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2016 Preseason Ranking ??????

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RespectBBGame

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Mar 16, 2015
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The question is who's number 2-20 because everyone knows St. Mary's of stockton is number one. Does anyone know any major transfers ????

1) SMS
2) ?
3) ?


Most school had major loses players to guaduation. Can any give a guess what the ranking will look like in a few weeks ahead????
 
Great question ...

I think Miramonte has to be high on the list this year ... O'Dowd lost significant players, SI lost eight seniors, SHC is missing several scorers.

Brookside Christian has Aarion McDonald, and Sacramento returns everyone. Salesian and Antelope are good, but watch out for Mitty -- pretty much everyone is back.

Oakland Tech has Leroy Hurt running things now, and SMB is always tough.

I'm sure I'm missing some good teams, especially in Stockton and Sacramento. Lincoln, Inderkum, Elk Grove, all have talent.
 
I think Salesians problem last season was a lack of height. This season they have that 6'5" Freshman who is pretty good now but will only get better as the season wears on. From what I have seen of her she she is a real difference maker in the paint. Add that to the other players they have and they will be a tough team to beat. She seems to be the missing piece that they needed. I might even put them at #2. As Clay mentioned Miramonte will be really tough as well. I think for me most of the other teams have too many unanswered question. A lot will depend on in coming freshman and how much underclassmen have developed over the summer.. A top freshman can really help a good team over the top. McClatchy would have been a top team if they hadn't lost GiGi.
 
Willtalk said:
I think Salesians problem last season was a lack of height. This season they have that 6'5" Freshman who is pretty good now but will only get better as the season wears on. From what I have seen of her she she is a real difference maker in the paint. Add that to the other players they have and they will be a tough team to beat. She seems to be the missing piece that they needed. I might even put them at #2. As Clay mentioned Miramonte will be really tough as well. I think for me most of the other teams have too many unanswered question. A lot will depend on in coming freshman and how much underclassmen have developed over the summer.. A top freshman can really help a good team over the top. McClatchy would have been a top team if they hadn't lost GiGi.
Click to expand...


Miramonte is the CLEAR #2.

And then personally I would go with Vanden at # 3...but quite frankly after #2 anybody can beat anybody.

And I disagree with the 6'5 freshman at Salesian being a difference maker. The games I have seen her play for the Norcal futures/Orinda magic she couldn't play against any quickness. got ran right off the court, couldn't guard anybody. The coaches couldn't get her out fast enough. Now unless Salesian plans on playing a lot of zone I think she's a defensive liability. And when she played against older girls similar to her size , her strength was a problem and she got manhandled. Now granted I saw her in the late spring/early summer so maybe there was significant improvement since.
 
I think these are some of the top teams this year 1) SMS and 2 to 20. MM, Vanden, Pinewood, Salesian, Mitty, SH, BC, CN, Sac High, Lincoln, Antelope, MC, BOD, Oak Ridge, Carondelet, West Campus, Piedmont, Saint Francis, and McClachy.

Can anyone put these teams in order or what teams are missing.
 
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SHC, their JV team last year was 18-0....and they had 8 freshman on it. So definitely some potential and top ten. Russell is as good as a coach as you will find in the WCAL.
 
Yes SHC will be good but that what I meant by SH. But it will take them a year to be able to compete at the top 10 level but i see them between 15 and 20 in the ranking. But in one year I can see them in the top 10 in the ranking.
 
There is a big difference between varsity JV. Even many very strong varsity programs have very weak JV teams -- if a freshman is good, she's usually on varsity. But that doesn't mean the SHC girls won't make an immediate impact, but rather that it's hard to tell, even with that 18-0 record.
 
Clay and Respectbbgame, I agree with everything you say, but I didn't say top 5...I think 8-12 is a very reasonable ranking. Considered the strength of the schedule last year and who they played, they soundly beat those teams. Secondly, SHC varsity has young players as well, players that got serious minutes last year.
 
