports Nation): 1. Hazard; 2. Perry County Central; 3. Powell County; 4. Knott County Central; 5. Letcher County Central.
15th Region (Randy White, Appalachian News-Express): 1. Martin County; 2. Pikeville; 3. Johnson Central; 4. Floyd Central; 5. Paintsville.
16th Region (James Collier, WLGC-FM): 1. Ashland Blazer; 2. Boyd County; 3. Lewis County; 4. Russell; 5. East Carter.
