There’s a new No. 1 in SoCal

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LAGUNA NIGUEL ­– And then there were two . . .

Pardon the trite Agatha Christie reference cliché in reminding you that there are just two weeks remaining in Southern California’s high school hoops regular season.

And a significant two days in that stretch take place Friday and Saturday in Santa Ana, where the Mater Dei High program will play host to the 29^th Nike Extravaganza.

Fifteen games will be played – six of those, including a Mater Dei-Esperanza girls’ clash, on Friday.

Ten of the boys’ teams scheduled to play in the event reside in the updated BurlisonOnBasketball SoCal Top 30 ­– five of those among the top 10.

Included in that group are the newest No. 1 in the ratings, Coach Gary McKnight’s Mater Dei squad.

The Monarchs moved up a spot after a week in which Harvard-Westlake – the 2023 State Open Division champion and No. 1 season – lost Mission League games to unbeaten Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (moving from No. 4 to 3) and one-beaten Sierra Canyon (from No. 6 to 4 this week).

Among many of their standouts is one of the West’s best sophomore forwards, Brannon Martinsen (pictured).

Eastvale Roosevelt – on the strength of its short-handed, 57-52 win against now-No. 8 St. Pius X/St. Matthias Saturday at  Colony High – climbed a spot to No. 2.

The Mustangs (who play Nevada’s top-ranked team, Henderson Coronado, Saturday night at the Extravaganza) were without elite left-handed, junior point guard Myles Walker, who suffered a fractured in his right hand in a Jan. 13 game against Linfield Christian.

The expectation within the program is that Walker could be cleared to play in a likely Big VIII League tournament title game against No. 9 Corona Centennial on Feb. 2 at Santiago High in Corona.

Mater Dei, Notre Dame, and Sierra Canyon each had “back-loaded” schedules, with the  non-league and tournament competition they faced not as potent as those by most of the other teams in contention for the eight CIF Southern Section Open Division slots.

That’s not the case now, though, as the Monarchs (Trinity) and Knights and Trailblazers (Mission) are members of the two most competitive leagues in Southern California.

*Mater Dei was 5-0 in the first round of Trinity action, toppling No. 6 St. John Bosco (Jan. 6, 83-62, on the de factor “neutral court” of the building formerly known as the Staples Center), and No. 10 JSerra (78-67/Jan. 5) and No. 18 Santa Margarita (57-52, last Wednesday night) on its Meruelo Athletic Center floor.

The Monarchs have a return game with JSerra on Wednesday night in San Juan Capistrano and take on No. 17 Los Alamitos Saturday night in the Extravaganza.

*Notre Dame picked up its most significant non-Mission victory when it rallied from a 10-point deficit to knock off NorCal’s No. 2 team (De La Salle of Concord, 74-70 in OT) in that same Jan. 6 event in Crypto.com Arena

And, behind Mercy Miller, the Knights came from 11 points down early to knock off Harvard-Westlake on its home court last Wednesday night.

Coach Matt Sargeant’s club will sew up the No. 1 seed (and opportunity to host it) in the Mission tournament with a win at Sierra Canyon Friday night.

The Knights take on a young (class standing-wise) Las Vegas Bishop Gorman team Saturday night at the Extravaganza.

*Prior to its home victory over Harvard-Westlake Friday night, Justin Pippen-led Sierra Canyon collected non-Mission wins over No. 15 Redondo (68-59, at Beverly Hills High, on Dec. 9) and St. Pius X/St. Matthias (51-42, at Cerritos College, on Jan. 6).

 

 

SoCal Top 30 Teams (records reflect games as of Jan. 20)

School/Record/Last Week

1. Mater Dei/22-1/2

Next Up: Wednesday, at No. 10 JSerra, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Servite, 9; Saturday, vs. No. 17 Los Alamitos.

2. Eastvale Roosevelt/22-2/3

Next Up: Monday, vs. Corona, 7 p.m.; Wednesday, vs. Norco, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. Henderson (NV) Coronado, 9 p.m.

3. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame/23-0/4

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. No. 19 Crespi, 7 p.m.; Friday, at No. 4 Sierra Canyon, 8 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. L.V. Bishop Gorman, 6 p.m.

4. Sierra Canyon/22-1/6

Next Up: Wednesday, at Alemany, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. No. 3 Notre Dame, 8 p.m.

