.jpg)
2 hours ago
2
The 2025-26 high school basketball season is nearly through. But some of the most exciting action of the season has been saved for last.
As usual, one of the final events of the season is The Throne National Championship, a three-day event put on by the NBPA featuring of eight of the top teams in the country on both the boys' and girls' sides.
WATCH The Throne: Schedule, channels, streaming
The games will be played on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (Mar. 19-21) at American Dream in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
As The Throne games aren't NFHS-sanctioned, don't count towards teams' official records in the books, and don't even there are understandably differing opinions about whether or not the games should count towards ranking, for players' all-state and all-American cases, etc. In girls basketball, The Throne results have been included and played a major role in deciding the national champion in multiple outlets' national rankings since the event began in 2023.
No matter where you stand on it, one thing is for sure – basketball fans from all over will be tuning in to watch a handful of the nation's top high school basketball teams and players go at it for a championship that will long remembered by the victors and plenty of hoops fanatics.
Here's what we're watching for this week on the girls' side of The Throne 2026 regarding storylines, players to watch, and potential rematches from earlier in the season.
Top Storylines
Princess Anne looks to complete perfect season
Ranked third in the country, Princess Anne is in the national championship discussion after going undefeated for the second season in a row. The only asterisk on the Cavaliers' epic 2024-25 campaign was a first round exit at The Throne, which came by merely a point to eventual finalist Sidwell Friends. Now, the Virginia juggernauts led by 5-star junior wing Micah Ojo have a chance to extend their perfection to a significant national stage.
The Cavaliers only played two ranked teams in 2025-26 but they left no doubt against them, crushing The Throne eighth seed St. Frances Academy 82-54 and rolling past Bullis 70-57. Notably, Bullis upset Bishop McNamara 62-50 in the Maryland private school state championship, knocking Bishop McNamara out of the national No. 1 spot and likely ending its chances at back-to-back national titles.
Princess Anne now has a chance to silence some critics, and add to what's already been a dream season, by showing what it can do against the likes of seventh seed Friends' Central and potentially an Etiwanda or Long Island Lutheran. Ojo still has another year of high school ball left but most of the other top Cavaliers don't, and all involved want to go out with a bang.
Etiwanda, Long Island Lutheran seek crowning achievement of 2025-26
Speaking of Etiwanda and Long Island Lutheran, both of these recent national champions have once again had great runs in 2025-26 but have had even stronger seasons in very recent memory. Etiwanda's streak of three straight CIF Open Division state titles and back-to-back national titles is over, but the Eagles are still one of the best teams in the country and could become the first California team to win The Throne. Long Island Lutheran, the only team playing in both The Throne and Chipotle Nationals, has a laundry list of wins against nationally ranked teams but also four losses that have kept it only on the fringes of the national championship discussion. Both have lost key games largely due to missing sidelined players who are ready to go for The Throne.
So, neither of these heavyweights need a title at The Throne to be remembered as one of the premier teams in high school hoops in 2025-26. But both would be happy to add it to their dynastic collections of successes over the last four seasons or so.
Additionally, a strong showing could help kickstart a 2026-27 national title run for Etiwanda. It will return arguably the deepest cast of talent in the nation next season, but the one big-name Eagle graduating this year is leading scorer Arynn Finley, a cold-blooded combo guard who seems particularly likely to go for 30-plus in her high school finale(s).
Light underdogs: St. John's, Friends' Central look to build on state title runs
Coming in at 0-2 against fellow The Throne entrants, St. John's isn't exactly a favorite, but it's also not an easy draw for most teams. The Cadets played one of the absolute hardest schedules in the country as usual this season and went 25-7 with wins over some of the nation's best teams and competitive losses against others. With a DCSAA AA state title already under its belt, St. John's doesn't have a ton to lose but it does have momentum and the ability to beat any (or nearly any) team on any given day. Especially with DCAC MVP and FSU-bound senior Morgan Stewart leading the way. The biggest knock to the Cadets' chances by far is that their only lopsided loss of the season was to Long Island Lutheran and that they now have to open up against LuHi.
Similarly, Friends' Central isn't an obvious pick to go the distance but has proven that no one is safe against it and comes in with a full head of steam. After two regular season losses to Westtown, one of which was a blowout, the Phoenix stunned Westtown 62-54 in their most recent game to win a historic PAISAA state championship. Most of Friends' Central's best players are underclassmen, including nationally ranked juniors Ryan Carter and Zya Small, so the Phoenix are arguably playing with house money here.
Heavy underdogs: Tualatin, St. Frances Academy look to make noise
After a shocking fourth place finish in OSAA 6A, Tualatin still holds its status as a nationally elite team but has a lot more to prove than expected entering The Throne. Most of the Timberwolves, including sophomore phenom Love Lei Best, have at least one year left at the high school level, so this tournament isn't their last shot at going out on a high note. Still, look for them to be fired up to get their 2026-27 revenge tour started several months early.
