We’re nine days from the North Coast Section’s boys and girls basketball seeding meetings and 12 days from the Central Coast Section’s.
The NCS’s is on Feb. 13, the CCS’s on Feb. 16.
The picture isn’t completely in focus – too many key games still to be played – but it’s getting close.
Who’s going to the Open?
We obviously have no say in the matter – committees for each section select the teams – but we can make projections. The NCS has six teams in its boys and girls Open Divisions, the CCS eight.
Here’s how we see it (for now):
CCS boys
Locks
Archbishop Mitty: The reigning CCS Open champion Monarchs are sitting at the top of the West Catholic Athletic League standings with five games to go entering the weekend.
St. Ignatius: The Wildcats’ 15 wins include a victory over Miramonte and a 6-3 record in WCAL play. They play host to Riordan on Friday and visit Mitty on Saturday.
Archbishop Riordan: The CCS Open Division runner-up last spring entered play Friday with a 7-2 record in WCAL play, highlighted by a win at home over St. Ignatius.
CATCH UP ON HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
- Basketball: Bay Area News Group boys, girls rankings
- Thursday report: No. 1 Campolindo survives in OT at Clayton Valley
- Wednesday report: Dublin, down 16 in fourth, rallies to beat Dougherty Valley in OT
- Tuesday report: Is CCS’s new Open Division basketball format a good idea?
- Monday report: What SRV’s win over No. 1 Carondelet means for girls playoffs
Sacred Heart Prep: The Gators have breezed through overmatched opponents in the West Bay Athletic League, which won’t help their cause. But the resume also includes wins over Riordan, St. Francis, San Ramon Valley.
Serra: A stunning road loss to Valley Christian stands out. But the Padres also have wins over SI and Mitty and a season split with Riordan.
Should get in
St. Francis: The Lancers have had a rollercoaster ride of a season that includes double-digit losses to Sacred Heart Prep and St. Ignatius (twice). But they also won at Serra by 23 and lost two nail-bitters to Mitty by a combined five points.
On the bubble
Bellarmine: The Bells entered the weekend 10-8 overall and 3-6 in the WCAL. They’ve had some lopsided losses in league play. But a case can easily be made that they’re one of the best eight teams in CCS (see wins over SHP and this week over Serra).
Los Altos: The best non-league result was a one-point loss to St. Francis. Currently sitting at the top of the SCVAL De Anza Division standings.
Palma: The Chieftains have won nine in a row to improve to 15-3. But don’t think the committee can look past 73-34 loss to Serra and 80-42 loss to Dougherty Valley.
Saratoga: Hard to imagine a team from the SCVAL’s lower division (the El Camino) making the Open. But Patrick Judge’s squad has wins over SCVAL De Anza contender Mountain View and BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division leader Pioneer. Also won by 18 over Monte Vista-Danville, which is having a down season but plays in one of the Bay Area’s top leagues.
CCS girls
Locks
Archbishop Mitty: One of the best resumes in the state and undefeated in the WCAL. The only loss was to Carondelet.
Pinewood: Defending CCS Open champion Panthers are cruising toward another league title. Beat San Ramon Valley by 27. The only loss was to St. Ignatius. Have reached the CCS Open final each of the past seven seasons, beating Mitty last spring for its first Open crown.
(Memo to CCS: Please update the historical page on the section’s website. Mitty beat Pinewood, not Eastside Prep, in the 2017 Open final)
St. Ignatius: Big win Thursday on the road over St. Francis. The only loss in WCAL play entering the weekend was to Mitty, by 10. Lost to Carondelet by one. Scheduled to visit Carondelet on Saturday.
St. Francis: If not for Mitty and SI, St, Francis would be undefeated in WCAL play. The biggest win was at home over Valley Christian.
Valley Christian: Has a win over a Vanden team that beat San Ramon Valley. Lost to Salesian but only by eight points. Visits Mitty on Friday night.
Should get in
Palo Alto: The Vikings have won 14 in a row and are 16-1 overall heading into the weekend. The only loss was by 15 to San Ramon Valley, which took over the top spot in the Bay Area News Group rankings this week after beating the previous No. 1 Carondelet.
Evergreen Valley: The Cougars are 16-1 and have won 11 straight since their only loss, to Los Gatos by a point.
On the bubble
Los Gatos: The Wildcats’ six-point loss at Homestead on Wednesday followed an overtime loss at home last week to Palo Alto. But LG is still 17-3 overall.
Hillsdale: The Knights are 19-1 overall and undefeated in the PAL’s South Division. But they lost to the toughest opponent on their schedule, St. Francis, by 42 points.
Homestead: Big win this week over Los Gatos but, at 13-5, probably doesn’t have the resume to merit an Open Division invite.
NCS boys
Lock
Campolindo: The Cougars have won 13 in a row and 38 of 39 dating to just before the pandemic shutdown in 2020. Enough said.
