Frank Burlison

LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – The top-two teams in the updated BurlisonOnBasketball Southern California high school rankings are set to play during the James “Sam” Sampson State Preview at L.A. Fairfax High on the evening of Jan. 30.

But let’s hold our collective horses before becoming too giddy about the possibility that Chino Hills (13-0) and Torrance Bishop Montgomery (14-0) will both still be unbeaten when they finally meet on the court at Fairfax.

And here’s why:

*The Lonzo Ball-led Huskies play No. 8 Foothills Christian on Saturday; Highpoint Christian (of North Carolina; led by Kentucky-bound Edrice Adebayo) in the HoopHall Classic in Springfield, MA, on Jan.

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REDONDO BEACH, Ca. – Eight high school basketball teams left Redondo Union High with victories Saturday during the third Take Flight Challenge.

And there was no doubt about which of those eight was the most impressive.

The Torrance Bishop Montgomery Knights thoroughly dominated the Corona Centennial Huskies, 73-51, during the sixth game played.

Coach Doug Mitchell’s defending CIF Southern Section Open Division champions rolled to 14-0 with juniors Jordan Schackel (25) and Ethan Thompson (21) and sophomore David Singleton (14) combining for 60 points.

Each starter scored at least one field goal for the Knights in the first quarter that ended with them up by nine points (19-10) even as Schackel and Thompson combined to hit just one of nine shots.

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One-day high school basketball “showcase” events are set for Saturday at Long Beach Jordan and Los Angeles Price.

Two teams in contention for spots in the CIF Southern Section’s Open Division playoff field next month, Villa Park and Damien, are at Jordan for the Ron Massey Tip-Off Classic.

Damien – which beat Villa Park in the championship game of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic Ford Dealers’ Division at Rancho Mirage High Wednesday afternoon – faces Fresno Sunnyside at 5 o’clock.

Villa Park and Rancho Cucamonga hook up at 3:30.

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REDONDO BEACH, Ca. – Many of the better teams in Southern California will be on display Saturday during the third Take Flight Challenge, hosted by Redondo Union High.

Eight games are scheduled, split into “morning/afternoon” and “evening” sessions, with separate admission charged for each.

Three teams that won tournaments earlier in the week, Santa Monica (National Division of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic at Rancho Mirage High), Eastvale Roosevelt (American Division of the Under Armour Holiday Classic at Torrey Pines) and Bishop Montgomery (D-I Challenge at L.A.

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RANCHO MIRAGE, Ca. – Here are the BurlisonOnBasketball 20-player “Plus 1” all-tournament selections from the 13^th MaxPreps Holiday Classic that wrapped up Wednesday night at Rancho Mirage High.

The choices are not based upon “college potential” but upon the way they players performed during the four games each played over Saturday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday:

 

MOST OUTSTANDING PLAYER:

Chino Hills High went “3 for 3” in December while winning tough tournaments in Corona, CA (the “Battle Zone”), Ft. Myers, FL (“City of Palms”) and, Wednesday night, at Rancho Mirage High.

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