2014 CIF state championship boys basketball previews

Some veteran programs — Mater Dei, Bishop O'Dowd, St. Joseph Notre Dame and Bishop Montgomery — join four boys basketball newcomers to the CIF State Championships Friday and Saturday at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento.

The south owns a 98-48 edge over the north since the inception of the games in 1981.

Open Division: 8 p.m. Saturday
Mater Dei (Santa Ana) (34-0) vs. Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) (28-4)

Win streaks: Mater Dei 34, Bishop O'Dowd 23
State record: Mater Dei 10-4, Bishop O'Dowd 1-7
Points per game (allowed): MD 74.2 (50.9), BOD 77.0 (54.1)
Terrific trios: Mater Dei — G Stanley Johnson, C M.J. Cage, F Rex Pflueger. Bishop O'Dowd — C Ivan Rabb, G Paris Austin, F Shane Farley
Notes: Mater Dei is ranked No. 1 in the country by most polls. … MD coach Gary McKnight has won 10 titles and is the state's winningest coach with 994 wins. … MD has won three straight state titles. … MD defeated BOD 63-59 in OT of the Tarkanian Invitational in Las Vegas Dec. 21.
Predicted winner: Mater Dei

See a preview on the battle between Johnson and Rabb

Division I: 8 p.m. Friday
Centennial (Corona) (29-3) vs. Monte Vista (Danville) (31-1)

Win streaks: Centennial 4, Monte Vista 13
State record: Centennial 0-0, Monte Vista 0-1
Points per game (allowed): Centennial 76.3 (59.7), Monte Vista 60.4 (43.3)
Terrific trios: Centennial — G Sedrick Barefield, F Deontae North, G Jordan Griffin. Monte Vista — G Trevor John, C Spencer Rust, G Brendan Pedley
Notes: Centennial has just two seniors on a 13-man roster, Monte Vista starts five seniors. … Centennial, known for its powerhouse football teams, has won 17 of 18. … The most points MV has allowed is 59, which is 17 points lower than Centennial averages.
Predicted winner: Centennial

Division II: 4 p.m. Saturday
St. John Bosco (Bellflower) (22-11) vs. Folsom (32-2)

Win streaks: SJB 4, Folsom 22
State record: SJB 0-0, Folsom 1-0
Points per game (allowed): SJB 69.2 (61.5), Folsom 72.4 (55.2)
Terrific trios: St. John Bosco — G Daniel Hamilton, G Tyler Dorsey, F Vance Jackson. Folsom — G Jordan Ford, F Jared Wall, C Colin Russell
Notes: SJB is the defending state Open Division football champion. … Hamilton, a 6-7 senior, averages 20.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. … Dorsey (21.1 ppg) is one of the state's top juniors. … Ford (22.6 ppg) is one of the state's top sophomores.
Predicted winner: St. John Bosco

Division III: 4 p.m. Friday
Chaminade (West Hills) (26-6) vs. Drake (San Anselmo) (26-7)

Win streaks: Chaminade 4, Drake 4
State record: Chaminade 0-0, Drake 1-0
Points per game (allowed): Chaminade 62.0 (49.6), Drake 58.7 (52.7)
Terrific trios: Chaminade — Trevor Stanback, F Jack Williams, G Michael Oguine. Drake — G Malik Huff, F Jesse Hunt, F Jasper Verduin.
Notes: Chaminade is the first Southern California school to qualify both boys and girls teams to the state title game since 2012 (Mater Dei). … Oguine made a 25-foot buzzer-beater for a 53-52 regional final win over Santa Margarita. … Drake won the state's first D2 title.
Predicted winner: Chaminade



Division IV: Noon Saturday
Bishop Montgomery (Torrance) (27-6) vs. Moreau Catholic (Hayward) (27-6)

Win streaks: BM 3, MC 9
State record: BM 3-3, MC 0-0
Points per game (allowed): BM 70.8 (53.7), MC 71.7 (56.4)
Terrific trios: Bishop Montgomery — G Justin Bibbins, G Stephen Thompson Jr., G Ethan Thompson. Moreau Catholic — G Damari Milstead, F Oscar Frayer, G Brandon Lawrence
Notes: MC's girls made one appearance in the state final, defeating Bishop Montgomery 73-66 in 1992 in double overtime. … In BM's last appearance at state it lost at the buzzer to Salesian (Richmond) in 2009, 65-64. Cal guard Justin Cobb was a BM standout. … All BM's losses came to teams in the SoCal Open Division. … MC has no seniors and one junior on its 18-man roster.
Predicted winner: Bishop Montgomery

Division V: Noon Friday
Renaissance Academy (La Canada) (24-7) vs. St. Joseph Notre Dame (Alameda) (30-5)

Win streaks: RA 12, SJ 13
State record: RA 0-1, St. Joseph 4-5
Points per game (allowed): RA 60.1 (44.8), SJ 58.2 (46.6)
Terrific trios: Renaissance Academy — F Steve Herve, G Marquise Mosley, G Marty Gaizauskas. St. Joseph Notre Dame — F Temidayo Yussuf G Marcus Harris, F Lamont Banks
Notes: RA lost its only state game to Branson (Ross), 40-33 in 2008. … Mosley hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 5 seconds left in a 58-55 win over View Park in the regional final. … SJND has won three straight, 4 of 5 and 6 of 8 NorCal titles. … Yussuf, a 6-7 forward, averages 23 points and 12 rebounds per game.
Predicted winner: St. Joseph Notre Dame