WCAL 2017: NORCAL PLAYOFFS
- Thread starter Mr. Direct
- Start date
I like that you gave it a shot but please don't quit your job and get into sports betting. You would go broke! 1/4 with no spread is not very good.
What a disappointing day for the D3 WCAL schools. First SHC gets absolutely handled by a Gunderson team that essentially played 5 players the entire game and then Riordan gets thoroughly beat by Monterey. What stuck out about these two teams all year was the inconsistency and overall lack of effort, especially on defense.
The Crusader defense was abysmal all year and the offense was unimaginative and basic. If James Chun wasn't shooting well then the offense tanked. Hard to watch. Very poor season.
The Irish looked to be turning things around late in the season but showed little fight in a playoff game. No defense was being played and the one on one game plan against the Gunderson 2-3 zone was perplexing. If Neal and Robinson didn't get hot in the 4th it would've been a 30 point drubbing.
Looking forward to an all WCAL Open semifinals. Should be two entertaining games at Indepence HS as SI faces Mitty and Bellarmine faces St. Francis.
Valley Christian should have a great chance to advance to the D2 final on Tuesday night against Leigh.
The Crusader defense was abysmal all year and the offense was unimaginative and basic. If James Chun wasn't shooting well then the offense tanked. Hard to watch. Very poor season.
The Irish looked to be turning things around late in the season but showed little fight in a playoff game. No defense was being played and the one on one game plan against the Gunderson 2-3 zone was perplexing. If Neal and Robinson didn't get hot in the 4th it would've been a 30 point drubbing.
Looking forward to an all WCAL Open semifinals. Should be two entertaining games at Indepence HS as SI faces Mitty and Bellarmine faces St. Francis.
Valley Christian should have a great chance to advance to the D2 final on Tuesday night against Leigh.
For Riordan - I don't think it was lack of effort - it was an overall lack of talent IMHO. Offensively, they don't have (m)any shooters other than James Chun who struggled with consistency most of the year. Defensively they had little to no rim protectors / length and certain players lacked the adequate quickness and/or size / strength to consistently stop penetration. Needless to say a vertically challenged, poor shooting team without elite athleticism or quickness is a death knell in the WCAL or any good league for that matter.
It was all of the above including defensive effort and gameplan. Team had zero tenacity or fight, developed no shooters and offense genterated little to no clean looks.
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I should have known that an underprepared overconfident SHC was going to show up. Too much faith in nvm I'll stop there
Monterey shot very well.
Saratoga was a toss up.
Jeff bailed me out otherwise I would have had the doughnut.
Gotta agree with SF Mikey that it was not a lack of defensive effort, tenacity or fight, it was a severe drop in talent compared to last year's senior laden team. The Crusaders were in the game against Monterey up until the final 2 minutes. Monterey simply were draining 3's to win going away. There was no Stansberry, Daniel Norman, Jason Smith, Eric Galindo and Jake Rassam replacements on the defensive end other than Sandoval and the frosh Jelani Clark this season. Chun's production dropped off from last year's post season run as a result of his season-long injuries, added muscle and the opposing team's focus in taking him out of the game.
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Jordan24, I know you are a Riordan homer and probably friends with Coach Buckner so I will take your comments with a grain of salt. 
That being said the Crusaders were only competitive in a few league games this year and were lucky to have 1 win in a "down year" for the league. I bet if you asked the coaches themselves they would say the team lacked defensive tenacity and fight. And Monterey put the game away from the outside late in the second half once they went to a 3-2 zone! Not the best decision and indicative of what was happening all season.
