MaxPreps Northern California Top 25 high school boys basketball rankings

Video: Jordan Brown Highlights
See the 6-11 Woodcreek standout and No. 5 recruit of the Class of 2018 in action.

The MaxPreps Northern California basketball rankings include large schools, medium and small. In this sport, there isn't near the competitive gap as there is in football. In a sign of progress and growth, the top two teams are from the Sacramento region within the Sac-Joaquin Section - Sheldon of the Elk Grove Unified School District and a two-time NorCal Open Division entry, and Woodcreek of Placer County, led by national recruit Jordan Brown, a 6-foot-11 junior center with guard skills.


1. Sheldon (Sacramento), 16-2
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Delta
Division: I and/or Open
Coach: Joey Rollings
Upcoming: vs. Elk Grove, at Monterey Trail (Elk Grove), vs. Orange Lutheran (Orange). 2. Woodcreek (Roseville), 18-2
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Sierra Foothill
Division: I and/or Open
Coach: Paul Hayes
Upcoming: vs. Granite Bay, vs. Rocklin.

3. Bellarmine College Prep (San Jose), 15-1
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Division: I and/or Open
Coach: Patrick Schneider
Upcoming: vs. No. 6 St. Ignatius (San Francisco), Mitty (San Jose).

4. Salesian College Preparatory (Richmond), 17-3
Section: North Coast
League: Tri-County Rock
Division: III and/or Open
Coach: Bill Mellis
Upcoming: at Albany, vs. Saint Mary's (Albany), vs. No. 9 Bishop O'Dowd.

5. Dublin, 17-1
Section: North Coast
League: East Bay
Division: I
Coach: Tom Costello
Upcoming: at Monte Vista (Danville), at No. 6 De La Salle (Concord), at California (San Ramon).

6. De La Salle (Concord), 14-4
Section: North Coast
League: East Bay
Division: I and/or Open
Coach: Justin Argenal
Upcoming: vs. Granda (Livermore), vs. No. 5 Dublin.

7. St. Joseph Notre Dame (Alameda), 17-1
Section: North Coast
League: Bay Counties East
Division: 4 and/or Open
Coach: Don Lippi
Upcoming: Redwood Christian (San Lorenzo), at Bentley (Lafayette), vs. Lick (San Francisco).

8. St. Ignatius (San Francisco), 15-1
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Division: III
Coach: Rob Marcaletti
Upcoming: at No. 3 Bellarmine, at Riordan (San Francisco).

9. Vanden (Fairfield), 17-2
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Solano County Athletic
Division: III
Coach: Michael Holloway
Upcoming: vs. American Canyon, vs. Bethel (Vallejo).

10. Capital Christian (Sacramento), 11-7
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Golden Empire
Division: III
Coach: Devon Jones
Upcoming: vs. Dixon.

11. Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland), 9-8
Section: North Coast
League: West Alameda County
Division: II
Coach: Lou Richie
Upcoming: vs. Arroyo (San Lorenzo), vs. San Leandro, vs. No. 4 Salesian.

12. Heritage (Brentwood), 16-2
Section: North Coast
League: Bay Valley
Division: I
Coach: Pat Cruickshank
Upcoming: vs. Freedom (Oakley), at Deer Valley (Antioch).

13. Burbank (Sacramento), 17-2
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Metropolitan
Division: II
Coach: Lindsey Ferrell
Upcoming: vs. Kennedy (Sacramento), vs. Johnson (Sacramento).

14. St. Patrick-St. Vincent (Vallejo), 15-4
Section: North Coast
League: Tri-County Rock
Division: IV
Coach: Derek Walker
Upcoming: at Albany, vs. Benicia.

15. Saint Francis (Mountain View), 13-3
Section: Central Coast
League: West Catholic Athletic
Division: II
Coach: Mike Motil
Upcoming: at Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco), vs. Valley Christian (San Jose).

16. James Logan (Union City), 15-3
Section: North Coast
League: Mission Valley
Division: I
Coach: Melvin Easley
Upcoming: vs. Irvington (Fremont), vs Kennedy (Fremont).

17. Oakland Tech (Oakland), 16-3
Section: Oakland
League: Oakland
Division: I
Coach: Karega Hart
Upcoming: at Fremont (Oakland), vs. Castlemont (Oakland).

18. Folsom, 15-5
Section: Sac-Joaquin
League: Sierra Foothill
Division: I
Coach: Mike Wall
Upcoming: at Rocklin, at Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills).

19. Mission (San Francisco), 18-1
Section: San Francisco
League: Academic Lang
Division: III
Coach: Arnold Zelaya
Upcoming: vs. SF College Prep (San Francisco), at Burton (San Francisco).

20. Palma (Salinas), 14-2
Section: Central Coast
League: Monterey Bay
Division: IV
Coach: Kelley Lopez
Upcoming: at Monterey, at San Benito (Hollister)


NorCal highlights
- Top-ranked Sheldon beat No. 9 Vanden 63-56 in overtime in the Sheldon Adidas Challenge as Drew Cobb and Elishja Duplechan dazzled with ball handling, shooting and defense.
- No. 3 Bellarmine entered the week with one loss, to Mater Dei Catholic (Chula Vista), 60-52. It plays No. 8 St. Ignatius on Wednesday.
- No. 5 Dublin has lost only to No. 2 Woodcreek, 71-66 on Dec. 12, and has won 14 consecutive games since. It plays No. 6 De La Salle on Thursday.

NorCal top scorers
Josh Singh, Lutheran (Elk Grove), 32.7
Joey Calcaterra, Marin Catholic (Kentfield), 29.4
Jordan Brown, Woodcreek (Roseville), 27.0
Zavier Lucero, Rodriguez (Fairfield), 25.2
Earl Johnson Jr., Ipakanni Early College Charter (Oroville), 24.6
Elias King, Christian Brothers (Sacramento), 24.6
Damari Milstead, Moreau Catholic (Hayward), 24.1
Noah McCutcheon, Freedom Christian (Fair Oaks), 23.5
Junior Ballard, Lathrop, 22.9
Keshawn Bruner, Burbank (Sacramento), 22.7

The Sacramento Bee on a looming playoff showdown between NorCal powerhouses...click here

Joe Davidson has covered high school sports for The Sacramento Bee since 1988. Follow him on Twitter: @SacBee_JoeD and on on Facebook: facebook.com/joe.davidson