Jay Miller and Lutheran pulled off the upset of the season when they knocked off undefeated Bishop Montgomery in the IV-AA playoffs.
File photo by Vince Pugliese
And now we have some serious movement.
Some stunning upsets in the past week have given the rankings a shake-up, a huge change from last week when nobody left the rankings. Section finals are this week, giving teams plenty more chances to gain ground.
We saw then-No. 2 Bishop Montgomery fall to La Verne Lutheran as perhaps the biggest surprise of the postseason so far, though Lutheran is hardly an upstart program. Also, Mission Viejo fell to Inglewood.
By the next time these rankings come out, it'll be time to look at Southern California Regional Playoffs brackets.
Click here to visit our California boys basketball playoff brackets (All sections)MaxPreps Southern California Boys Basketball Rankings1. (1 last week) Mater Dei (Santa Ana), 29-1Division: Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 1 state, 4 national
The Monarchs continue to roll, but it won't be easy this coming week. Mater Dei bested Warren last week 74-47 before dispatching Rancho Verde 56-40 in the quarterfinals. A 17-2 second quarter advantage was what told the story of the Rancho Verde victory, one that saw
Stanley Johnson score 22 points. Now comes a semifinal contest against No. 12 seed Inglewood, which spent time in the rankings earlier this season and bounced No. 4 Mission Viejo.
2. (3) Long Beach Poly, 27-2
Jordan Bell, Long Beach Poly
Photo by Nicholas Koza
Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 2 state, 6 national
The Jackrabbits' 75-69 triumph over Loyola wasn't as close as the score indicated, as they held a 14-point advantage at the half. Poly's offense has been scoring plenty in the playoffs, and the team is going to need all the offensive ingenuity it can muster up in Tuesday's semifinal matchup against No. 6 seed Etiwanda, which held Silverado to 28 points in its quarterfinal win. Poly also beat Mayfair, 73-28, last week.
3. (4) El Camino Real (Woodland Hills), 28-2Division: Los Angeles City Section I
Freeman Rankings: 9 state, 54 national
The
Conquistadors will finally get a shot at Westchester this Saturday in the LA City Section Division I final. It should be a spectacular battle. ECR blitzed through Narbonne (69-34) and Crenshaw (81-57) last week in easy fashion. Saturday definitely won't be so easy.
4. (2) Bishop Montgomery (Torrance), 29-1Division: Southern Section IV-AA
Freeman Rankings: 3 state, 23 national
The Knights finally ended up on the wrong end of a scoreboard, and it was La Verne Lutheran that dished out the surprising upset, 63-59, in the semifinals. It's sure to be an angry group of Bishop Montgomery Knights in the state playoffs, but they will have to wait a while for that. Earlier in the week, the Knights beat Harvard-Westlake 78-58. They had to tumble a bit because of the loss, but they own wins over Westchester and St. John Bosco, so it's hard to drop them too much.
5. (5) Westchester (Los Angeles), 27-6Division: Los Angeles City Section I
Freeman Rankings: 7 state, 49 national
The Comets did the same as ECR: Dominate. They pasted Taft 71-41 and then moved on to the semifinals, beating Palisades 62-49. Saturday is certain to be a great contest.
6. (6) St. John Bosco (Bellflower), 23-6Division: Southern Section III-A
Freeman Rankings: 6 state, 48 national
The
Braves are breathing a sigh of relief after Ocean View nearly came back and shocked them in the semifinals. Bosco escaped with an 89-87 victory after entering the final quarter with a nine-point lead.
Isaac Hamilton went crazy on offense, pouring in 43 points in a clutch performance. Earlier in the week the Braves dispatched Cathedral, 82-55. Now comes the III-A final against No. 3 seed Chaminade.
7. (8) Etiwanda, 25-2Division: Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 4 state, 24 national
The
Eagles went back to a pre-shot clock era in their 43-28 win over Silverado in the quarterfinals. They also won 68-50 over Great Oak earlier in the week. Now comes Tuesday's huge semifinal matchup at Long Beach Poly. Since the new year began, Etiwanda has allowed 50 or more points in just three of their 18 contests.
