SBLive's California Girls Basketball Top 25: Mater Dei returns to the top five
With some sections getting a brief rest and top teams in other sections blowing out lower seeds in their playoff openers, last week was very quiet in the rankings world. But as the postseason unfolds, that'll change quickly.
Here are SBLive's statewide girls basketball rankings for the week of Feb. 20-26. The rankings are released every Monday throughout the season – holiday weeks notwithstanding.
1. Sierra Canyon (29-0 – 1st)
Photo by Leon Neuschwander
In outscoring Bishop Montgomery, Ontario Christian, and Sage Hill by a combined 243-98 margin, Sierra Canyon's first three playoff wins constituted the most dominant run through Open Division pool play since the CIFSS instituted it. Now it's time for SC's long-awaited rematch with Etiwanda.
2. La Jolla Country Day (25-3 – 2nd)
Photo by Leon Neuschwander
Next up for the Torreys is Mission Hills, a team they defeated by 20 points in the closing weeks of the regular season. If they win that game, they play the winner of Westview and Del Norte in the CIFSDS Open Division finals.
3. Etiwanda (29-2 – 3rd)
Photo by Nick Koza
The Eagles closed out CIFSS pool play with an outstanding 71-58 victory over Mater Dei. That means their chance to get back on top of Sierra Canyon and go back-to-back in the Open Division has arrived.
4. Archbishop Mitty (24-2 – 4th)
Photo by Jim Malone
When was the last time the best Central Coast Section team was this far ahead of the pack? The Monarchs beat Crystal Springs Uplands and Branham by over 60 points each to open the postseason.
5. Mater Dei (28-3 – 7th)
Photo by Nick Koza
Despite getting its 19-game winning streak snapped by Etiwanda, Mater Dei is back in the top five. After falling to Santiago (Corona) in November without its full squad, MD crushed Santiago 94-38 in its second playoff game, getting even with the only lower-ranked California team it's lost to.
6. Piedmont (25-0 – 5th)
The Trinity Zamora-less Highlanders 50-pieced Lick-Wilmerding to open the playoffs. Up next is McKinleyville, which will likely be followed by a title game against second-seeded Branson.
7. Clovis West (29-1 – 6th)
So far so good in the playoffs for the Golden Eagles. After beating Caruthers by 30, they defeated league foe Buchanan by 20 to roll into the finals. That's where it'll face second-seeded Clovis, against which it has split meetings this season.
8. Folsom (25-2 – 8th)
After holding off McClatchy, Folsom is back in the CIFSJS D1 championship, which it lost by one point to Oak Ridge last season. Folsom will face St. Mary's (Stockton), which it defeated 61-57 on Dec. 10.
9. St. Mary's Stockton (23-8 – 9th)
After defeating Antelope by double-digits for the second time this season, the Rams are finals-bound once again. Now they get a long-awaited chance at revenge against Folsom.
10. Salesian (23-4 – 10th)
The good news for Salesian is that it's well-rested with only two wins between it and a CIFNCS Open Division title. The only concern is that after a first round bye, it enters the semifinals against Carondelet having not played a contest in a whopping 11 days.
11. Oakland Tech (23-5 – 11th)
Following a first round bye, Oakland Tech faces Castlemont in the Oakland Section playoffs, where it's likely to roll to another title.
12. Sage Hill (21-9 – 12th)
After beating Ontario Christian 63-53 to open the playoffs, Sage Hill moved to 2-0 in the Open Division with another double-digit win, coming against Bishop Montgomery, to make the de facto section semifinals. There it was blown out by Sierra Canyon, but what a showing in the program's Open Division debut.
13. Ontario Christian (27-4 – 13th)
Ontario Christian got its first Open Division victory in program history as well, defeating Bishop Montgomery 74-70 to close pool play. Chloe Briggs had 42 points in that game to surpass Cheryl Miller for the most career points in Southern Section history.
14. San Ramon Valley (25-3 – 15th)
Like Salesian, San Ramon Valley is tasked with beating an elite foe in the NCS semifinals despite having not played a game in 11 days. SRV will be a light favorite against Cardinal Newman with the opportunity to make back-to-back Open Division title games.
15. Carondelet (22-5 – 16th)
In what was bound to be an exceptional quarterfinal matchup, Carondelet outdueled Acalanes 66-62. It seeks to keep its NCS reign alive now having to face top-seeded Salesian on Wednesday.
16. Cardinal Newman (23-6 – 17th)
A Sonoma County team is one win away from the CIFNCS Open Division championship? Talk about putting on for the North Bay. Cardinal Newman will be something of an underdog against San Ramon Valley on Wednesday, but it should be anyone's game.
17. Santiago-Corona (22-9 – 18th)
Unpredictable but dangerous has been the theme all season for the Sharks, and that continued to ring true in CIFSS pool play. After beating Mater Dei by five points and losing to Windward by 21 in the regular season, they lost by 56 to Mater Dei and beat Windward by 18. The victory marked their first win at the Open Division level in 10 years.
18. Mission Hills (20-9 – 21st)
The Grizzlies picked up a tough win to open the CIFSDS playoffs, beating red-hot Bonita Vista on the road in the quarterfinals. Up next, a familiar foe known as La Jolla Country Day.
19. Christian Brothers (29-2 – 25th)
After winning their first three playoff games by a combined 89 points, Christian Brothers is a fairly heavy favorite this week against Whitney in the Sac-Joaquin Section D2 championship.
20. Clovis (25-5 – Bubble)
The theme of this postseason has been "rematches" for the Cougars. They opened up by defeating Clovis East, which they beat in two competitive league games, 56-51. Then they took down St. Joseph (Santa Maria) 66-63 after falling 71-65 to St. Joseph in November. Finally, it's time for a rubber match with Clovis West – which they upset in the first half of league play – for a D1 title.
21. Windward (18-9 – 18th)
CIFSS Open Division pool play didn't do the Wildcats' stock any favors. They played well to avoid getting dismantled by Mater Dei and Etiwanda, but then lost by 18 to Santiago (Corona) to go 0-3.
22. St. Joseph-Santa Maria (26-4 – Bubble)
Impressively, St. Joseph was unbeaten against in-state competition before falling to Clovis – perhaps the best team it had beaten this season – in the Central Section semifinals. However, it picked up a big quarterfinals win against San Joaquin Memorial before going down.
23. San Joaquin Memorial (18-8 – 22nd)
The Panthers were on an eight-game tear before falling to St. Joseph. Despite the quarterfinals loss, we have them finishing their season as the No. 4 team in the CIFCS.
24. Brentwood School (26-6 – 24th)
Most of the best teams Brentwood has faced this season have come up short and fallen in rankings this postseason, transitively hurting Brentwood's stock. But the Eagles are still doing their thing, making the CIFSS 2-A finals with only one playoff game coming down to single-digits. They'll be a slight favorite against Leuzinger on Saturday in what should be a fantastic title game.
25. Antelope (26-4 – Bubble)
Before getting knocked out by St. Mary's (Stockton), Antelope had won a dozen games straight spanning over a month, with the last one being an 18-point playoff win over reigning section champion Oak Ridge. With two of its losses on the season coming to St. Mary's, St. Mary's is still the only CIFSJS team that Antelope has lost to this season.
ON THE BUBBLE:
Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep, Orange Lutheran, Bonita Vista, Westchester, Chaminade, Marlborough, Pinewood, Rosary Academy, Los Osos, Bishop Montgomery
