klein219

SoCal High School & Prep Report

Sorta, Kinda Prognostications: Gary Klein
Pulls Out His Murky Crystal Ball--(February 19, 1998)

Every paper and news pundit in the SoCal area (at least in Ventura, LA, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties) has made a prediction or two. So why shouldn't the LA Times' Gary Klein, one of the better sports writers covering prep basketball, offer some of his own? Everyone's got a crystal ball, right? Well, when we found his article in today's Times, we were kinda hoping that we'd find some great predictions. No dice.

Gary's way too smart for that. Or his crystal ball is a little too cloudy. No predictions, no real breakdown of the teams or players, just the straight party line on the top seeds in the various divisions.

Which, from an informational point of view is not all that bad. After all, we've taken an incredible amount of heat for even suggesting that Magnolia might have the temerity to beat mighty Ocean View if both teams are fortunate enough to get to the semi-finals in Division III-AA. Boy are we a bunch of idiots. Don't we know that Ocean View is 21-4 overall, and Magnolia is only the fourth seeded team at 22-4. And we must really be complete fools to even suggest such a thing, because, after all, if you read below, Gary Klein didn't even mention Magnolia. Hmmm. We're still suggesting though that Magnolia might have more than a fighting chance. As we said before, any team that can beat Brea Olinda twice in one season, deserves some attention.

And here's some other useful stuff from Gary's article: First-round games for both sections will generally start on Friday (except for those which were played yesterday). The City 4-A final will be played March 6 at the Sports Arena. The 3-A final is March 7 at Cal State Los Angeles. Southern Section championship games will be played March 5, 6 and 7 at UC Irvine's Bren Events Center and the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim.

So here is Gary Klein's division-by-division look at the tournaments. You've probably already read this stuff before, but hey, this is SoCalHoops, and our motto is "everything in moderation, including moderation". Here's his take:

CITY SECTION

4-A DIVISION

Transfer-laden Westchester (22-3), champion of the Coastal Conference, is the heavy favorite to win the 16-team tournament. Southeastern Conference champion Fremont (25-4) is seeded No. 2, followed by Southern Pacific co-champions Washington (17-6) and five time-defending champion Crenshaw (17-3).

3-A DIVISION

Top-seeded San Fernando (23-2), No. 2 Narbonne (12-12), No. 3 Hamilton (13-10) and No. 4 Van Nuys Birmingham (15-9)
are the teams to beat in the 16-team tournament.

SOUTHERN SECTION

DIVISION I-AA:

Long Beach Poly (21-6) is the defending division champion, but the Jackrabbits are seeded second behind Artesia (25-1), which moved up to the largest division after finishing second to Dominguez in II-A last season. Etiwanda (20-6), a Division I-A finalist last season led by senior guard Gary Colbert, is No. 3.

DIVISION I-A:

Glendora (25-1) lost only to Etiwanda this season when the Tartans were without their best player, junior Casey Jacobsen, posing a major obstacle for No. 2 Pacific (18-8), No. 3 Riverside Arlington (22-5) and No. 4 San Bernardino Cajon (23-3).

DIVISION II-AA:

Compton (23-5) is the top-seeded team in this 16-team tournament. The Tarbabes, who finished second to Long Beach Poly in the Moore League, will be challenged by No. 2 Santa Margarita (24-2), which won its first 22 games, No. 3 Inglewood (19-5) and No. 4 Brea Olinda (22-4).

DIVISION II-A: Second-seeded Redondo Union (24-2), led by sophomore center Andrew Zahn, has been waiting for a shot at top-seeded Dominguez (20-4), the top-ranked team in the state and the two-time division and state champion. The Seahawks will get their chance in the final if the 32-team tournament plays to form. Cathedral City (22-4), which moved up from III-AA, is No. 3 and No. 4 Paso Robles (23-0) is dreaming of an unbeaten season.

DIVISION III-AA: Huntington Beach Ocean View is the top-seeded team in this 16-team division. Second-seeded Barstow (22-3) is a threat, third-seeded La Canada (22-5) a perennial contender.

DIVISION III-A: West Hills Chaminade (23-1) lost only to Simi Valley in the first week of the season and has supplanted Harvard-Westlake as the top team in the division.

DIVISION IV-AA: Twentynine Palms (22-3) was the division runner-up last season and the Wildcats intend to take care of unfinished business. Santa Ana Calvary Chapel (20-6), Pasadena Marshall (17-5) and Santa Maria St. Joseph (17-8) are the best of the rest.

DIVISION IV-A: Defending champion Santa Monica Crossroads (17-6) is still the team to beat in this 16-team bracket. Del Rey League-champion Gardena Serra (19-8), Burbank Bellarmine-Jefferson (14-12), led by Arizona-bound guard Ruben
Douglas, and Verbum Dei (15-5), coached by former UCLA standout and NBA player David Greenwood, are the other seeded teams.

DIVISION V-AA: Van Nuys Montclair Prep (23-3) played as a freelance team this season, but the Mounties are the top-seeded team in the 32-team bracket. Prep League champion Palos Verdes Chadwick (12-14), Tri-Valley League champion Bishop Diego (18-5) and Pacific Hills (19-6), the 1997 V-A champion, are other seeded teams.

DIVISION V-A: Rolling Hills Prep (17-1), champion of the Express League, is the top-seeded team in the 32-team bracket. Condor League champion Laguna Blanca (18-4) is No. 2, followed by Arcadia Rio Hondo Prep (19-1) and Price (19-3).