Should be a lock but …
De La Salle: Bounced back from early EBAL losses to Dougherty Valley and California to beat everyone else, including league leader Dublin. Probably clinched an Open spot Thursday with a win at home over Granada. A win Saturday over San Ramon Valley and at least one in the EBAL tournament wouldn’t hurt.
Dublin: The Gaels’ only league loss was on the road against De La Salle. They also probably sealed an Open berth this week with their OT win at Dougherty Valley.
St. Patrick-St. Vincent: The Bruins won their 13th in a row with an 80-57 win over Albany on Thursday. The resume also includes a one-point league victory over Salesian.
Still have work to do …
Miramonte: The Mats have had a great season and would be a lock if the bracket had eight teams. But they probably need to beat Northgate tonight or Campolindo next week to get in.
Northgate: The Broncos have also had a terrific season. But they also probably need one more big win – tonight against Miramonte or next week against Campolindo – to solidify their case.
Dougherty Valley: Seemed like an Open lock going into a game last Sunday against Amador Valley. But the Wildcats suffered a stunning defeat, then watched a 16-point fourth-quarter lead dissolve in an OT loss at home to Dublin. Might need to reach the EBAL tournament final for one of the Open’s six spots.
On the bubble
Branson: Back-to-back losses this week to Marin Catholic and Redwood didn’t help the Bulls’ cause.
Bishop O’Dowd: The first and only NCS Open champion (2020) has won eight in a row entering play Friday. The Dragons (11-5) lost early to Dougherty Valley and couldn’t hold a lead in a loss to University at De La Salle’s MLK Classic. But they have a win over Moreau Catholic and are undefeated in league play.
Salesian: The longtime powerhouse is only 7-7 through games played Thursday but doesn’t have a bad loss on the resume. A strong finish next week could give the committee something to think about.
NCS girls
Locks
San Ramon Valley: Beat Carondelet to take over the top spot in the Bay Area News Group rankings. Stretched winning streak to 19 games with a victory Thursday over Monte Vista.
Carondelet: Only loss to a California school was to San Ramon Valley. Beat Archbishop Mitty at the West Coast Jamboree in Livermore. Began the weekend with a 20-2 record.
Salesian: Big game Thursday against Pinole Valley wasn’t played because of COVID protocols. Two of the Pride’s four losses were to Mitty, including a three-point defeat in the final of a tournament in Hawaii.
Close to a lock
Marin Catholic: The Wildcats’ resume includes an early-season victory over Cardinal Newman. They began the weekend with a 20-4 record and winners of 12 in a row.
Cardinal Newman: Runner-up in the first and only NCS Open final ever played (2020), the Santa Rosa powerhouse entered the weekend on a 14-game win streak and a 20-4 record.
On the bubble
Bishop O’Dowd: The Dragons had lost only one game this season – by seven to Carondelet – before falling to Piedmont by 20 last weekend and San Leandro by four on Tuesday. Can roar back into Open contention with a good showing Saturday at home against Mitty.
Piedmont: The Highlanders’ six-game winning streak entering the weekend included the blowout of O’Dowd. Scheduled to play Salesian on Saturday and O’Dowd again next week.
Heritage: Four-point loss to Freedom in Bay Valley Atheltic League play last week didn’t help the resume.
Acalanes: The Dons have won 16 in a row and are undefeated in the Diablo Athletic League’s Foothill Division entering the weekend. But probably don’t have the strength of schedule to make the Open.
Thursday’s basketball games
Boys
Freshman Alec Blair scored 14 points to lead third-ranked De La Salle to a 52-47 victory at home over Granada in EBAL play. Kevin Gad had 24 points for Granada. The Spartans improved to 17-4, 6-2. Granada is 13-6, 5-4. … No. 14 Moreau Catholic ran its record to 18-4 overall and 10-0 in the Mission Valley Athletic League with a 92-41 victory over Mission San Jose. James Bell (16 points), Matthew Villanueva (14 points), Robert Morgan (11 points), Owen Arnst (11 points) and Trey Knight (10 points, 10 assists) scored in double figures for Moreau.
Girls
Top-ranked San Ramon Valley won on the road over No. 9 Monte Vista 71-63. Sierra Chambers (20 points, four rebounds), Natalie Pascoe (19 points, eight rebounds) and Sadie Carter (11 points) led the way for the Wolves (21-2). … No. 2 Carondelet rolled past California 81-43 to improve its record to 20-2 overall and 8-1 in the EBAL.
Football
The 47th Charlie Wedemeyer Santa Clara County all-star football game is scheduled for Saturday night at Los Gatos High.
The kickoff is set for 6 p.m.
The seniors-only matchup will include some of the players recognized last month on the all-Bay Area News Group team, including co-offensive player of the year Luther K. Glenn, a running back from Wilcox, and three first-team selections from St. Francis, defensive back Nicolas Andrighetto, linebacker Camilo Arquette and offensive lineman Uluakinofo Taliauli.
Tickets will be sold online only. They can be purchased on the game’s website here.
