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LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – Perusing the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and bracket – after hanging with the influenza the better part of two days:

*If the goal of “previous seasons’ tournament performances don’t enter into the current season’s selection/seeding process” (which I think is a “fair” approach), then it’s “Mission Accomplished” for the 2022 version of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Committee.

The 14-member Big Ten Conference got a tournament-high nine entrants in the 68-team field – as it did in 2021, when those teams went a collective 8-9 with just one of those teams (Michigan, which lost to UCLA in the East Region’s title game) getting to the “second week” of the tournament.

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CORONA – The Centennial High Huskies make one final – and decisive – on-court retort Tuesday night to anyone still buying into the theory that there was any Southern California-based boys’ basketball team capable of beating them.

Coach Josh Giles’ squad scored the first nine points of the game – via two deep 3s by the most underrated senior guard in Southern California and another by the best 6-foot-9 junior in the west – and cruised past the visiting Sierra Canyon, 83-59, in front of a filled to the brim (950, give or take) gymnasium and Spectrum viewing audience.

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LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – A boys’ basketball game a lot of folks – especially those with rooting interests for a nationally touted program based in the San Fernando Valley – have anticipated this season will come about after all Tuesday night.

Top-ranked and defending champion Corona Centennial High rolled to an eased-up, 76-55, victory over visiting Bishop Montgomery Saturday night to earn the right to play host to the Tuesday night CIF State Southern Open regional.

And, with a spot in the March 12 State title game in Sacramento at stake, the 31-1 Huskies’ 6 o’clock opponent will be .

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IRVINE, Ca. – The results of the Division I of the California Southern Regional Boys Basketball playoffs continued to following seeding Thursday night.

No.’s 1 Damien (JSerra, 66-56), 2 Crean Lutheran (La Costa Canyon, 68-50), 3 Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (St. Anthony, 66-60) and 4 St. Bernard (Village Christian, 59-46) themselves into the Saturday night semifinals, which set the stage for the Tuesday night championship contest.

The higher seeds play in the hosts in the games set for 6 p.m., with the No. 1 Spartans taking on the No.

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STUDIO CITY, Ca. – The Harvard-Westlake, Sierra Canyon and Bishop Montgomery boys’ basketball teams held off tough challenge of visitors Wednesday night in opening play of the State Southern Regional Open competition.

The wins by Harvard-Westlake (Santa Maria St. Joseph, 63-55), Sierra Canyon (San Diego St. Augustine, 80-74) and Bishop Montgomery (Mater Dei, 58-53) meant that – with top-seed Corona Centennial having a first-round bye – the No.’s 2, 3 and 4 seeds “held serve” and set up Saturday evening rematches of CIF Southern Section Open pool-play games.

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