MaxPreps Northern California Top 25 high school basketball rankings

The MaxPreps Martin Luther King Jr. Classic on Monday at Cal was a showcase of Bay Area and Sacramento-area programs. The Bay stood tall in the marquee matchup, prompting a ranking switch.


1. (Last week 3) Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) (10-4)
The Dragons flexed their muscle in the Martin Luther King Classic, belting previous No. 1 Capital Christian (Sacramento) 86-60. Ivan Rabb had 31 points and nine rebounds and guards Juwan Anderson and Paris Austin scored 16 and 14 points, respectively.

2. (2) Monte Vista (Danville) (17-0)
The Mustangs continue to gallop past the competition, slugging out defensive wins over No. 15 De La Salle 41-38 and Amador Valley (Pleasanton) 40-36. Trevor John leads the way for coach Nick Jones.



3. (1) Capital Christian (Sacramento) (15-3)
The Cougars suffered their first NorCal loss, and it was a humbling 86-60 setback to new No. 1 Bishop O'Dowd. Senior leader Nifae Lealao said afterward that the loss "will not define our team." There could be a NorCal Open playoff rematch.

4. (6) El Cerrito (18-1)
The Gauchos topped two-time defending NorCal D-III champion and No. 21 Sacred Heart Cathedral, 73-62, at the MLK Classic. Tyrell Alcorn had 19 points and Anthony Sullen 17.

5. (4) Jesuit (Carmichael) (18-1)
The Marauders played great defense early before Newark Memorial got hot, leading to a 60-50 setback against a battle-tested foe. Jesuit coaches are challenging players to respond, as are leaders such as Lake Lutes.

6. (7) St. Ignatius (San Francisco) (12-3)
The Wildcats are in a four-way tie for first in the brutal West Catholic Athletic League after a 48-40 win over previous No. 5 Mitty and a 56-46 setback to Riordon.

7. (5) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) (12-3)
The Monarchs beat No. 13 Serra, 50-41, and No. 21 Sacred Heard Cathedral, 60-49, before falling to No. 6 St. Ignatius, 48-40, in being held to a season low.

8. (8) Sacramento (14-3)
The Dragons played big and mature in rallying from 13 down late in the third period to beat Salesian (Richmond), 68-61, in the capper of the MLK Classic. Tre Finch went for 24 points and fellow sophomore Solomon Young had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Two losses are to Capital Christian.



9. (9) Folsom (17-2)
The Bulldogs have used balance and depth to storm to a fast start under coach Mike Wall and leaders such as Jordan Ford, Josiah Deguara and Jared Wall, including a 79-38 rout of Sheldon (Sacramento) in a Delta River League opener.

10. (10) Cosumnes Oaks (Elk Grove) (17-1)
The Wolfpack are rolling with a 16-game winning streak, thanks in part to the versatility of football recruit L.J. Reed, who can score inside and out for the Sac-Joaquin Section D-II title contenders.

11. (11) St. Mary's (Stockton) (16-2)
Gabriel Vincent had 47 points in an 87-76 victory over No. 16 Campolindo. One loss was to No. 10 Cosumnes Oaks.

12. (12) St. Joseph Notre Dame (Alameda) (15-4)
The Pilots are in the midst of one of the best league races in NorCal, falling last week to Salesian, 57-44, and this week taking on El Cerrito.

13. (13) Serra (San Mateo) (10-4)
The Padres lost to then-No. 5 Mitty, 50-41, then topped Valley Christian (San Jose) 63-39 and Bellarmine (San Jose) 56-44 with meetings against ranked rivals St. Ignatius and Sacred Heart Cathedral this week.

14. (14) Rodriguez (Fairfield) (16-1)
The winning streak is up to 13, last losing to No. 12 St. Joseph. Yet another team to consider in the NorCal D-I field.



15. (18) De La Salle (Concord) (11-5)
For such a young team, the Spartans show terrific potential, though also making young mistakes. Defense is the key, as it always is for any Frank Allocco-coached team.

16. (17) Campolindo (Moraga) (14-5)
The Cougars fell to No. 11 St. Mary's 87-76, halting a seven-game winning streak. They have no games this week.

17. (20) Newark Memorial (Newark) (10-7)
The Cougars are hot, winners of seven consecutive games, but it's hard to leapfrog some of the heavies in front of them, including a Campolindo team that hammered them this season. In beating Jesuit 60-50, Newark was led by Matthew Thomas (20 points, 13 rebounds), Damien Banford (13 points) and Joey Frenchwood (11 points).

18. (19) Freedom (Oakley) (12-4)
The Falcons are the early leaders in the Bay Valley Athletic League after topping rival Pittsburg 69-51.

19. (21) Montgomery (Santa Rosa) (13-4)
The Vikings are off to a 5-0 start in the North Bay League and provide yet another team to consider in the North Coast Section D-II scramble.

20. (15) San Ramon Valley (Danville) (14-3)
The Wolves fell to rival No. 15 De La Salle 36-31 to open this week, yet remain in the thick of the East Bay League race.



21. (16) Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco) (11-4)
There's no shame losing 73-62 to No. 4 El Cerrito, certainly not with the way Deondre Otis played at guard, scoring 20 points. David Parsons had 14.

22. (23) Moreau Catholic (Hayward) (12-4)
The Mariners trail No. 17 Newark Memorial by a game in the Mission Valley League, thanks to a head-to-head loss. Oscar Frayer had 18 points in a 67-49 win over Irvington.

23. (22) Berkeley (12-1)
The Yellowjackets got the Ivan Rabb treatment, as in a triple-double by the Bishop O'Dowd star as the new No. 1 Dragons topped Berkeley 80-74 in West Alameda County play.

24. (24) Burlingame (13-3)
The Panthers beat Woodside 83-33 and Mills (Milbrae) 57-51 and last lost to No. 16 Campolindo, 70-67. Another loss was 59-54 to No. 12 St. Joseph. Justin Gutang is averaging 20 points.

25. (25) Del Oro (Loomis) (20-1)
The Golden Eagles are the lone unbeatens in the Sierra Foothill League and take on rival Woodcreek (Roseville) on Friday. Connor Drake, Keenan Finney and Danny Becker are among the leaders.

The Sacramento Bee's recap of the MaxPreps Martin Luther King Jr. Classic hosted by De La Salle



Sacramento Bee story on Sacramento rallying to beat Salesian in the MLK Classic and The Bee's Top 20 rankings

Joe Davidson has covered high school sports at The Sacramento Bee since 1988. Follow him on Twitter @SacBee_JoeD and on www.sacbee.com.