Milwaukee-area boys basketball rankings, players and teams of the week

AREA RANKINGS

1. Milwaukee Washington (8-2) 1

2. Brookfield East (10-0) 2

3. Martin Luther (11-1) 3

4. Brookfield Central (7-3) 4

5. Pewaukee (13-1) 5

6. Whitnall (11-3) 6

7. Destiny (9-1) 7

8. Cedarburg (11-1) 8

9. Franklin (12-1) 9

10. Brown Deer (11-2) — 

RELATED:Milwaukee-area girls basketball rankings, players and teams of the week

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

John Diener, Cedarburg: It’s hard to beat the week the DePaul recruit had. The 6-foot-5 senior guard averaged 25 points per game in victories over Whitefish Bay and Nicolet last week.  Friday against Nicolet, Diener scored his 2,000th point, a feat just 32 other boys in state history accomplished entering the season, and hit the winning shot at the buzzer. Diener averages 26 points per game for the Bulldogs, who are 11-1 overall and 9-0 in the North Shore Conference.

Honorable mention

Carlos Curtis, Milwaukee Riverside: The East Tennessee State recruit joined the 1,000-point club with a 26-point effort Thursday in a 91-83 victory over Milwaukee Hamilton at the City Review at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. He enters the week with a scoring average of 23.5 points per game and 1,023 points.

Tyler Herro, Whitnall: The senior guard returned to action after missing two games due to a calf injury and averaged 40 points per game in victories over Shorewood and Elkhorn on Friday and Saturday. He also netted the area’s only nomination to the McDonald’s All-American Game.

Deontay Long, Milwaukee Washington: The junior wing continues to dominate for the Purgolders. He posted his first triple double – 34 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds – in a 91-37 victory over Milwaukee Vincent on Thursday at the City Review at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Gage Malensek, Brookfield Central: The junior guard became the school’s all-time assists leader when he had four Tuesday in a 66-58 victory over Marquette. He added seven assists and 25 points Friday in a 74-56 victory over Wauwatosa East to raise his assist total to 299. Malensek is also closing in on 1,000 points. He is 39 away.

Connor Allen and Buck Siebert, Menomonee Falls: Falls lost returning all-conference player Nate Schuster to injury early in the game Friday, but Allen and Siebert compensated for his absence and led their team to an 81-80 victory over Sussex Hamilton. Allen, a senior forward, scored a personal best 28 points. Siebert, a sophomore forward, finished with 16 points, also a career high, and drove the length of the floor for a layup at the buzzer that provided the winning points.

TEAMS OF THE WEEK

Milwaukee Reagan: The Huskies (1-10) earned the first victory in school history when they defeated Milwaukee Lifelong Learning, 62-55, Friday on the road. Before this year, Reagan  had a co-op team with Milwaukee Juneau. Reagan dropped nine of its first 10 games by double digits before Friday. Senior forward Tariq Makki finished with 28 points. Carter Grant, a sophomore forward, added 11.

Mukwonago: One week ago there was a five-way tie for first in the Classic 8. Entering this week Mukwonago has  the top spot by itself. The Indians defeated two of those former co-leaders last week, knocking off Oconomowoc, 76-62, Tuesday and beating Waukesha West, 71-57, Friday. Senior guard Connor Tess averaged 16.5 points in the two games, finishing with 21 points and 4 three-pointers against West. Junior guard Cory Broncatti and senior guard John Reardon averaged 12.5 points in the two contests. Broncatti set the tone defensively against West and buried 3 threes in the second half. The team hit  43 of 51 free throws in the two games with senior Bryce Konitzer sinking 13 of 14.

COMING UP

Racine St. Catherine’s at Dominican, 7 p.m Tuesday: This marks the start of a big week for both teams in the Metro Classic. Dominican also plays host to first-place Martin Luther on Friday. St. Catherine’s travels to Prairie School on Friday for a matchup of teams that entered the week with one league loss.

Menomonee Falls at Brookfield Central, 7:15 p.m. Tuesday: Central needs to take care of business against Falls and Germantown this week in order to set up its showdown with Brookfield East on Jan. 23.

Milwaukee Golda Meir at Brown Deer, 7:15 p.m. Tuesday: Brown Deer is one of the state’s top Division 3 teams. Golda Meir, an upstart in the division, hopes to make a statement.

Sussex Hamilton at Brookfield East, 7:15 p.m. Friday: East must beat a dangerous Hamilton squad to complete the first half of the Greater Metro schedule undefeated.

Union Grove at Westosha Central, 7 p.m. Friday:  The host Falcons can take a two-game lead in the Southern Lakes by beating the second-place Broncos.

Luke Homan Showcase, Saturday at Brookfield Central: The day-long event features 14 games. Here are the best of the bunch: Sun Prairie vs. Brookfield Central, 2:15 p.m.; Destiny vs. Racine Park, 3:45; Franklin vs. Sussex Hamilton, 7.