The Alberta Schools' Athletic Association released its second round of rankings and the Paul Kane Blues and St. Albert Skyhawks remain in the top 10 in 4A women's basketball.
The Blues moved up one notch to No. 5 and the Skyhawks remain No. 8.
The Jasper Place Rebels maintained their No. 1 spot as the team to beat at provincials, hosted by the south zone March 16 to 18.
The Rebels, last year's provincial silver medallists, are 8-0 in the metro Edmonton division one standings as the defending league champions.
The Blues and the No. 6-ranked Spruce Grove Panthers share second place at 6-2 and the Skyhawks are in a three-way tie in fourth place with the Archbishop MacDonald Marauders and O'Leary Spartans at 5-3.
Today at 5 p.m. the Blues host the Rebels on Senior Night and at halftime Paul Kane will honour its lone Grade 12 player, captain Allie Hunder.
The Skyhawks are also in action today at 5 p.m. against the Panthers in Spruce Grove.
The division one quarter-finals start Monday and the final is March 4 at 5 p.m. at Jasper Place.
In the 3A rankings, the Sturgeon Spirits dropped from seventh to ninth place as the fourth-highest metro Edmonton women's team in the top 10 and the Skyhawks repeated as a men's honourable mention.
Sturgeon shares first place in division two pool B with the No. 5-ranked 3A Edmonton Christian Lions and the St. Peter the Apostle Spartans, a 3A honourable mention, with 4-1 records.
Sturgeon is at home today against the 2-3 St. Francis Xavier Rams at 5 p.m.
In the men's division two pool B standings, the 6-2 Skyhawks and the 6-1 Blues are tied for second behind the 8-0 Bellerose Bulldogs.
The Skyhawks hoop it up today at 5 p.m. against the 4-4 Strathcona Christian Academy Eagles in Sherwood Park.
The Blues played the 3-4 Austin O'Brien Crusaders on Tuesday at Paul Kane but the score was unavailable at press time.
The next game for the Blues is today against the 4-4 Ardrossan Bisons on the road at 5 p.m.
The last game for the Bulldogs before the playoffs was Tuesday against the 3-4 Archbishop Jordan Scots in Sherwood Park but the score was unavailable at press time.
The division two playoffs start Monday and the final is March 4 at 7 p.m. at Memorial Composite High School in Stony Plain.
The last tournament before the metro Edmonton women's playoffs for the division one Paul Kane Blues and St. Albert Skyhawks was the Panther Classic in Spruce Grove last weekend.
The Blues finished 1-2 in the eight-team draw and the results for the Skyhawks were unavailable at press time.
The Blues dropped their first game 80-62 to the Western Canada Redhawks of Calgary, the third-ranked 4A team in the province, and in the consolation bracket defeated the Bishop Carroll Cardinals of Calgary, ranked ninth in 4A, 77-64 before losing to the Medicine Hat Kwahommies, a 4A honourable mention, 72-68.
Injuries to Grade 10 guard Kaitlyn Kluttig (broken finger) and Grade 11 guard/forward Alesha Stanley (ankle) left the Blues with only eight players for the weekend.
Jenae John, an unsung Grade 11 forward/post, was the team's tournament MVP.
The Blues are 19-8 overall after the tournament and the Skyhawks were 14-11 entering the competition.
The No. 1-ranked 4A Jasper Place Rebels defeated the No. 6-ranked 4A Panthers in the final 79-62.
League play wraps up this afternoon in St. Albert Physical Education Council junior high basketball.
The Sir George Simpson Voyageurs host the Vincent J. Maloney Marauders and the ESSMY Leopards visit the Elmer S. Gish Warriors.
The playoffs tip off next week with Tuesday's quarter-finals.
The city finals are March 8 in Tier 2 at a gym to be determined and March 9 in Tier 1 at the SkyDome. The girls play at 6 p.m., followed by the boys at 8:30 p.m.
Last year the Lorne Akins Gators repeated as Tier 1 champions by defeating the Richard S. Fowler Falcons 60-43 in the girls' final and 44-39 in the boys' final.
