Observer readers select the top high school boys’ basketball teams of the past 40 years

Earlier this month, The Observer celebrated the 40th anniversary of its Sweet 16 high school girls’ basketball poll, which began in the 1984-85 season.

The media outlet released a list of all 40 past winners, including its ranking of the top 16 programs.

As part of the retrospective, a poll was launched for readers to vote and determine their top teams.

Below, find out which teams made the readers’ list and scroll down for a recap of all 40 Sweet 16 winners from the past 40 years.

▪ A similar poll for the girls’ teams was conducted last week. Tap here for the results.

Readers’ Sweet 16 poll

Past Sweet 16 boys’ basketball champions

The 1980s

1984-85, Cherryville: The Ironmen finished 28-1, and spent the entire season in the No. 1 spot. Cherryville ended its season with an 82-75 win against Whiteville in the 2A state championship game.

1985-86, West Charlotte: The Lions started No. 1 in the Sweet 16 and stayed there all season, eventually finishing 29-0 and winning the 4A state title behind Mecklenburg County player of the year Kevin Reid, a 6-4 center. Along the way the Lions won the Observer’s Invitational Tipoff and the Tri-County 4A conference titles.

1986-87, Salisbury: The 2A Hornets finished 30-2, and moved from No. 2 in the poll to No. 1 after previously unbeaten North Mecklenburg was upset by Chapel Hill and UNC recruit Henrik Rodl in the 4A state championship game. Salisbury was No. 4 in preseason and beat Farmville Central, 63-45, in the state final.

1987-88, Lower Richland (S.C.): The Diamonds began the season No. 1 in the preseason poll and went 29-3 to finish at the top. Lower Richland beat Hillcrest-Simpsonville, 82-59, in the 4A state championship game.

1988-89, Garinger: The Wildcats beat Wilson Fike 71-63 to win the 4A state championship and edged out two other state champions — Columbia’s Eau Claire (27-3) and North Surry (26-6) — to win the Sweet 16 title. Garinger, which beat S.C. power Eau Claire, 63-60, in a holiday tournament in Rock Hill, was led by coach Bruce Kreutzer, who eventually landed in the NBA with the Hornets as an assistant coach.

1989-90, Eau Claire (S.C.): The Shamrocks finished 31-2, and repeated as 4A state champion led by junior Derrick Carroll, the Observer’s Upper State S.C. player of the year. A 6-6 forward, Carroll averaged 21 points, 8.8 rebounds and shot 60 percent from the field. He was the first player at the state power to average more than 20 points per game in 16 years.

The 1990s

1990-91, West Charlotte: The Lions finished 24-3, jumping from No. 12 to No. 1 in the final poll. Before the season began, West Charlotte lost two of the state’s best players, Dwayne Forte and future NBA forward Junior Burrough, to national prep power Oak Hill of Virginia. Led by sophomores Jeff McInnis and Thad Bonaparte, the Lions helped coach Charles McCullough to his fourth 4A state title in 32 years.

1991-92, West Charlotte: The Lions (25-5) repeated as Sweet 16 champions after winning their third 4A state title in six years. West Charlotte, which finished No. 22 in USA Today’s national poll, did it without future NBA player Jeff McInnis, who transferred to Virginia’s Oak Hill. In the state final, the Lions upset a heavily favored Kinston team that featured future UNC and NBA standout Jerry Stackhouse, believed at the time to be the best high school junior in the country. West Charlotte won, 65-63.

1992-93, South Mecklenburg: The Sabres finished 24-5, and reached the 4A state championship, despite returning no seniors from the previous season. Under coach Herb Davis, South Meck won its first league and tournament titles in 13 years. The Sabres made their first state final in 17 years.

1993–94: Charlotte Latin: Latin, 53-4 in two seasons, was named the top team in the Observer’s 151-school coverage area. Coach Jerry Faulkner won his 400th game during a season where his team started out ranked No. 2 in the Sweet 16 and then won an NCISAA 2A state title led by 7-3 center Chase Metheney, Jeff Coble, Chuck Edwards and Forest Wester. The Hawks finished 27-1.

1994-95: Irmo (S.C.): Irmo finished 28-1 and won the 4A state championship. The Yellow Jackets ran their win streak to 40 straight games against S.C. teams and won the Beach Ball Classic. All-American B.J. McKie, a 6-2 guard headed to South Carolina, led the team on a 27-game win streak to end the season. McKie was the only player on the team to average in double figures.

