Power 8: Biggest poll movement yet, Ellington girls serve notice

*Note – this poll was based on action finalized on Wednesday.

We return for week two of the new Power 8 poll – a ranking based on pure performance and not what classification, sport or gender.

Feedback will always be welcome and can be directed to sports@darnews.com. Movement was limited since last week, but still some slight variations to the poll are evident.

In the heat of the winter season, basketball and wrestling teams will dominate the landscape for now, but within a few months more sports mean more headaches in making the big decisions for pollsters – namely one person.

The Ellington Lady Whippets are coming off back-to-back trips to the state title game, winning the chip in 2021, and returning with a smaller roster and of course scoring machine Kaylee King.

With only seven players on the roster, it’s been a battle, but there has been improvement and it was seen Tuesday with the win at East Carter.

Could they be making another push for state supremacy? Maybe, but they have made a dent on this week’s Power 8.

Week 3: POWER 8

1. Three Rivers women’s basketball (last week’s poll: 1): It’s a big return to action this week with Wednesday’s 110-40 win against Lincoln Trail and Saturday's big ESPN+ showdown with Wabash Valley CC. It will be interesting to see just how improved the team is after weeks off from action. Did they use the rest and relaxation to get their heads in the right place to take over the JUCO world? Did the Lady Raiders have enough time to tweak whatever they felt they needed to take their game to the next level? Bet that all that happened and it could be a fun ride for the next two-plus months.

2. Doniphan girls basketball (2): The Donettes set the marker with a big win over Poplar Bluff on Monday and remain unblemished. The thing that stands out is the team continues to find ways to win. If the offense isn’t clicking, they aren’t letting teams go on big runs to get any true advantage – outside of the Neelyville girls during the first half in the LRCC and we know how that turned out. It’s an inside-out-based team offensively and they can go 10-deep. This is going to be an interesting watch as things continue.

3. Dexter boys basketball (5): They won a tough one over Doniphan to capture the Bloomfield Christmas tournament and showed grit the whole tournament as they cruised to the title with the punctuation victory over the Dons. It didn’t matter who they faced. An improving Malden team, a feisty Dons squad, an upstart East Prairie team, the Bearcats (9-3) found ways to get it done. Winning back-to-back nailbiters against Doniphan and the Green Wave will only benefit Dexter going forward.

4. Doniphan boys basketball (5): Yep, they certainly do make the jump after making it to the final at Bloomfield, winning three games in tough fashion to get there and then jump-starting the New Year with a win Tuesday. They have a nice combination of inside-out, similar to their Donette compatriots. Doniphan (10-3) is becoming the newest edition of the Cardiac kids.

5. Malden boys basketball (6): Another team that deserved to make the jump, the Green Wave continues to get better and better. They lost a heartbreaker against Dexter (after getting ripped by the Bearcats only weeks earlier) then responded with a pounding of Kennett to clinch third place at Bloomfield. They are 9-4 and for good reason.

6. Ellington girls basketball (new): They pulled out an impressive road win at East Carter Tuesday night as Kaylee King went off for 39 points. It was an interesting performance considering most of the offense runs through King and her array of shooting options. The rest of the girls are finding their way on that side of the court, but they also tend not to panic and do what they can to supplement the attack in sports while knowing King is there with them. Defensively and physically, they go to the max on every possession. It won’t be easy making it to a third straight title with a program that was built for this run years before, but it could be fun to watch.

7. East Carter girls basketball (3): They took a tough loss on the chin in the home defeat to Ellington and they were coming off a good week-plus of inactivity. The thought is the defeat was one of only a few they will see through to district play, but a lot of missed chippies and turnovers that came at inopportune times hurt. Chances are it won’t continue for much longer. Neelyville girls basketball

(8). They keep the final spot over Greenville’s boys who didn’t necessarily get any worse or anything like that, but the Bears have been out of action for a while now and a lot of teams are putting up the resume. Neelyville did with another win over Ellington last week and Tuesday in a matchup versus Hayti. Freshman Parker Ernst continues to rise for the Lady Tigers.

Honorable mention: Greenville boys basketball, Poplar Bluff wrestling, Dexter girls basketball, Twin Rivers boys basketball, East Carter boys basketball, Clearwater boys basketball

Considering for final poll: Poplar Bluff football, Van Buren cross country, Dexter cross country, Neelyville softball, Doniphan softball.