8. (9) Bullard (Fresno), 25-2
Division: Central Section I
Freeman Rankings: 15 state, 98 national
The
Knights rested for their first-round bye, then came out and torched Liberty, 76-46. Wednesday's matchup in the semifinals will be against Clovis North and the section final is scheduled for Saturday.
9. (10) Tustin, 29-2Division: Southern Section III-AAA
Freeman Rankings: 52 state, 398 national
The
Tillers keep winning games. They don't do it by 25 points, but nobody can argue with their ability to outscore the opposition. Last week, Tustin beat Bonita 52-48 and then took down Compton in the semifinals, 58-51. Now comes the III-AAA section final against Royal, a No. 6 seed that has always been right on the cusp of the rankings.
10. (11) JW North (Riverside), 26-3Division: Southern Section II-AA
Freeman Rankings: 17 state, 142 national
North is blasting teams in the II-AA bracket. In the quarterfinals, North bruised Lawndale in an 81-60 triumph. That was after a 75-49 win over Lancaster. Will Mira Costa (20-9) be able to stop the train from pushing into the section final? That will be answered Tuesday in the semifinals.
11. (12) Brentwood School (Los Angeles), 27-3
Tra Holder, Brentwood
Photo by Nicholas Koza
Southern Section IV-A
Freeman Rankings: 35 state, 254 national
Sure, it is strange to have two league opponents battle it out in the section title game. But oh man, what a treat it will be to see another Brentwood-Pacific Hills battle. The Eagles punched their ticket to the title game by beating St. Joseph of Santa Maria 54-46 in the semifinals and they also eliminated St. Margaret's 78-57. Brentwood and Pacific Hills split their two Alpha League matchups this season.
12. (13) Pacific Hills (Los Angeles), 23-4Division: Southern Section IV-A
Freeman Rankings: 20 state, 154 national
The
Bruins got a pair of free throws in the final minute to get them past Cantwell Sacred Heart, 52-51. It was a dogfight the entire way, tied at halftime and at the end of three quarters. They also beat St. Bonaventure 69-60 earlier in the week. Now comes the Alpha League rematch with Brentwood in the finals.
13. (15) La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad), 26-4Division: San Diego Section II
Freeman Rankings: 46 state, 310 national
The
Mavericks opened the playoffs with a 77-54 victory over Rancho Bernardo, then had to battle for a 66-61 win over Westview in the quarterfinals, a game that they trailed at halftime.
Jeff Van Dyke scored 22 points in the Westview game. Now comes a semifinal against Lincoln (San Diego) for the right to play in this weekend's title game.
14. (16) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego), 26-3Division: San Diego Section III
Freeman Rankings: 21 state, 158 national
The
Dons are on fire, burning through their bracket. Cathedral Catholic's postseason started with a 93-30 win over High Tech and then a 92-40 triumph over Mission Bay. Valley Center (23-6) is the Dons' semifinal opponent on Wednesday and if they can win there, it could set up a title game with St. Augustine, a team that was once in the rankings.
15. (24) Lutheran (La Verne), 25-6Division: Southern Section IV-AA
Freeman Rankings: 30 state, 218 national
The
coup of the year is the 63-59 victory that Lutheran scored over
then-unbeaten Bishop Montgomery.
Joseph Rushing scored 17 points and
Jay Miller made two free throws in the final two seconds to clinch the
victory, according to the LA Times. The Knights are a No. 5 seed, and
they also knocked out No. 6 seed Windward by a 73-68 score earlier in
the week. Now comes the section final against Serra.
16. (21) El Toro (Lake Forest), 26-5Division: Southern Section I-A
Freeman Rankings: 42 state, 287 national
The top-seeded Chargers have responded well to their opening-round scare, advancing to the semifinals. They beat Diamond Bar 66-50 last week and then eliminated Santiago (Corona) with a 70-64 victory in the quarterfinals. Now comes No. 4 seed Crescenta Valley in the semifinals on Tuesday.
17. (22) Serra (Gardena), 24-6
Division: Southern Section IV-AA
Freeman Rankings: 26 state, 191 national
The
Cavaliers are undoubtedly happy to be in the section title game - and to see that the other side of the bracket no longer features Bishop Montgomery. Serra advanced to the championship by downing JSerra Catholic 69-66 and Crespi 74-62, a pair of teams that were in the rankings earlier this season. Now comes the championship game, against Lutheran (La Verne).