That being said the Crusaders were only competitive in a few league games this year and were lucky to have 1 win in a "down year" for the league. I bet if you asked the coaches themselves they would say the team lacked defensive tenacity and fight. And Monterey put the game away from the outside late in the second half once they went to a 3-2 zone! Not the best decision and indicative of what was happening all season.Official WCAL POY and ALL- LEAGUE TEAMS:
CO-POY: Logan Johnson, St. Francis, junior & Jake Wojcik, Bellarmine, junior
First team
Angelo Athens, Bellarmine, senior
Kendall Stubblefield, Bellarmine, junior
Darrion Trammell, St. Ignatius, junior
Riley Grigsby, Archbishop Mitty, junior
Brandon Beckman, St. Ignatius, junior
Jacob Mihanovic, St. Francis senior
Second team
Mike Diaz, Archbishop Mitty, senior
Emmett Neal Jr., Sacred Heart Cathedral, sophomore
Bobby Santos, Valley Christian, senior
Parker McDonald, Serra, sophomore
Matt Redmond, St. Ignatius, junior
James Chun, Archbishop Riordan, junior
Jack Wilson, Serra, junior
CO-POY: Logan Johnson, St. Francis, junior & Jake Wojcik, Bellarmine, junior
First team
Angelo Athens, Bellarmine, senior
Kendall Stubblefield, Bellarmine, junior
Darrion Trammell, St. Ignatius, junior
Riley Grigsby, Archbishop Mitty, junior
Brandon Beckman, St. Ignatius, junior
Jacob Mihanovic, St. Francis senior
Second team
Mike Diaz, Archbishop Mitty, senior
Emmett Neal Jr., Sacred Heart Cathedral, sophomore
Bobby Santos, Valley Christian, senior
Parker McDonald, Serra, sophomore
Matt Redmond, St. Ignatius, junior
James Chun, Archbishop Riordan, junior
Jack Wilson, Serra, junior
That has to be one of the youngest groups of all-league players I've ever seen...There's only 4 seniors. WCAL should be fun next year.
Always appreciate your astute and unbiased observations but agree to disagree Mr. Direct. The lack of experienced talent and height led to the Crusaders woeful season. Hard to name any Crusader starter that could start for any of the WCAL teams this season.Jordan24, I know you are a Riordan homer and probably friends with Coach Buckner so I will take your comments with a grain of salt.
Trust me I want to see a Riordan resurgence. It's much more fun when the Crusaders and Wildcats are in the hunt at the top of the league!
It's more fun when we see supporters of each school going at it in a very nasty manner. Oh for the days of SanFranPreps!
CCS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
3 Mitty vs. 1 Bellarmine 3/3/17 @ Santa Clara University 8PM
The 3rd meeting between these two San Jose schools will be in the Open Championship. The first two ended up in decisive Bellarmine victories but the Monarchs are playing their best basketball of the season and have won 7 out of their last 8 games. The key for a Mitty victory is slowing down the co-POY Jake Wojcik from the 3 point line. I believe he was responsible for all of Bellarmine's 3 pointers in the semifinal win over St. Francis. If they can do that and get Stubblefield in foul trouble by feeding Diaz and Grigsby inside that would more than likely spell doom for the Bells.
The Bells on the other hand will simply just try to do what they have done the previous games against Mitty. Use their press to frustrate Mitty and take them out of their offense and on the other end knock down enough 3's to keep the Mitty defense extended. I think that the Monarch's are peaking at the right time and that Bellarmine's close game "luck" will run out. Mitty by 3.
3 Mitty vs. 1 Bellarmine 3/3/17 @ Santa Clara University 8PM
The 3rd meeting between these two San Jose schools will be in the Open Championship. The first two ended up in decisive Bellarmine victories but the Monarchs are playing their best basketball of the season and have won 7 out of their last 8 games. The key for a Mitty victory is slowing down the co-POY Jake Wojcik from the 3 point line. I believe he was responsible for all of Bellarmine's 3 pointers in the semifinal win over St. Francis. If they can do that and get Stubblefield in foul trouble by feeding Diaz and Grigsby inside that would more than likely spell doom for the Bells.
The Bells on the other hand will simply just try to do what they have done the previous games against Mitty. Use their press to frustrate Mitty and take them out of their offense and on the other end knock down enough 3's to keep the Mitty defense extended. I think that the Monarch's are peaking at the right time and that Bellarmine's close game "luck" will run out. Mitty by 3.
What a finish in the CCS Open for the Mitty Monarchs. I had them winning the WCAL before the season started and their 3rd place finish disappointed many, but winning the CCS Open over Bellarmine makes up for it. On to the state tournament:
NORCAL PLAYOFFS
OPEN DIVISION
3/10 @ 7PM
6 Mitty (17-10) @ 3 St. Joe's (30-1) - All indications are that St. Joe's will be playing without star guard Jade Smith due to an ejection two games ago. Without Smith I am giving the red hot Monarchs the edge, even on the road. Mitty's size will be a problem for the Pilots and without the go to scoring of Smith I see Mitty moving on to the next round.