SHC will be a top 5 team with Thomas returning. She proved last year she is more of an impact then Ionescu from Miramonte

1. SM
2. Miramonte
3. Mitty
4. ShC
5. Pinewood
 
Northbayguro----- Lets take another look at my post and what I stated. I said I might put them at #2. Meaning that if the younger players develop during the season they will be a really tough team to beat at seasons end. I might even give them a shot at Miramonte. This Miramonte team has always had trouble with teams that have height in the middle. They just don't match up well. Sabrina is their best low post defender. Considering Salesian had a really young team last year they did much better than anyone expected. The have a money player in Moore coming back, plus Hobbs has improved and expanded her game. As to Angel Jackson- she is a legit 6'5" and you can not coach that. I wouldn't put too much stock in what she did for her AAU team when you saw her. I also saw her play with her AAU team and my take was that she just didn't fit in with their style of play. Their guard play left much to be desired so she was not being used offensively to her advantage. Much like McClatchy and Gigi looked bad until their guards decided to get Gigi involved. I saw Angel play with her high school teammates at the St Mary's tourn in early summer and she looked much better and Salesian looked to be by far the second best team there. I wouldn't expect her to be that polished on offense but she will be a difference maker guarding the paint. They would be stupid to not play a form of a zone using her height. The tallest player Salesian had was Hobbs and she was about 5'11 at best. I generally go by what I see and not ratings, but Angel also impressed the scouts at a southern showcase at the end of the summer. It's not like she is a polished player but she is a 6'5" freshman with a lot of upside who should be playing much better by seasons end.
 
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Antelope is definitely going to be a team to watch this season. They only lost one player from last year’s team and has picked up a physical, skilled Freshman post player, Arianna Spann that will make up for the area most needed from last year’s team, the paint. Antelope definitely should be a top ten team in NorCal this season and they should be the number one team out of Sacramento. Antelope ended the season last year number three in the Sac Bee behind McClatchy and Oak Ridge. McClatchy, due to graduation lost Lauren Nubla and Destiney Lee both on D1 rosters this year and the tremendous loss of Gigi Garcia the heart and soul of the team and a High Major D1 player, McClatchy should be down. Oak ridge last year was a senior dominated team returning only two big time players in Hailey McCoy and Kassidy Delapp, should also be down this year. In my humble opinion Antelope should move ahead of them in the Sacramento region rankings this year.
 
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In my Opinion, I think center have a hard time adjusting to the speed or the game. Both freshman from Antelope and Salesian will be better at the end the year they catch to the speed at the Var high school level. They both did good during AAU but in AAU these days teams are good or real bad. So during high season they can be real good but you have to look a strength of schedule are they real good or not. I don't think Mitty, SCH or Pinewood will be in the top 5 this year lost to may key players. Sac High looks like they will make a run with McClatchy being down this year in the SAC Area. They are rough scrappy type of team that is deep on the bench will give teams problems with their physical play.
 
It's going to be an interesting year. I think we can safely put SMS at the top, and slot Miramonte right behind -- but the Mats could well be vulnerable to a deep team, especially if Sabrina is in foul trouble or gets banged up.

It should be a fun season ...
 
>> I don't think Mitty, SCH or Pinewood will be in the top 5 this year lost to may key players.

Hey RespectBBGame,

SHC probably lost the most out of this group. They were obviously top five by the end of last season. But they probably won't be top five this year, at least not in the preseason ranking. I just hope they take the same approach as last year, and stack their schedule with tough opponents. If they do they'll be ready for the playoffs, just like last year.

Pinewood lost less than SHC from a statistical perspective. They were probably top five at the end of last season, although they got *screwed* with a 7 seed in the NorCal Open playoffs. I think they will have a hard time filling their leadership void, as two of the seniors they lost were clearly their heart and soul.

And then there's Mitty. I'll have to disagree with you about them losing too many key players. I think their sophomores and juniors were leading the team by the end of last season. And even statistically, the seniors contributed less last year than with most good teams. Mitty was not top five last year, and I'm not even predicting they will be top five this year, but it isn't because they lost too many key players. As always though, their (expected) strong schedule will have them ready for playoff season.
 
ClayK said:
It's going to be an interesting year. I think we can safely put SMS at the top, and slot Miramonte right behind -- but the Mats could well be vulnerable to a deep team, especially if Sabrina is in foul trouble or gets banged up.

It should be a fun season ...
Click to expand...

