2019-20 WCAL Hoops Wrap Up/2020-21 Outlook

[Penguin77]

• #10 DeAnza 65 @ #7 St. Francis 56
  • A slight upset, but not surprised as DeAnza is battle tested coming from the tough TCAL. Can anyone who may have been at the game share your comments ? This young Lancer squad will be making some noise next season.

SFHS person here (full disclosure: parent of player). I rarely comment but will upon request, apparently. Good matchup. The Dons played tough aggressive D and shot well. SFHS defense and rebounding was not at its best, gave up a number of pretty easy buckets inside/weak side. Game was tied at half, then Dons got up a little bit and SFHS struggled to get consistent stops. Still close and good game most of the way until kinda fell apart in the very last minute or 2 with some frantic TOs back and forth.

On a frivolous note, De Anza cheer team traveled with them and brought a lot of energy and fun to the gym.

 

[HSWIZARD73]

Man this Board is dead after the opening games of Norcals. That was probably Riordan's most complete effort I have seen this year from beginning to end on both sides of the floor. Hats off to their coaching staff, as offensively their zone offense looked to be more active rather than the rudimentary version they showed in League and CCS. Was it perfect? No, definitely a work in progress, but when you get 20+ from Riny (sp?) or any other 3rd scorer, Riordan is going to be a tough out. Like to see more from the baseline and short corner, but Bryce and Jelani got where they wanted attacking the zone and not settling for last second shots from, beyond the arc. Did well driving and distributing and their bigs caught and finished for a change. Defensively, after a some early open looks from 3, Riordan locked in. They still played man the whole way, not wavering from the success that built their lead, but were locked in for the most part. Moving forward a change in pace and showing zone or full court pressure to mix it up could prove even more beneficial vs a stronger team. Again, I'll give credit when credit is due, unlike some top seeds last night, this coaching staff had the kids ready to play and looked all the part of a #1 seed. Next stop Thursday vs Vanden. With the Green Machine and MA winner lurking around the corner on Saturday night. On a side note, where the hell was the student body. If not for the band, it was an anemic showing. Its the Norcals, win or go home! Hope the band keeps showing up if thats the case......

Definitely a huge statement game. Modesto Christian is no push over, and Riordan blew them out. If that momentum continues they will be hard to beat to the end. And as I said on a previous post a Riordan De La game is very possible. That would be a fun game to watch.

 

[Renard Monroe]

Great to see a great team victory for Riordan. Good job by the coaching staff and the players with the adjustments made and focus on execution on both ends of the floor. Given that these 2 teams have met before, I thought this game could go down to the wire based on how Riordan has played the past few weeks. It's always hard playing a

My wife is a graduate of De Anza and it just so happens we bought our house ironically down the street from there. And now my son is 5, I was like hey maybe I can help the program out and do some coaching and wherever else they may need. Sent a email, never heard back. Guess they didn’t need me at all. Glad they are on a roll.

Big Reg is a friend of mine. Al Attles son also coached with Reg. He has been building that program up piece by piece. If I knew you I would introduce you but...anyways I know for sure Big Reg loves volunteers and help and has no ego in it. He has a couple of kids I coached for a while on the team...one soph and one junior. Their football team did good this year as well.

 

[iamgearyblvd]

Definitely a huge statement game. Modesto Christian is no push over, and Riordan blew them out. If that momentum continues they will be hard to beat to the end. And as I said on a previous post a Riordan De La game is very possible. That would be a fun game to watch.

Lets just wash rinse repeat this: When Riordan dictates the tempo of the game (high scoring/up and down), their win % is really good. When the other team dictates the tempo of the game (low scoring, fewer possessions), win % not so great. DLS on saturday is looming. Are we ready for a 42-37 barn-burner???

 

[Renard Monroe]

Lets just wash rinse repeat this: When Riordan dictates the tempo of the game (high scoring/up and down), their win % is really good. When the other team dictates the tempo of the game (low scoring, fewer possessions), win % not so great. DLS on saturday is looming. Are we ready for a 42-37 barn-burner???

Riordan has to play Vanden first who won their league and has a player of the year in Teo on it with a bunch a good athletes. One game at a time...lol...but I agree!

 

[RJ223]

Sounds like Riordan is locked in on all levels, coaches & players. Thats trouble for everyone else. Vanden is a HOT team with all road wins in the post season. I highly doubt Riordan loses at home especially with everyone locked in. Those D1 guards wont let it happen.

 

[HSWIZARD73]

Big Reg is a friend of mine. Al Attles son also coached with Reg. He has been building that program up piece by piece. If I knew you I would introduce you but...anyways I know for sure Big Reg loves volunteers and help and has no ego in it. He has a couple of kids I coached for a while on the team...one soph and one junior. Their football team did good this year as well.

It’s all good. I emailed the AD. Just to offer if they needed anything. Ironically life took a little twist with family, so it would be difficult to fulfill a role now, but I am glad they are making noise. It’s good to see schools like that plug away and they are sure on a good roll at the moment. Big game next, I think they can pull it out myself. Would be a huge win.

