Overview

Throughout the Prep Hoops/Prep Girls Hoops/Prep Hoops Next Circuit season, pool placements and final seedings are determined by each team's Power Score, which is calculated based on their performance throughout the season.

PH/PGH Formula: Score = (scaled_win_loss × 60) + (scaled_pool_factor × 30) + (scaled_sos × 10) + adjustment - (forfeits × 3)

PRZ Formula:

How They Are Determined

A major component of the Circuit is the ability for participating teams to create their own schedule. While we are excited to provide unprecedented flexibility for Circuit teams, we understand that this complicates the process of ranking teams for our regional finals.

Two Circuit teams have the potential to finish with the same win-loss record, despite having no common opponent. In addition, teams may finish a weekend (or multiple weekends) having played a different number of games.

Ranking teams who have played a different number of games or have equivalent records yet no common opponent, poses a challenge.

This led us to the question: How do we differentiate teams in the Circuit?

Do we rank teams solely on win-loss record and create a system of random tiebreakers? Or do we come up with a formula that can objectively evaluate a team’s ranking? We decided the latter was a more effective way to compare teams from different regions and without the same number of games played.

Enter the Circuit Power Score: a comprehensive calculation of a team’s performance in Circuit events.

Events App View

In the 'Tools' section of the Event App, you can access Power Score data across all brands from recent years. After selecting a brand, you can refine the view based on specific criteria, such as season, event, age group, region, and circuit vs. non-circuit play.

Along with the filter tool, we can also search for a specific team as well.

Once filtered, you'll see a ranked list of teams, along with detailed insights into their circuit performance, strength of schedule, and other key factors that influence their rankings (as shown above).

In the far-left column of this report, a dropdown arrow reveals a team's full schedule, including opponents, wins, losses, and pool placements. This comprehensive data is a critical component in determining each team's Power Score throughout the season.

Pre-Event Season Checks (Marketing/ Operations)

• Power Score Execution by Brand/Sport

  • Confirm that power scores are being run for all basketball events across all brands for ages 11U through 17U.

  • Validate that no age group or region is missing from the process.

• Web Development System Check

  • Coordinate with the Web Dev Team to ensure all underlying systems and automations for calculating and displaying power scores are:

    • Running correctly

    • Syncing with the Events App

    • Reflecting the latest program and team data

• Formula Accuracy Review

  • Revisit the power score formula annually before the event season begins.

    • Are weightings, inputs, or data points still relevant?

    • Have any changes occurred in how we track results or rankings that should impact the formula?

  • If adjustments are needed, coordinate with stakeholders (analytics/dev/ops) for updates.

• Ownership & Accountability (Ian)

  • Assign a clear point person from the Operations Team to:

    • Oversee execution of power scores during event season

    • Own communication with Web Dev

    • Lead or participate in the annual formula review

Operations Process

Power Scores – Weekly Update Process (PN Docs)

Overview

This guide outlines the weekly workflow to review, adjust, and publish Power Scores for Prep Hoops (PH) and Prep Girls Hoops (PGH). Follow the order exactly to keep national and regional rankings consistent.

1) Prepare Filters (Power Scores Interface)

1. Go to the Power Scores page.

2. Select the Brand and click Apply after confirming these filters are set:

   • Season

   • Websites

   • Ages

   • Regions

3. Leave Event and Circuit blank.

4. This ensures scores reflect the correct year, brand, age, and region.

2) Set Up Your Sheets

1. Copy the Brand Template:

   • Use the brand-specific template: Prep Hoops or Prep Girls Hoops.

2. Keep last week’s sheet open to compare trends:

   • You’ll reference prior ranks to understand movement by brand, region, and age.

3) Process Order (Always Do National First)

National Rankings

1. PH: 17U → 16U → 15U (Top 25)

2. PGH: 17U → 16U → 15U → 14U (Top 25)

Regional Rankings

• After all national lists are complete, do regional Top 10 by brand/age.

Important: Regional edits must not change national Top 25 ordering. Always re-check the national Top 25 before saving regional changes.

4) Pre-Fill This Week’s Sheet (Carryover Ranks)

For each brand × region × age:

1. In the previous week’s sheet, highlight A3:A27 (the 25 “Rank” cells).

2. Paste values only (Command + Shift + V) into C3 of this week’s sheet.

This gives you last week’s ordering as a starting point.

