Now that Salesian of Richmond has gotten through trips to South Carolina and Kentucky without suffering a loss, there’s a very good chance that state No. 5 Pride will enter CIF section and regional playoffs with a perfect record. Photo: Harold Abend.
We update our boys hoops rankings after the major holiday tournaments and New Year’s showcases cases are in the books and there is a clear pecking order at the top, with one switch
involving top-ranked teams. It’s at the bottom of the order where things are muddled, as we’re still waiting to see which team emerges as the clear-cut No. 1 team in the Central and San Diego sections after a myriad of results the past two weeks.
CAL-HI SPORTS UPDATED TOP 20
BOYS BASKETBALL STATE RANKINGS
(Previous rating in parentheses; through games of Saturday, Jan. 5)
Note:This is a post for our Gold Club members only. To see all of our award-winning writeups, analysis and predictions of what’s coming next for the rest of the season in boys hoops plus state stat stars, state record updates and some of the all-state teams will be content for our Gold Club VIPs only. To become a member of our Gold Club so you can check out all of our boys basketball content, including player rankings in each class, CLICK HERE.
1. (1) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) 18-1
The Trailblazers are firmly entrenched as the state’s top team, as they have only lost to current FAB 50 No. 3 Montverde Academy (57-49) at the Iolani Classic in Hawaii. Interestingly enough, since CIF schools are not allowed to play current FAB 50 No. 1 La Lumiere of Indiana (and other independent programs that do not compete for a state title such as Oak Hill Academy of Virginia beginning in 2019-20), Sierra Canyon played Montverde after that school lost to La Lumiere and after head coach Andre Chevalier’s team handed No. 3 Westchester its only loss of the season so far in the tourney semifinals. Considering La Lumiere has beaten Montverde twice, did Sierra Canyon’s missed opportunity to play the Lakers cost the program a shot at national No. 1? We’ll never know, but what we do know as of now is Sierra Canyon is a solid favorite to capture the CIF Southern Section Open Division title even though talented junior Terren Frank has not been playing due to minor knee surgery. This week, Sierra Canyon has a Gold Coast League game with Viewpoint of Calabasas but doesn’t have an opponent yet for its Super Showcase next week after Coronado (Henderson, Nev.) pulled out. With two L.A. City Section teams scheduled to participate, the whole event could be in peril because of the impending LAUSD teacher strike.