St. Frances Academy was up-and-down in 2025-26 but extremely dangerous, as evidenced by an upset win against Bishop McNamara. The Panthers are in a tough spot opening up against Etiwanda, but they certainly belong and can't be taken lightly.
X-factor: St. John Vianney
Teams that beat Vianney in 2025-26: Red Bank Catholic and Ontario Christian. That's it. And those are two of the very best teams in high school basketball. Red Bank Catholic got three wins against the Lancers this season, but the Lancers did manage one win in that season series too, and they were one of the only teams to push Ontario Christian at all. Other than that, they don't have any losses, and they also notched ranked wins against Paul VI (NJ) and St. John's. It's possible that the two teams St. John Vianney lost to are two of the only teams in the country capable of beating the Lancers, who are probably quite happy to get a crack at another elite team not named Red Bank Catholic or Ontario Christian.
So, based on national rankings, St. John Vianney would like quite an underdog in a matchup against Etiwanda, Princess Anne, or LuHi. But there is a very real chance that the Lancers prove this week that they, at minimum, belong in that tier. And the fact that they're led by seniors probably helps the cause in this setting.
Top players to watch
In such a star-studded field, there are too many elite players to name, and many players outside of this list are capable of taking over a game at any time. Below are several of the biggest names to look for.
The Throne: Schedule, channels, streaming
Arynn Finley, G, Etiwanda, 5-10 – Sr. (Florida)
Nicole Mullen/The Arizona Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 48 per ESPN, No. 56 in 247Sports (4-star)
Chasity Rice, G, Etiwanda, 5-6 – Jr.
-Class of 2027 ranking: No. 48 per ESPN (4-star)
Micah Ojo, G/F, Princess Anne, 6-1 – Jr.
-Class of 2027 ranking: No. 7 per ESPN, No. 9 per 247Sports (5-star)
-2025-26 Gatorade State Player of the Year with 16.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 2.7 steals per game
Tristan Rickenbacker, G/F, Princess Anne, 5-11 – Sr. (East Carolina)
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 96 per ESPN (4-star)
Olivia Jones, G, Long Island Lutheran, 5-11 – Sr. (Vanderbilt)
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 14 per ESPN, No. 19 per 247Sports (5-star); McDonald's All-American
Emily McDonald, G, Long Island Lutheran, 5-11 – Sr. (Kentucky)
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 23 per ESPN, No. 38 per 247Sports (4-star); McDonald's All-American
Savvy Swords, G/F, Long Island Lutheran, 6-1 – Sr. (Kentucky)
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 19 per ESPN, No. 16 per 247Sports (5-star); McDonald's All-American
Stella Lockhart, F, St. John Vianney, 6-1 – Sr. (Georgetown)
Peter Ackerman/Asbury Park Press / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 62 per ESPN (4-star)
Taylor Sofilkanich, C, St. John Vianney, 6-4 – Sr. (Duke)
Peter Ackerman/Asbury Park Press / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 43 per ESPN, No. 52 per 247Sports (4-star)
Love Lei Best, G, Tualatin, 5-6 – So.
Abigail Dollins / Statesman Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
-2025-26 Gatorade State Player of the Year with 14.9 points, 5.1 assists, and 3.9 steals per game
Morgan Stewart, G, St. John's, 5-11 – Sr. (Florida State)
-Class of 2026 ranking: No. 31 per ESPN, No. 35 per 247Sports (4-star)
-WCAC Player of the Year with 19.6 points and 3.3 assists per game
Ryan Carter, G, Friends' Central, 6-0 – Jr.
Daniella Heminghaus| Bucks County Courier Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
-Class of 2027 ranking, No. 12 per ESPN, No. 10 per 247Sports (5-star)
Zya Small, F, Friends' Central, 6-1 – Jr.
-Class of 2027 ranking, No. 47 per ESPN, No. 32 per 247Sports (4-star)
Khloe Ison, G, St. Frances Academy, 5-5 – Fr.
-IAAM A all-tournament team with 12.8 points, 2.2 assists, and 2.4 steals per game
Dahni Suggs, C, St. Frances Academy, 6-3 – Sr. (Norfolk State)
-IAAM A Most Outstanding Player with 12.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game
Potential rematches
Here are the past results between teams on the list that've already played each other in the 2025-26 season:
Dec. 13: Long Island Lutheran 69, St. John's 44 – will play rematch in The Throne quarterfinals
Dec. 29: Princess Anne 82, St. Frances Academy 54
Dec. 30: Etiwanda 51, Tualatin 41
Jan. 4: St. John Vianney 53, St. John's 51
The Throne: Schedule, channels, streaming
English (US)