1995-96, Great Falls (S.C.): The 1A team finished 26-0, and beat Elloree, 84-59, in the state championship game. Coach John Smith won his 500th game that season and Great Falls won its second state title in four years.

1996-97, Independence: The Patriots finished 28-3, and won their first Sweet 16 title in any sport. Independence also finished ranked No. 23 in USA Today’s national poll. Independence rallied to beat Richmond Senior, 82-80, in the 4A state final, scoring a championship-record 52 points in the second half. Future Charlotte 49ers star Jobey Thomas scored 16 points and was named championship game MVP.

1997-98, Freedom: The Patriots finished 30-1 and didn’t lose to any N.C. teams. Freedom won its second 4A title since 1994 and upset West Charlotte in the regional championship. Freedom coach Terry Rogers’ son, Casey, was MVP of the state championship game.

1998-99, West Charlotte: The Lions began the season No. 1 in the Sweet 16, and after a 30-2 season that included a fourth 4A state title since 1986, the Lions ended at No. 1. West Charlotte beat Wilmington Laney, 84-67, in the state final and won 21 straight games to end the season, finishing at No. 8 in USA Today’s national poll. Twenty of those wins in the streak were by double digits.

1999-2000, Central Cabarrus: The Vikings beat Greensboro Dudley 56-52 in the 3A state championship game after beating Hickory and West Rowan with All-American Scooter Sherrill — two 28-1 teams — en route to the finals. Central Cabarrus made its first appearance in the finals and finished 24-6, just four years after coach Scott Brewer started with a 4-17 team.

The 2000s

2000-01, Charlotte Christian: The Knights finished 27-4, beating Providence Day 77-60 in the NCISAA 2A state finals. Jason Morton had 26 points, four rebounds and four assists. Christian outscored Providence Day 23-0 at one point during the game. Former NBA All-Star Bobby Jones split coaching duties with Shonn Brown, who is still the Knights’ coach.

2001-02, West Rowan: West Rowan finished unbeaten and earned its first Sweet 16 championship after winning all of its games by 11 points or more. The Falcons were the first team since West Charlotte in the 1998-99 season to go through the entire season ranked No. 1. West Rowan had four players 6-6 or taller, including All-Observer star Donte Minter.

2002-03, West Rowan: West Rowan extended its win streak to 61 games and won its second straight 3A championship. At that point, only six NCHSAA teams had had unbeaten seasons — including two by West Rowan in back-to-back years. The Falcons won their third state title in seven years.

2003-04, Garinger: The Wildcats (28-3) won their first regional game since 1989 before losing to 4A power Winston-Salem Reynolds in a semifinal that required the teams to finish the final 99 seconds the next day because of a power outage. Garinger won five games against Sweet 16 teams, all ranked in the top five.

2004-05, North Mecklenburg: The Vikings went 31-1 and were one of the most dominant teams in Mecklenburg County history. The Vikings held 17 opponents to less than 50 points and ended the season on a 20-game win streak, led by All-Observer star Jamie Sheen.

2005-06, Rock Hill (S.C.): The Bearcats won their final 14 games, finished 22-4 and won the school’s first 4A state championship. Before that, Rock Hill hadn’t played in the state championship game since 1972. Senior Phillip Adams had 26 points in the championship win over Goose Creek.

2006-07, Victory Christian: After losing in the NCISAA state championship for three straight seasons, the Kings finally won the NCISAA 2A title. They also won the National Association of Christian Athletes national championship in Dayton, Tennessee.

2007-08, East Mecklenburg: The team was led by Southwestern 4A and Observer player of the year Malik Stith, a first-team AP all-state pick. Stith averaged 16 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds and led the Eagles to their first N.C. 4A state championship in 58 years.

2008-09, Shelby: The Golden Lions finished 29-2 and won the NCHSAA 2A championship, the first boys’ basketball state championship in school history. Shelby coach Aubrey Hollifield was named Observer coach of the year after his third season. He was 80-11 in three seasons.

2009-10, Lake Norman: The Wildcats finished 26-3 and were ranked in the top 5 of the Sweet 16 all season. Lake Norman beat a hot West Charlotte team in the regional championship, rallying from 15 points down three times. A week later, the Wildcats beat previously unbeaten Fayetteville Sanford in the 4A final to win their first state title.