18. (23) Westlake (Westlake Village), 25-4
Grant Lozoya, Westlake
Photo by Vince Pugliese
Southern Section II-A
Freeman Rankings: 32 state, 239 national
The Warriors are looking great as the top seed, and they laid a big-time blowout on Beaumont in the quarterfinals, winning 82-33 over the No. 8 seed.
Marcos Soto scored 22 points and
Grant Lozoya tallied 18, as 11 Warriors scored. Earlier in the week they dispatched Newport Harbor 87-78 as well. Now comes a semifinal contest Tuesday against Tesoro, a No. 5 seed.
19. (25) Army-Navy (Carlsbad), 25-4Division: San Diego Section IV
Freeman Rankings: 24 state, 180 national
The Warriors are off to a great state in the SDS playoffs, pushing aside Preuss UCSD 77-21 and Bishop's 62-38. They led 24-6 after one quarter in the Bishop's victory (a quarterfinal), and ended up getting 21 points from
Devin Watson. Now comes Santa Fe Christian on Wednesday, a team the Warriors have defeated twice this season already. A win there would mean a trip to the championship game Saturday.
20. (7) Centennial (Corona), 26-3Division: Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 12 state, 77 national
The Huskies lost to Silverado in the second round, and considering they had waxed Silverado by 34 points earlier this season, the 77-75 loss was a shock. A tough ending indeed for a team that spent time in the Xcellent 25 National Boys Basketball Rankings at one point this season. The overall resume is still solid, though, with tons of victories over ranked teams.
21. (17) Loyola (Los Angeles), 22-7
Division: Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 10 state, 64 national
It's not easy to beat the Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits. In fact, it's proving to be impossible for California teams. Loyola took a shot at Poly but fell short 75-69 in the I-AA quarterfinals. Seven losses don't look good for a team in the rankings, but Loyola took on all comers this season and played well despite that tough schedule.
22. (NR) Chaminade (West Hills), 24-6Division: Southern Section III-A
Freeman Rankings: 22 state, 166 national
The Eagles are the No. 3 seed and are all set for the championship game against St. John Bosco. How did they get here? By eliminating Oak Park in the semifinals (76-59) and doing the same to Tahquitz in the quarterfinals (79-42). Wins over El Camino Real, Santa Monica and Westlake this season look great. So would a win over Bosco and a title banner.
23. (NR) Santa Monica, 23-6Division: Southern Section I-A
Freeman Rankings: 31 state, 225 national
The No. 2 seed Vikings have been in the rankings quite a bit this season and they are back as they march to the I-A quarterfinals Tuesday against Dana Hills, a No. 6 seed. They beat Aliso Niguel in the quarterfinals 75-63 (after racing out 21-10) and before that they bested Burbank 58-46.
24. (NR) Inglewood, 19-9
Brandon Randolph, Inglewood
Photo by Nicholas Koza
Southern Section I-AA
Freeman Rankings: 19 state, 149 national
The Sentinels have always had the potential to be here, but Santa Monica, Centennial and out-of-state teams kept giving them tough losses. Well now Inglewood is on a hot streak, and it has the Sentinels one game away from playing in the I-AA title game. Inglewood, a No. 12 seed, bested a pair of teams who have been part of the rankings: Rancho Cucamonga (75-51) and Mission Viejo (64-61). They erased a fourth-quarter deficit in the Mission Viejo win and knocked out the No. 4 seed. Next comes the chance for a titanic win: A Tuesday matchup with Mater Dei in the semifinals.
25. (NR) Royal (Simi Valley), 23-7Division: Southern Section III-AAA
Freeman Rankings: 36 state, 258 national
The Highlanders have been part of that Marmonte League group that featured multiple great teams that all seemed to beat each other. But now they are in the postseason, and they are rolling, and they will face top-seeded Tustin in the section title matchup this week. Royal, a No. 6 seed, eliminated Brea Olinda in the semifinals (63-54) and did the same to West Torrance (42-38) in the quarterfinals.