7 Bellarmine (25-2) @ 2 Sheldon (28-3) - Bellarmine's consolation prize for losing the CCS Open title in overtime?... A trip to #2 seeded Sheldon. Unfortunately I believe this will be the end of the road for the Bells. I can't see them hanging with Sheldon's athleticism. I have the Huskies in this one by 10 plus. If the Bells had beaten Mitty they most likely would've had the #3 or #4 seed and would've been hosting the first round game.
DIVISION 2
3/8 @ 7PM
With Valley Christian dropping the CCS D2 championship game to Mountain View, it left the WCAL with two Division 2 teams moving on.
16 Grant (20-9) @ 1 St. Francis (18-9) - I thought St. Francis getting the #1 seed in Division 2 was mildly surprising. I thought Whitney might get the edge but the committee must've leaned on the Lancers strength of schedule. I would be shocked if the Lancers dropped this game at home. I see them winning by 8-10 points.
10 Montgomery (24-6) @ 7 Serra (14-13) - The Padres are fortunate they get to host the Vikings on Wednesday night. I think the comforts of home and the big man Wilson will be too much for Monty to handle. They just don't have enough weapons on offense. Look for the Padres to advance.
DIVISION 3
3/8 @ 7:30 PM
16 Rio Americano (16-12) @ 1 St. Ignatius (21-6) - The top seeded Wildcats will be hosting the 16th seeded Raiders. The Rio Americano team has been playing really well at the end of the season with a win against Vista Del Lago and a close 3 point loss in sections Manteca. The Wildcats finished their section playoffs by drubbing the #1 seed in D2, St. Francis, by 26 points. I see a big win by 20 plus at SI as they start their march to the state finals.
NORCAL PLAYOFFS
OPEN DIVISION
3/10 @ 7PM
6 Mitty (17-10) @ 3 St. Joe's (30-1) - All indications are that St. Joe's will be playing without star guard Jade Smith due to an ejection two games ago. Without Smith I am giving the red hot Monarchs the edge, even on the road. Mitty's size will be a problem for the Pilots and without the go to scoring of Smith I see Mitty moving on to the next round.
7 Bellarmine (25-2) @ 2 Sheldon (28-3) - Bellarmine's consolation prize for losing the CCS Open title in overtime?... A trip to #2 seeded Sheldon. Unfortunately I believe this will be the end of the road for the Bells. I can't see them hanging with Sheldon's athleticism. I have the Huskies in this one by 10 plus. If the Bells had beaten Mitty they most likely would've had the #3 or #4 seed and would've been hosting the first round game.
DIVISION 2
3/8 @ 7PM
With Valley Christian dropping the CCS D2 championship game to Mountain View, it left the WCAL with two Division 2 teams moving on.
16 Grant (20-9) @ 1 St. Francis (18-9) - I thought St. Francis getting the #1 seed in Division 2 was mildly surprising. I thought Whitney might get the edge but the committee must've leaned on the Lancers strength of schedule. I would be shocked if the Lancers dropped this game at home. I see them winning by 8-10 points.
10 Montgomery (24-6) @ 7 Serra (14-13) - The Padres are fortunate they get to host the Vikings on Wednesday night. I think the comforts of home and the big man Wilson will be too much for Monty to handle. They just don't have enough weapons on offense. Look for the Padres to advance.
DIVISION 3
3/8 @ 7:30 PM
16 Rio Americano (16-12) @ 1 St. Ignatius (21-6) - The top seeded Wildcats will be hosting the 16th seeded Raiders. The Rio Americano team has been playing really well at the end of the season with a win against Vista Del Lago and a close 3 point loss in sections Manteca. The Wildcats finished their section playoffs by drubbing the #1 seed in D2, St. Francis, by 26 points. I see a big win by 20 plus at SI as they start their march to the state finals.
D2 scores 1st round
16 Grant @ 1 St. Francis - The Lancers stomp Grant 84-67. Next up Burbank.
10 Montgomery @ 7 Serra - Padres handled Monty 60-39. Next up Cardinal Newman.
D3 scores 1st round
16 Rio Americano @ 1 St. Ignatius- Blasé win by the Wildcats, 55-41. Next up, Placer.
OPEN DIVISION
3/14 @ 7PM
6 Mitty @ 2 Sheldon - The Monarchs will get a crack at a Sheldon team who squeaked by Bellarmine on Friday night with a 47-46 win. Bellarmine seemed to outplay the Huskies but a huge 3 in the final seconds proved to be the dagger for the Bells season. Mitty won on the road against a tough St. Joe's team without it's best player. Does Mitty have enough to take down Sheldon? I say no. They don't have enough shot creators to get it done. Bellarmine's Athens and Wojcik were able to create shots, Mitty doesn't have that type of guard on their roster. Sheldon advances eliminating the last WCAL squad from the Open division.
