PSAL boys basketball rankings

The weather drops to bone-chilling temperatures. The wind picks up. It must mean one thing: playoff basketball is right around the corner.

Before it’s one-and-done time, however, there are division titles to be won and seedings to be earned. No time like the present, as Brooklyn AA, Bronx AA and Queens will be decided this week. No. 1 Boys & Girls and No. 2 Lincoln meet on Tuesday, No. 3 Wings Academy and No. 4 John F. Kennedy face off on Thursday and No. 5 Cardozo and unranked Forest Hills lock horns on Friday.

The Post’s PSAL boys basketball rankings have few changes as most of the PSAL was off taking Regents exams, but that ought to change quickly.

1. Boys & Girls (18-5) (Last week: 1)

It’s all about Tuesday at 5 p.m. for the Kangaroos. They get archnemesis Lincoln in their own building with the Brooklyn AA crown on the line. Grady transfer Leroy (Truck) Fludd will make his Boys & Girls debut and be joined by bruising 6-foot-4 wing Anthony Hemingway. The High can win its first outright division title since 2004 and get a step closer to the top seed in the city playoffs.

Next: No. 2 Lincoln (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

2. Lincoln (14-6) (2)

Shaquille Stokes’ value to the Railsplitters can’t be overstated. After an early-season benching, he has emerged as not only Lincoln’s leading scorer, but its leader, top playmaker and a reliable defender. In Friday’s 86-72 overtime victory over Thomas Edison, he scored 42 points, including a 3-pointer to send the game into the extra session. He has the Coney Island dynamo in play for the city’s top seed when nobody expected that to be possible back in November.

Next: @ No. 1 Boys & Girls (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

3. Wings Academy (16-3) (3)

Wings Academy has grown up far quicker than coach Billy Turnage expected. He just wanted the Wings to be playing their best ball come February. He’ll see just how far they have come on Thursday when the Bronx AA title is on the line. Wings snaps Kennedy’s two-year run with a win. Of course, that is easier said than done. They won the first meeting, 69-61, back on Jan. 5, but that was with Naquan Pierce in street clothes. He will be on the court this time around.

Next: @ Lehman (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

4. John F. Kennedy (17-2) (4)

As usual, the Knights are rounding into form at the right time. First, Pierce returns from a school-sanctioned seven-game suspension to lead JFK past Wadleigh. Now, it appears, sophomore forward Muhammed Ahmed will be back from academic ineligiblity for the Bronx AA showdown with Wings Academy on Thursday, giving coach Johnny Mathis much-needed size in the paint.

Next: Gompers (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

5. Cardozo (12-7) (6)

For seven quarters this weekend, the Judges were world-beaters, thrashing Long Island Lutheran and Villanova-bound guard Achraf Yacoubou and having defending state champion Rice down 19. Unfortunately for Cardozo, it couldn’t handle the Raiders’ renowned full-court pressure and wilted in overtime. Nevertheless, if the Queens powerhouse can maintain the level of play it displayed at Long Island University, they should get to the Garden Mar. 6.

Next: @ Flushing (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

6. Thomas Jefferson (14-7) (5)

It feels like ages since the Orange Wave last played locally when in fact it has only been a little over two weeks. While the odds are stacked against them, they can still win Brooklyn AA. To do so, Lincoln needs to beat Boys & Girls while Jefferson has to knock off Transit Tech and the Railsplitters on the road. It won’t be easy, but it is doable. The return from academic ineligibility of shooting guard Thaddeus Hall should help.

Next: @ No. 8 Transit Tech (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

7. Transit Tech (14-6) (9)

The Express is basically locked into fourth place in Brooklyn AA no matter the outcome of their two league games this week. Transit Tech finished in the same spot last year, too, and much like that season, it will be a tough out come February/early March.

Next: No. 6 Thomas Jefferson (Feb. 2, 5 p.m.)

8. Wadleigh (13-6) (8)

Mike Crump can’t be happy these days. The Tigers will win Manhattan AA, and likely the boroughs, too, but what happens once the playoffs begin? Wadleigh has lost its last three games against tough competition – against Boys & Girls, John F. Kennedy and Catholic league foe Xaverian.

Next: @ FDA (Feb. 4, 5 p.m.)

9. Curtis (20-4) (7)

If the Warriors are going to be a factor in the PSAL Class AA playoffs, they better figure out how to close out games. Counting Friday’s two-point loss to Transit Tech, that’s twice Curtis has faltered down the stretch against a fellow contender. The Staten Island power also blew a late lead against Wings Academy.

Next: Susan Wagner (Feb. 1, 6 p.m.)

10. McKee/Staten Island Tech (20-5) (10)