 

[jordan24]

Wow! Vanden put up 101 points last night! In a NorCal regional and on the road! Does anyone have any intel on Vanden? I have to admit, I am not familiar with this team.
Tomorrow night could be a barn burner at the Crusader Forum.

 

[ayalar09]

Wow! Vanden put up 101 points last night! In a NorCal regional and on the road! Does anyone have any intel on Vanden? I have to admit, I am not familiar with this team.
Tomorrow night could be a barn burner at the Crusader Forum.

Stuart Hall player them last year, and much to my surprise beat them by 29 points. It was one of those games where Vanden played very poor, and The Hall played out of their minds. Still Vanden is a very good team and has been for awhile.

Got a chance to see them this year against Sacramento. Seemed a little bit bigger than the previous year with lots of athletes. Lots of dunks. They are a team you have to get on early, because they are capable of scoring in bunches.

Should be one heck of a Matchup and a little bit of a drive for those Vanden boys.

 

[Renard Monroe]

Wow! Vanden put up 101 points last night! In a NorCal regional and on the road! Does anyone have any intel on Vanden? I have to admit, I am not familiar with this team.
Tomorrow night could be a barn burner at the Crusader Forum.

Vanden is a formidable opponent. Teo played with Bryce this past summer with Team Lillard. He can fill it up in bunches. Takai Hardee is simply a freak Athlete at 6'6 that jumps out the gym! Really fast guards that penetrate and shoot the 3 well. Coach Mike is a good coach that knows his team well and utilizes their strengths. A lot of dribble drive offense. They play about 7 to 8 guys . Riordan will need to get back on Defense , contest shots and rebound.

 

[ayalar09]

It's crazy with CIF how its one day off...and then right back at it tomorrow!

 

[CityVibesII]

Vanden was a lock (too) 3 years ago. Then came along the Mission Bears!

 

[jordan24]

Vanden is a formidable opponent. Teo played with Bryce this past summer with Team Lillard. He can fill it up in bunches. Takai Hardee is simply a freak Athlete at 6'6 that jumps out the gym! Really fast guards that penetrate and shoot the 3 well. Coach Mike is a good coach that knows his team well and utilizes their strengths. A lot of dribble drive offense. They play about 7 to 8 guys . Riordan will need to get back on Defense , contest shots and rebound.

Would you say show different looks on D? Man, Half-court trap, Full court , 2-3? 3-2? 1-2-2? 1-3-1? zone?

 

[Renard Monroe]

Would you say show different looks on D? Man, Half-court trap, Full court , 2-3? 3-2? 1-2-2? 1-3-1? zone?

I know that Vanden will try to speed us up which shouldn't effect our two seasoned guards. They will play man and full court press. Their big isn't the best at stepping out shooting in which that is what Seck struggles with. Riordan will be fine in their man to man if they let Seck sit back and control the paint but in doing so when he comes over to alter and block shots someone must block out Secks man and not allow him to get offensive putbacks . I have personally thought we should implement more defensive schemes to our arsenal as we have so much length to bother teams. It's also very difficult for players like Bryce and Jelani to play man to man defense as many minutes as those two play and be at your optimum. Last Season in the first St. IGNATIUS game, I left that contest really excited and impressed with the direction of game planning. In that game we played man, we played a match up zone, we played a triangle & 2, we kept St. Ignatius guessing which didn't allow them to get comfortable. I am hoping with the Win and Advance finality of things now that we implement some different strategies to throw teams off every now and then. I stated before I would shock the system of teams by sometimes- showing a zone but after two passes hop into man defense, show a man defense and hop into a zone. Half court trap after time outs , switch up the defense after timeouts when opposing teams are drawing up plays, Full court press after made free throws, falling back into man or zone.
Against Vanden we really only have one match up problem and that's with Teo. He is 6'5 and can handle it pretty well , attack the rim and shoot. Too fast for us to put a big on him so we should matchup a long guard like Riiny or Dom and help them.
I witnessed our coaching staff make some much needed adjustments last game out and look what happened. Our starters didn't have to play in the 4th quarter. There will need to be in game adjustments and halftime adjustments in the playoffs. We can't be afraid to break it out and make sure we are practicing these adjustments as well as end of quarter and end of game situations to be prepared. Down 1, up 2, tied, with the ball, without the ball, What we want , what we don't want, etc...win and advance!

