CONCORD, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 12: De La Salle’s John Flannigan (32) yells after a basket in opposition to Granada within the fourth interval of their East Bay Athletic League championship recreation at De La Salle Excessive College in Harmony, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022. De La Salle defeated Granada 57-44. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Space Information Group)
Boys Open Division: Two leagues rise above all others
After studying that St. Patrick-St. Vincent didn’t make the Open Division on Sunday, we needed to verify to see if Bruins have been eligible. Within the North Coast Part, solely groups coming from Division I, II and III will be pulled as much as the Open. SPSV was eligible. However the committee handed on the D-III Bruins, who improved to 19-1 on Saturday once they beat Salesian to win the Tri-County Athletic League Rock Division. It additionally handed on Bishop O’Dowd, the reigning Open champion from 2020. (There have been no NCS playoffs final 12 months due to the pandemic). O’Dowd went undefeated within the West Alameda County Convention’s Foothill League to complete 15-5 total. The Dragons are on a 12-game profitable streak. SPSV is the highest seed in D-III, O’Dowd the No. 3 seed in D-I. The committee as an alternative confirmed its love for the Diablo Athletic League’s Foothill Division and the East Bay Athletic League, which stuffed the six-team Open bracket with three groups apiece: No. 1 Campolindo, No. 3 Miramonte and No. 5 Northgate of the DAL Foothill and No. 2 De La Salle, No. 4 Dublin and No. 6 Granada of the EBAL. The 2 leagues have been undoubtedly the strongest and a case will be made for all six to land the place they did. However SPSV solely misplaced to a 23-2 powerhouse from Arizona, Brophy Faculty Prep. When MaxPreps up to date its NCS laptop rankings Saturday night time, SPSV was fourth, behind Campo, DLS and Northgate. The power of schedule most likely damage the Bruins, who had the bottom among the many high 11 groups in MaxPreps’ rankings.
Ladies Open Division: Salesian’s seed was the correct name
This a lot was clear Saturday, the ultimate day of the common season for NCS faculties: The winner of Saturday’s EBAL championship recreation between Carondelet and San Ramon Valley can be seeded No. 1 within the Open Division. Carondelet gained 64-49 and certainly was seeded No. 1 on Sunday. However the committee went with Salesian over San Ramon Valley for the No. 2 seed, which was the correct name. Salesian has 4 losses on the season — two to the Central Coast Part’s high staff, Archbishop Mitty, one to Texas energy DeSoto and the opposite to Folsom of the Sac-Joaquin Part, which is 23-2. SRV had gained 22 in a row, which included a win over Carondelet two weeks in the past, earlier than dropping the rematch to Carondelet. However Salesian is ranked increased than SRV by MaxPreps’ laptop and has a stronger power of schedule than the Wolves, who acquired the No. 3 seed within the Open.
- Schedule: First-round boys, ladies matchups
Boys: Greatest first-round matchups
The highest two seeds within the Open Division acquired first-round byes, which implies we gained’t see Campolindo or De La Salle on the courtroom till Feb. 23. The Open has the stage to itself Thursday, with matchups that look terrific on the pc display screen: No. 5 Northgate (19-6) at No. 4 Dublin (16-5) in a single opener, No. 6 Granada (15-7) at No. 3 Miramonte (22-4) within the different. Northgate misplaced back-to-back late-season video games to Campo and Miramonte by a mixed 5 factors. Granada gained on the highway final week over Dougherty Valley and Dublin within the EBAL match to succeed in the ultimate, which the Livermore faculty misplaced to De La Salle. Miramonte’s document speaks for itself. Dublin went 8-1 within the EBAL throughout the single round-robin schedule, with the loss coming at DLS.
Ladies: Greatest first-round matchups
As with the boys Open, the highest two seeds have byes this week. So Carondelet and Salesian can have a 10-day layoff earlier than taking part in once more. Their opponents will likely be determined Thursday when No. 5 Bishop O’Dowd (14-6) travels to Santa Rosa to play No. 4 Cardinal Newman (21-4) and No. 6 Heritage (17-5) performs host to No. 3 San Ramon Valley (24-3). Heritage will likely be at dwelling as a result of, within the NCS, league champions host within the first spherical when taking part in an opponent that didn’t win a league title. The Heritage-SRV recreation will likely be a matchup between two of the part’s high gamers, SRV’s Natalie Pasco and Heritage’s Amanda Muse. Within the different first-round Open recreation, one staff is crimson sizzling, the opposite not a lot. Cardinal Newman has gained 15 in a row. O’Dowd has misplaced 5 of its final seven, together with twice in league play to Piedmont, which as a D-IV faculty was not eligible for the Open. Cardinal Newman reached the Open closing two years in the past, dropping to St. Joseph Notre Dame, which didn’t make the playoffs this season. O’Dowd might be higher than its late-season slide signifies. The Dragons performed competitively Saturday in opposition to CCS juggernaut Pinewood, dropping 57-47.
Potential shock staff
Our darkish horse is the Monte Vista boys. Seeded eleventh in Division I, the Mustangs gave Dublin all it might deal with twice within the closing 9 days of the common season, dropping at dwelling in additional time on Feb. 4 and coughing up a 12-point lead on the highway within the closing three minutes Tuesday within the EBAL match, dropping 62-60. Monte Vista opens the playoffs Tuesday at California, which beat Monte Vista 59-53 final month in league play. If the Mustangs (11-14) win Tuesday, they’d advance to play No. 3 Bishop O’Dowd or No. 14 James Logan on Friday.