That is why Miramonte is vulnerable- lack of depth. No player is a machine and can potentially have off days. The positive for them is that she isn't just a scorer and her all-around-game helps the team in other ways as well. That is why it has to be both a Timing + match-up factor for them to be vulnerable for an upset. If a good match up catches Sabrina on an off game Miramonte is vulnerable to defeat by a good team. The deeper a team the more able they are are to mitigate the Match up and Timing factor in respect to upsets.

The deeper a team the less they are reliant on a a few players to carry them offensively. Combine a bad shooting game by those few with the opposition playing well and a team is ripe for an upset. That is the Timing factor. The match up factor is self explanatory. Does the opposing team possess the personal to mitigate the other teams strengths while taking advantage of their weaknesses. Going by last season, their seeming lack of post strength makes them especially vulnerable to teams that are strong in this area. Post weakness puts too much emphasis on outside shooting and those shots are not always there. A good opposing point guard, who can get the ball inside, can also make a team pay on the defensive end. Those factors were why MD rolled them in the MLK tournament and BOD came with in a hair's breadth of beating them in the playoffs. They were only saved by a hot shooting game by their underclass wing player.

Both MD and BOD took advantage of Miramonte/s lack of height while having the personal to limit Sabrina's offensive strengths. They had good guards and defenders to take Sabrina out of her comfort zone and the defensive presence inside the paint to limit her scoring drives as well. Those very factors are my rational for labeling Salesian as a potentially tough match up problem for Miramonte.
 
jaymel911 said:
She proved last year she is more of an impact then Ionescu from Miramonte
Click to expand...
I don't think I could agree with that. I don't believe any player had as much impact on her team as Sabrina. I am not referring to their individual abilities ( that's a separate subject) Thomas was playing on a far deeper and talent laden team that Sabrina. Teams could not target her and game plan to shut her down like they did Sabrina all year. SHC had a lot of depth last year and their success was not predicated on one player. This is not to say that she is not capable of carrying a team, just that she has not yet been in the position to do as Ionescu already has been. So while some might believe she could, the actual facts are that not really being in that position last season she still actually has yet to prove that she can.
 
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Let's talk about all the height people are hoping to the difference maker. The thinks with big post play is not so much about height is about being physical. If post players cant hold their ground then there is no kick for the open three. If there are not physical underneath on defense then rebounding will be out the question. Good example is SI last year against the quicker teams had problems MM but on paper SI was the better team. Another example MD was taller then SMS but we know who won state last year!!! The main think about post play the teams have to have guards will to past to the post the ball and be unselfish.

Lets talk a little about SHC last 7 SR and 3 started 32 points among them. Most JV players but not all that score 20 points will on score 8 points at the Var level the first year because of the speed of the game. Thomas is a great player but this year teams will force on her this year when they play SHC. She will need support that she can kick to and score.

Lets talk about Pinewood a little not much. Last year team had great SR guard play that kept there team in games a lot last year. Who will fill them big shoes????

MM not much to say stop Sabrina stop MM!!!! That's a tough job to ask though. Let's see this year if the play a tough schedule.

The teams that play the tough schedule always go a along way in the playoffs if the win more the half of the tough games.

Which teams out there this year won't be scared to step on the court with SMS????? That's the problem with most teams think the are beaten before they ever play the game.
 
It's almost time for first day of practice on Nov. 9. Will the ranking individual players make a difference in their teams? The rankings of 2016 and 2017 players are out and players are getting ready for their season to lead their teams. Which players will stand out this year and change the ranking of their team? SMS have 5 players ranked that's why they are #1 this year bar none. Which team this year will be the sleeper? Can anyone answer any of these questions?
 
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The answer: You never know.

But realistically, Sabrina Ionescu elevates Miramonte from a very good high school team to a nationally ranked team. She may carry a bigger singular load that any of the top teams, though there are a lot of teams that will live or die depending on the performance of their star.

Sleepers? I don't think Cardinal Newman counts as a sleeper, but I wouldn't be surprised with a big leap forward. It may take Leroy Hurt a little time at Oakland Tech, but it could be sooner rather than later. Acalanes could be pretty good this year, at a somewhat lower level, and St. Joseph Notre Dame is bringing in a lot of talent to an already stacked team. I hear they may be Division IV, but if they stay D-V, it will most likely be them and Pinewood. (And down the road, SJND should become one of the East Bay powers, regardless of division, and could be a D-IV state title contender.)
 