5. Harvard-Westlake/20-3/1

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. Chaminade, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. St. Francis, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. No. 26 Foothill, 4:30 p.m.

6. Saint John Bosco/20-4/5

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. Servite, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. No. 18 Santa Margarita, 7 p.m.

7. Windward/21-3/10

Next Up: Tuesday, vs. Viewpoint, 7 p.m.; Thursday, at Crossroads, 7 p.m.

8. Saint Pius/Saint Matthias/18-5/9

Next Up: Wednesday, at St. Paul, 7 p.m.; Friday, at No. 25 St. Bernard, 7 p.m.

9. Corona Centennial/17-9/7

Next Up: Wednesday, at Corona, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Riverside MLK, 7 p.m.

10. JSerra/19-4/11

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. No. 1 Mater Dei, 7 p.m; Friday, at Orange Lutheran, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. San Diego St. Augustine, 3 p.m.

11. West Ranch/17-7/13

Next Up: Tuesday, at Valencia, 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, at Carlsbad, 6:30 p.m.

12. Etiwanda/20-3/16

Next Up: Monday, vs. Chino Hills, 6:30 p.m.; Wednesday, vs. No. 21 Rancho Cucamonga, 6:30 p.m.; Friday, vs. Upland, 6:30 p.m.

13. Damien/19-4/8

Next Up: Monday, at Upland, 6:30 p.m.; Wednesday, vs. Chino Hills, 6:30 p.m.; Friday, vs. Los Osos, 6:30 p.m.

14. La Mirada/18-7/11

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. Mayfair, 6:30 p.m.; Friday, at Dominguez, 6:30 p.m.

15. Redondo Union/18-4/14

Next Up: Tuesday, at No. 28 Culver City, 7 p.m.; Friday, at Santa Monica, 7 p.m.

16. Heritage Christian/17-8/20

Next Up: Tuesday, at Valley Christian, 7 p.m.; Friday, at Maranatha, 7 p.m.

17. Los Alamitos/19-4/18

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. Corona del Mar, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Newport Harbor, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at No. 1 Mater Dei, 7:30 p.m.

18. Santa Margarita/16-7/15

Next Up: Wednesday, at Orange Lutheran, 7 p.m.; Friday, at No. 6 St. John Bosco, 7 p.m.

19. Crespi/20-5/21

Next Up: Wednesday, at No. 3 Notre Dame, 7 p.m.; Friday, at Alemany, 7 p.m.

20. Campbell Hall/8-14/24

Next Up: Monday, vs. Venice, 7 p.m.; Thursday, vs. Brentwood School, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. No. 27 Canyon, 9 a.m.

21. Rancho Cucamonga/14-9/17

Next Up: Monday, vs. Los Osos, 6:30 p.m.; Wednesday, at No. 12 Etiwanda, 6:30 p.m.; Friday, at Chino Hills, 6:30 p.m.

22. Rancho Christian/14-8/25

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. Elsinore, 6 p.m.; Friday, vs. Riverside Poly, 6 p.m.

23. Rancho Verde/23-3/27

Next Up: Friday, at Elsinore, 6 p.m.

24. Saint Anthony/16-6/28

Next Up: Wednesday, vs. No. 25 St. Bernard, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Bishop Montgomery, 7 p.m.

25. Saint Bernard/11-9/30

Next Up: Wednesday, at No. 24 St. Anthony; Friday, vs No. 8 St. Pius X/St. Matthias, 7 p.m.

26. Foothill/17-9/UR

Next Up: Tuesday, at Yorba Linda, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Villa Park, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. No. 5 Harvard-Westlake, 4:30 p.m.

27. Anaheim Canyon/18-5/19

Next Up: Tuesday, at Villa Park, 7 p.m.; Friday, at Yorba Linda, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. No. 20 Campbell Hall, 9 a.m.

28. Culver City/14-6/UR

Next Up: Tuesday, vs. No. 15 Redondo Union, 7 p.m.; Friday, vs. Peninsula, 7 p.m.

29. Mira Costa/15-8/22

Next Up: Tuesday, at Peninsula, 7 p.m.; Friday, at Palos Verdes, 7 p.m.; Saturday, at Mater Dei, vs. Orange Lutheran, noon.

30. Fairmont Prep/16-8/UR

Next Up: Thursday, vs. Orangewood Academy, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, vs. La Serna, 6 p.m.