The 2010s

2010-11, West Charlotte: The Lions finished 28-2, and won the school’s seventh 4A state title and fifth in 25 years. West Charlotte — featuring a future McDonald’s All-American named Kennedy Meeks — won its final 14 games and beat six postseason opponents by a total of 129 points.

2011-12, West Charlotte: The Lions finished 27-6 after reaching a second straight 4A state championship game. Although West Charlotte lost in the final to New Hanover, the Lions advanced after a third straight regional championship appearance under coach Baronton Terry.

2012-13, Olympic: The Trojans finished the year ranked No. 11 in USA Today’s national poll. At 30-0, Olympic was the first unbeaten Mecklenburg County public school since West Charlotte in 1986. Olympic beat Raleigh Broughton, 56-53, in the 4A state final, winning the first major sports state title in the school’s 47-year history.

2013-14, Freedom: The Patriots finished 31-1, won the 3A state championship, and earned their first Sweet 16 banner in 16 years. The Morganton, N.C., school beat Wilson Hunt 59-57 to win the title after Kasen Wilson hit a 12-foot jumper at the end of the game. Freedom rallied from 12 points down in the first quarter and 13 in the third.

2014-15, Ardrey Kell: The Knights finished 28-2, won 27 straight games and qualified for the first 4A state championship game in school history. Ardrey Kell was ranked as high as No. 39 in USA Today’s national poll before losing 70-64 to Garner in the state final.

2015-16, Providence Day: The Chargers finished the regular season 30-4, and won the NCISAA 3A state championship for the school’s first boys’ basketball title since 1999. Playing a schedule that MaxPreps ranked the fifth most difficult in the country, Providence Day was unbeaten against N.C. teams and earned a berth to the DICKS’ national championship in New York, where it lost to a Montverde Academy (Florida) team that was ranked No. 1 in the nation and featured future Duke star R.J. Barrett.

2016-17, Cox Mill: The Chargers finished 27-6, and won the N.C. 3A state championship, just months after the girls’ volleyball team did the same thing. The Cox Mill boys were led by future Duke recruit and McDonald’s All-American Wendell Moore.

2017-18, Independence: Preston Davis, a player from the Patriots’ 1997 state championship team that won a Sweet 16 banner, coached the team to a 4A state title. Independence (31-1) set a school record for wins and held 23 teams under 60 points with a 3-2 matchup zone defense.

2018-19: Carmel Christian: The Cougars, ranked No. 1 in the preseason Sweet 16 poll, finished 31-3 and won the NCISAA 3A state championship after winning the 2A title the year before. In 2019, Carmel Christian finished nationally ranked in several polls. First-year coach Joe Badgett was an assistant on the 2017-18 team that won the school’s first state title.

2019-20, North Mecklenburg: The Vikings finished 30-1, and as co-state champions with Lumberton after COVID forced the cancellation of the 4A state championship game. North Meck got its first title in 16 years.

The 2020s

2020-21, Cannon School: The Cougars finished 27-5, and beat Carmel Christian 94-85, in Carmel Christian’s gym, to win the NCISAA 4A state championship. Carmel Christian (23-2) finished No. 2 in the poll.

2021-22, Weddington: The Warriors finished 31-0, and won the 4A state championship, one year after finishing 28-0 and winning the 3A title. Weddington was ranked as high as No. 13 nationally and beat Panther Creek, 76-68, in the state final. In the final poll, Weddington moved past Carmel Christian (26-3), which won the NCISAA 4A title.

2022-23, Myers Park: Myers Park opened in 1951, and the Mustangs (27-4) won the school’s first boys’ basketball state championship, the 4A title, after winning the Arby’s Classic holiday tournament in Tennessee and the SoMECK regular-season and tournament championships. In six playoff games, Myers Park won by an average of 32.5 points. Unbeaten Central Cabarrus finished second in the poll.

2023-24, North Mecklenburg: Led by McDonald’s All-American Isaiah Evans, the Vikings defeated a Myers Park team ranked as high as No. 4 in the country, in the state quarterfinals; beat a two-loss Lake Norman team in the semifinals; and defeated unbeaten Wilmington New Hanover in the 4A state championship. North Meck won its third state championship, finished ranked among the nation’s top 15 teams and earned its third Sweet 16 banner. Unbeaten Central Cabarrus (33-0), which won its 65th straight game and second straight 3A state title, was second.