The NCS website has St. Joseph's in D-V. Have rules changed allowing teams to petition up, similar to football?
 
I think SJND remains D-V this year but will probably move up next year. (They have no reason to want to move up this year, and in fact, would probably prefer to stay down as long as possible.)

With the increasing move to competitive equity rather than enrollment as to divisional assignments, look for St. Joe's and its horde of CalStars talent to be in even higher divisions in the next five years. In NCS this year, with the shift of many girls' soccer teams to the winter (which will gut the basketball programs of many small schools, not that CIF or NCS cares), look for SJND to win almost every D-V game by 50 -- especially if they press with their starters in the fourth quarter as they did against Bentley last year in NCS.
 
Miramonte and SMS will be top tear and the rest of Norcal will be the lilliputians! Maybe Salesian, BOD? Also, until SJND wins a section championship, why would they even be considered to move up. Even with all the hordes of talent coming in from Cal Stars, if they don't win they need to stay DV. I think this is year 3 of the new coach at SJND so the ball should be rolling. But we should wait to crown them DV champs until they actually win it

what I'm shocked about is how Berkeley is getting NO love. Berkeley won the section last year and returns a bulk of the team. I think they'll continue to produce championships with a young group of kids. Will any teams from the BVAL, EBAL, or MVAL contend for NCS DI?
 
Good points ... and Berkeley could improve with a new coach as well.

As for SJND, I agree that the Pilots have to win first -- but check out last year's NCS D-V. Valley Christian lost all five starters (Nina Bessolo is now at Castro Valley) and will be lucky to win the BCL-East. University lost two of its three top scorers and reports are will be significantly down. San Domenico lost all five starters and Mike Fulton is now coaching the boys. Urban loses five seniors from an 11-loss team.

And though SJND also lost a couple key players, its depth was impressive last year, and its freshman class is outstanding. Sure, things could go wrong, but right now, it's hard to see anyone pushing the Pilots in NCS D-V -- and again, with so many teams being forced into winter soccer, the pool of available basketball players is much, much smaller.
 
Another question how many of the teams that went to state or was in the open seating will go back to State or be in the open seating? Which teams will go back to their division for state which ones will be in the Open seating? Which teams will drop off ? Has anybody look at the scheduled being post and see the strength of schedule for some of these teams trying to make it back to the State games?
 
It will be an interesting year, I think, with St. Mary's of Stockton a clear number one. Miramonte should be an Open candidate if Ionescu stays healthy, but after that? Mitty looks good, Brookside Christian should be strong, Pinewood is always a threat, Cardinal Newman is poised for breakout and there are several strong teams in the Sacramento area (Sacramento, Inderkum, Vanden, West Campus).

Many of those teams would prefer not to be in the Open, as there's a much better chance of getting to state with SMS not in the same bracket, and there's a much better chance of winning state because Chaminade, among others, will be very strong in Southern California.

Ideally, then, you'd be the ninth best team in NorCal, drop down to your natural division and have a shot at a state title ... or you could hope SMS stumbles in the playoffs.
 
I think most teams lose to SMS because they fear them before even stepping on the court. But they are real good but everyone knows a bully dont like to be bully. The question is not about SMS stumbling which team will be coach and play with no fear ?

Yes it looks like the landscape of girls basketball is change from NCS being the powerhouse to the SJS being the powerhouse. Like last year with SMS and McClachy won state. Brookside Christian went to state. That was 3 SJS team represent in State game.

I think strength of schedule tells it all in most chase. When a coach knows what he or she is working with they will play the best. It also get team ready for pkayoff. Look SHC and BOD both to their lumps during the preseason but SHC went to open and BOD went to State D3. Thats saying alot!!!! So my question is which teams have good strength of schedule beside SMS this year ??
 
Until teams get their schedules up on MaxPreps, it's hard to say.

These teams are in the Platinum at the WCJ:
Brookside
Salesian
Sacramento
O'Dowd
SHC

These are in the Diamond:
Carondelet
Vanden
SMB
Cardinal Newman
Antelope or West Valley

Miramonte is at the Nike Interstate tournament in Oregon at the same time, playing the top teams in Oregon.