5) How to Use the Interface (Quick Guide)

• Row dropdown (far left): Expand to see wins/losses, event history, pool, and event records.

  • Use this to break ties when two teams have similar scores or head-to-head (H2H) history.

• Metrics table: Sanity-check whether the automated score aligns with results and schedule strength.

• Adjustment column (far right):

  • Positive values increase a team’s score; negative values decrease it.

  • If a team already has an adjustment (e.g., 2.0), and you need +3.5 more, set the box to 5.5, then press Return twice to apply.

Example:
If your sheet ranks Team X at #3, but the interface has them #7 at 81.5, and the surrounding targets are #2 = 85.2, #4 = 84.0, set Team X’s adjustment to +3.0 → 84.5, landing them between #2 and #4.

6) Adjusting Scores – Working Method

Scope & Focus

• For national: Review at least the top 35 teams per age, but finalize and be precise on the Top 25 (these appear on graphics).

• For regional: Review Top 15–20, finalize the Top 10 (used for graphics).

Decision Rules

• Prioritize H2H results and quality of competition:

  • A team that is 0–4 with single-possession losses to elite teams may deserve to rank above a 4–0 team with narrow wins vs weaker opponents.

• When editing regional ranks:

  • Do not elevate any team outside the national Top 25 above the national #25.

  • Do not change ordering in the national Top 25 with regional tweaks—re-check after each regional pass.

Working Tips

• Keep both current and previous week’s sheets open.

• In the sheet, jot your proposed Top 10 per brand/age based on stats and H2H.

• Use the two placeholder rows beneath the Top 10 to stage swaps:

  • Example: If last week’s #2 is moving to #6, copy the #2 team’s C & D (Team / Prev Week) into the placeholder rows, clear the current #6 (C & D), then paste the #2 into the #6 row.

Notes boxes

• Use notes to track key H2H results and context you’ll reference throughout the season.

7) Apply Adjustments in the Interface

1. For each team in your sheet order, set the Adjustment value in the interface to land the team between the correct neighbors (based on their scores).

2. Press Return twice after each entry to apply.

3. Once the Top 25 (national) matches your sheet for an age, change the Age filter and repeat.

4. After all ages for a brand’s national are done, switch to Regional and complete Top 10 by region/age.

8) Finalize & Handoff

1. Repeat the full process for PH and PGH.

2. When a brand is complete, Slack Kevin Grow:

   • “Power Scores are done for [Brand].”

3. Kevin will review adequacy and forward to Josiah Donat for graphics.

Definitions (Quick Reference)

• Score: Combines Scaled W/L, Scaled SOS, and Scaled Pool Factor; it’s a strong baseline but not perfect—use judgment.

• Pool Factor: A constant reflecting pool strength at an event.

  • Example: A team in Pool C at a premier event may carry more weight than Pool B at a lesser event.

  • Pools (A, B, C, D, E…) are assigned values, multiplied by event size, then normalized on a 0–1 scale.

Quality Checks (Before You Call It Done)

• National Top 25 is consistent and justified by H2H and schedule strength.

• Regional Top 10s do not violate national ordering (no outside-Top-25 team placed above national #25).

• All Adjustments applied and saved (Return ×2) and scores reflect your sheet ordering.

• Notes added for any controversial placements.

Quick Troubleshooting

• My regional change moved a national rank: Undo, re-apply national adjustments, then redo the regional with closer margin targeting.

• Two teams look identical: Expand rows, compare event history and H2H; favor stronger schedule and convincing results.

• Adjustments not sticking: Ensure you press Return twice after changing the value.

Marketing Process

Pre Event

• N/A

Post Event

Graphics

• Receive a list of scores from Ian.
• Double the list with Kev/Sales.
• Create graphics & send to Kevin/Lena via Slack.
• Triple-check graphics before posting.
• Graphic Options:
  • Top 25 National for each age group (preferred)
    • 7 graphics total
• Top 10 for each region, each age group
  • 12 graphics for PH - 16 graphics for PGH (28 total)

Social Media

• Josiah sends graphics
• We post that week and link to scores and tag teams
• Share to story
• Repeat the process with the next update from Josiah

Post scores weekly as a post.

Power Score Process