DIVISION 2
3/14 @ 7PM
13 Del Oro @ 1 St. Francis - St. Francis gets another home game in the third round. The Lancers have faced a 16 seed, and 8 seed and now a 13 seed in Del Oro. It pays to be a #1 seed. They handled an extremely athletic Burbank squad as Logan Johnson scored 24 points. I see them handling Del Oro the same way. Double digit win and off to the Nor Cal final.
With Serra losing to Cardinal Newman, St. Francis is the last WCAL team remaining in D2.
DIVISION 3
3/14 @ 7:30 PM
4 Mission @ 1 St. Ignatius - This is the game we've all be pining for since the start of the season. This for the City championship, bragging rights and a trip to the Nor Cal final game. SI is coming off a home win against a scrappy Placer squad who came to play Saturday night. Unfortunately for them Brandon Beckman had the hot hand. In the comforts of his home gym Beckman nailed 8 threes and 26 points to lead the Wildcats to the victory. Misson dispatched of Foothill HS in blowout fashion. Can Mission control the tempo? Can the Wildcats control the paint? I'm going with the Bears in this one. I think SI likes to play fast but Mission loves to play fast. That is their identity. Mission moves on and brings some pride back to the AAA.
3/14 @ 7PM
6 Mitty @ 2 Sheldon - The Monarchs will get a crack at a Sheldon team who squeaked by Bellarmine on Friday night with a 47-46 win. Bellarmine seemed to outplay the Huskies but a huge 3 in the final seconds proved to be the dagger for the Bells season. Mitty won on the road against a tough St. Joe's team without it's best player. Does Mitty have enough to take down Sheldon? I say no. They don't have enough shot creators to get it done. Bellarmine's Athens and Wojcik were able to create shots, Mitty doesn't have that type of guard on their roster. Sheldon advances eliminating the last WCAL squad from the Open division.
DIVISION 2
3/14 @ 7PM
13 Del Oro @ 1 St. Francis - St. Francis gets another home game in the third round. The Lancers have faced a 16 seed, and 8 seed and now a 13 seed in Del Oro. It pays to be a #1 seed. They handled an extremely athletic Burbank squad as Logan Johnson scored 24 points. I see them handling Del Oro the same way. Double digit win and off to the Nor Cal final.
With Serra losing to Cardinal Newman, St. Francis is the last WCAL team remaining in D2.
DIVISION 3
3/14 @ 7:30 PM
4 Mission @ 1 St. Ignatius - This is the game we've all be pining for since the start of the season. This for the City championship, bragging rights and a trip to the Nor Cal final game. SI is coming off a home win against a scrappy Placer squad who came to play Saturday night. Unfortunately for them Brandon Beckman had the hot hand. In the comforts of his home gym Beckman nailed 8 threes and 26 points to lead the Wildcats to the victory. Misson dispatched of Foothill HS in blowout fashion. Can Mission control the tempo? Can the Wildcats control the paint? I'm going with the Bears in this one. I think SI likes to play fast but Mission loves to play fast. That is their identity. Mission moves on and brings some pride back to the AAA.
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Gotta go with your picks Mr. Direct. Mitty's guard play is their achilles heel in their battle with Sheldon.
Scores 3/14/17
The Monarchs and Wildcats seasons are over:
Mitty loses @ Sheldon 43-56.
SI loses to Mission at home 54-64.
St. Francis is the last WCAL team standing. They defeated Del Oro 75-57 and will head on the road for the NorCal D2 title and take on a red hot Moreau Catholic squad who's on a 20 game winning streak.
The Monarchs and Wildcats seasons are over:
Mitty loses @ Sheldon 43-56.
SI loses to Mission at home 54-64.
St. Francis is the last WCAL team standing. They defeated Del Oro 75-57 and will head on the road for the NorCal D2 title and take on a red hot Moreau Catholic squad who's on a 20 game winning streak.
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