Liberty and Acalanes are in the top Premier bracket, and Inderkum, Elk Grove, Oakland Tech and Antelope/West Campus are in the third Elite bracket (Gold).

And by the way, tentative brackets went out today, and if anybody reading this thinks they're in the tournament and didn't get the bracket, they need to talk to me immediately.
 
RespectBBGame said:
I think most teams lose to SMS because they fear them before even stepping on the court. But they are real good but everyone knows a bully dont like to be bully. The question is not about SMS stumbling which team will be coach and play with no fear ?

Yes it looks like the landscape of girls basketball is change from NCS being the powerhouse to the SJS being the powerhouse. Like last year with SMS and McClachy won state. Brookside Christian went to state. That was 3 SJS team represent in State game.

I think strength of schedule tells it all in most chase. When a coach knows what he or she is working with they will play the best. It also get team ready for pkayoff. Look SHC and BOD both to their lumps during the preseason but SHC went to open and BOD went to State D3. Thats saying alot!!!! So my question is which teams have good strength of schedule beside SMS this year ??
Click to expand...


Before you start declaring the SJS the better section, let me remind you that GIL LEMON does the NCS no favors by insisting on sending 3-4 teams to the open every year. While the SJS only sent 2. That means that 1 or 2 state contenders from the NCS don't realistically have a state chance as long as SMS remains the best team in the country.

The fact that Salesian and SMB were BOTH sent to the open and Brookside Christian wasn't, was IMO, ridiculous. I don't care that BC didnt show up for the section game, it shouldnt have mattered....Especially after BC handled Salesian pretty easily in their head to head in the WCJ. If BC had gone open and EITHER one of those NCS teams not...an NCS team would have been in the D4 state game.

SMS is the cream of the crop clearly...and they aren't losing. So every team that GIL LEMON sends to the open is a sacrificial lamb. Just look at Odowd and Miramonte...nice for Miramonte to win the section battle...but that win ultimately cost them a state championship as Odowd cruised to theirs in D3.

as long as the open division continues....state championships will not be a good measure of which section is the best, because inherently the BEST section will probably be the section that sends the most teams to the OPEN.
 
Excellent points. So the Southern Section, which has more schools than all of NorCal, is clearly going to be the strongest statewide every year, based on that sound logic.
 
jaymel911 said:
SHC will be a top 5 team with Thomas returning. She proved last year she is more of an impact then Ionescu from Miramonte

1. SM
2. Miramonte
3. Mitty
4. ShC
5. Pinewood
Click to expand...

I agree SHC will be one of the top teams. They have more than just Thomas who I agree is quite the baller. And they were really the only Northern California team who had a legitimate shot at upsetting SMS last season. I think they will roll into this season with a young team with some of the same confidence. Most likely believing they can play with anyone. And that belief or confidence is huge in the women's/ girls game. That actually looks like a good top 5. Especially when you think of the coaching edge all of those teams have on most other teams. But you know there will be a few sleepers.
 
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The NorCal seeding meetings were once public -- why they aren't now is apparently because the commissioners don't want people to see what they're doing -- and it was clear then that the negotiating skills of each commissioner and his or agenda going in (if one existed) was a crucial part of the process.

Paul Gaddini, the longtime NCS commissioner, was a master at this. It certainly would be interesting to see how the deliberations work now ...
 
Clay, do you have SoCal and out of area teams slotted for the 2015 WCJ? If so, can you provide their brackets?
 
Tentative brackets are out for coaches' approval ... we should have the final brackets soon.
 
This is my guest about the ranking this year
1) SMS
2) MM
3) SHC
4) Sac
5) Brookside
6) Salesian
7) Mitty
8) BOD
9) Vanden
10) Pinewood
This only guess from seeing most of the players this summer.
 
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Brookside has 3 return starters and good coach name Pico that will have them prepared for the long hard schedule. Remember what I said in an earlier post, a coach will not put his team tough scheduled if he didn't think they can handle it. When the roster comes out we will see if they have enough soldiers on the team. Clay has them in the top of the WCJ maybe he knows something too. The first week will tell the story when they are because they are playing in the Clovis West Nike TOC. Then they play Mitty the next week and then after MM round robin tournament. After all that they play in the Platinum WCJ. Thats a rough road.
 
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