Top 25 California high school boys basketball rankings: CIF Southern Section (12/11/2023)

St. John Bosco takes the No. 1 spot for the first time this season

Author:
Tarek Fattal, SBLive Sports
Publish date:
Dec 11, 2023 8:24 PM EST

There's a new No. 1 in the CIF Southern Section ... for now.

1. St. John Bosco (7-0)

The Braves take the No. 1 spot after being behind Harvard-Westlake the first month of the 2023-24 season, but after a strong performance in the St. John Bosco tournament and Kade Bonam winning MVP of the event, SJB will sit at the top spot until further notice.

2. Harvard-Westlake (9-0)

It's like 1A and 1B with St. John Bosco, but after nearly losing to St. Pius this week, the Wolverines drop from the No. 1 spot.

3. JSerra (11-0)

Aidan Fowler and Sebastian Rancik continue to play well ... nothing new here.

4. Corona Centennial (5-3)

Huskies won two straight and are figuring it out despite coach Josh Giles underselling how good they are.

5. Mater Dei (7-0)

The Monarchs are off to a hot start and showing the best player on their team can be anyone on any given night. Matt Verna had 22 points in their latest win over Dana Hills.

6. Eastvale Roosevelt (9-1)

The Mustangs' only loss was to JSerra in overtime. Early indications say they're an Open Division playoff lock.

7. Sierra Canyon (8-1)

Justin Pippen won MVP of the Beverly Hills Tournament. Trailblazers beat Redondo Union in the final

8. Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks (6-0)

Mercy Miller, Lino Mark, Zach White, and 6-foot-9 center Bronson Schmidt-Uili make for a strong foursome at Notre Dame. Senior shooter Luther Tostrud has a role, too.

Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks’ junior guard Lino Mark.

9. La Mirada (10-2)

Give credit to the Matadores, their only two losses are to Harvard-Westlake and St. John Bosco.

10. St. Pius (3-1)

St. Pius had Harvard-Westlake on the ropes, and for that, they earn Top 10 recognition. The performance also earned it Open Division talks, but in order to break through SPSM needs to knock off someone ranked it. Game at home against La Mirada on Friday night is a start ...

11. Damien (10-1)

The Spartans won the Riverside tournament. Xavier Clinton won tournament MVP with 19 points including five 3s in the finals victory over Riverside Poly.

12. Etiwanda (7-0)

The Eagles took down Los Alamitos 75-56, a convincing victory, thanks to 17 points from Stanley Thomas.

13. Redondo Union (6-1)

Redondo Union's first loss comes to Sierra Canyon, 68-59, in the Beverly Hills tournament final. Reggie Morris has his program eyeing the Open Division.

14. St. Bernard (4-0)

St. Bernard was idle last week, but has big games coming.

15. Pasadena (6-0)

Pasadena has already started league play, and got two Pacific League wins (CV and Hoover) this past week.

16. Crespi (10-1)

The Celts' only hiccup thus far was against Pasadena.

17. Windward (8-2)

The Wildcats' two losses are to Crespi and St. John Bosco. Coach DJ Gay has his club playing well and eyeing a Gold Coast League title.

18. Los Alamitos (9-2)

The Griffins' big loss to Etiwanda drops them down the rankings after being No. 12 last week. OC Register's Steve Fryer really likes Los Al this year.

19. West Ranch (5-2)

The Wildcats have won 40 straight Foothill League games. Senior UNLV-commit James Evans is on the brink of 1,000 career points.

20. Rancho Cucamonga (9-2)

The Cougars have been in the SBLive Top 25 from the beginning of the season. Aaron Glass is proving to be a big-time player.

21. Heritage Christian (6-4)

The Warriors have losses to JSerra and Redondo Union - both by large margins. However, wins over Edison and Palos Verdes show they're capable ... just not quite ready for the 'big game' yet.

22. Mira Costa (8-2)

Losses to Notre Dame and Mira Costa, but no 'marquee' win on the resume, yet. Upcoming games against Riverside Poly and Loyola could tell us more.

23. Bishop Montgomery (6-1)

Doug Mitchell improves his team week by week.

24. Santa Margarita (7-3)

The Eagles could hit another gear with the addition of DeMarco Johnson, a 4-star guard transfer from Southern California Academy.

25. St. Francis (9-1)

Mazi Mosley scored 44 points in a win over Maranatha. Joe Hickey, DeLan Grant and Mosley make a good three for coach Todd Wolfson.