 

[jordan24]

I know that Vanden will try to speed us up which shouldn't effect our two seasoned guards. They will play man and full court press. Their big isn't the best at stepping out shooting in which that is what Seck struggles with. Riordan will be fine in their man to man if they let Seck sit back and control the paint but in doing so when he comes over to alter and block shots someone must block out Secks man and not allow him to get offensive putbacks . I have personally thought we should implement more defensive schemes to our arsenal as we have so much length to bother teams. It's also very difficult for players like Bryce and Jelani to play man to man defense as many minutes as those two play and be at your optimum. Last Season in the first St. IGNATIUS game, I left that contest really excited and impressed with the direction of game planning. In that game we played man, we played a match up zone, we played a triangle & 2, we kept St. Ignatius guessing which didn't allow them to get comfortable. I am hoping with the Win and Advance finality of things now that we implement some different strategies to throw teams off every now and then. I stated before I would shock the system of teams by sometimes- showing a zone but after two passes hop into man defense, show a man defense and hop into a zone. Half court trap after time outs , switch up the defense after timeouts when opposing teams are drawing up plays, Full court press after made free throws, falling back into man or zone.
Against Vanden we really only have one match up problem and that's with Teo. He is 6'5 and can handle it pretty well , attack the rim and shoot. Too fast for us to put a big on him so we should matchup a long guard like Riiny or Dom and help them.
I witnessed our coaching staff make some much needed adjustments last game out and look what happened. Our starters didn't have to play in the 4th quarter. There will need to be in game adjustments and halftime adjustments in the playoffs. We can't be afraid to break it out and make sure we are practicing these adjustments as well as end of quarter and end of game situations to be prepared. Down 1, up 2, tied, with the ball, without the ball, What we want , what we don't want, etc...win and advance!

Good stuff, Coach! I totally agree. Pull out all the stops! There's no tomorrow! Sub rotation was good last night as MC's big #23 seemed to tire by the looks of his 3pt shot coming up short as the game progressed. Really pleased to see Riiny's focus on D as well as just letting the game come to him on offense. He wasn't just hoisting up 3's once he got the ball. He appeared to slow his game down and he was also rewarded by Bryce and Je'Lani looking for him ( as well as Rob and Mor). Really looking forward to this matchup. Appears to be lots of ballers on the court tomorrow!

 

[SFcityfan]

I will wait to make comment if Riordan gets to play past game 2. Too be honest Riordan is winning games they should win.

Not sure why or where the praise is coming from...Oh this is the CYO board where everyone gets a trophy

 

[Renard Monroe]

Good stuff, Coach! I totally agree. Pull out all the stops! There's no tomorrow! Sub rotation was good last night as MC's big #23 seemed to tire by the looks of his 3pt shot coming up short as the game progressed. Really pleased to see Riiny's focus on D as well as just letting the game come to him on offense. He wasn't just hoisting up 3's once he got the ball. He appeared to slow his game down and he was also rewarded by Bryce and Je'Lani looking for him ( as well as Rob and Mor). Really looking forward to this matchup. Appears to be lots of ballers on the court tomorrow!

For Riiny , Chan and Seck their best basketball is in front of them for sure. A lot of untapped potential that is right there for them. Those three make basketball mistakes that will improve with time and repetition. Seck blocks shot out of bounds with two hands in which he could easily just grab out the air or block inbounds that could give Riordan break opportunities. Riiny is one player that thrives against zone defenses because zones want you to shoot jump shots and find open gaps. Riiny is a good spot up shooter with size that you can easily find. It was good to see the team understand their roles when a win was needed. Last night I witnessed Riiny get a rebound and find a guard and then run his lane and we actually got a layup for Jelani from Bryce. A few weeks ago Riiny would have got that rebound and took off dribbling. That showed growth and understanding, which I pointed out after the St. Francis loss. There was no finger pointing, I saw the kids coming together. It wasnt perfect last night but they played together and hard. I do not know if we will run the table but atleast now we all can feel like they are together, on the same page and win or lose they will fight with a purpose. If everyone stays in the car it should be a fun ride to the finish .

 

[ankleassassin]

Stuart Hall player them last year, and much to my surprise beat them by 29 points. It was one of those games where Vanden played very poor, and The Hall played out of their minds. Still Vanden is a very good team and has been for awhile.

Got a chance to see them this year against Sacramento. Seemed a little bit bigger than the previous year with lots of athletes. Lots of dunks. They are a team you have to get on early, because they are capable of scoring in bunches.

Should be one heck of a Matchup and a little bit of a drive for those Vanden boys.

people make that drive from fairfield to the city everyday for work... plus they been on the road all playoffs because of the section punishing the kids for something they had no control over.

 

[ankleassassin]

Wow! Vanden put up 101 points last night! In a NorCal regional and on the road! Does anyone have any intel on Vanden? I have to admit, I am not familiar with this team.
Tomorrow night could be a barn burner at the Crusader Forum.

they gon run brotha after brotha at you...

 

[ankleassassin]

It's crazy with CIF how its one day off...and then right back at it tomorrow!

these are teens... you play all day everyday... they dont tire.

 

[ankleassassin]

Vanden was a lock (too) 3 years ago. Then came along the Mission Bears!

what time they play tomorrow

 

[ankleassassin]

Burris will shut Jalen Lewis Down...Bhandal will go off...as will Mitchell.....I see Mitty beating O'Dowd 55-50

BRUH... YOU JUST SAID THE HAWKS FIXTA DRAFT HIM.. NOW HE GETTING SHUT DOWN BY A WCC PLAYER?

 

[jordan24]

what time they play tomorrow

7pm.

 

[ayalar09]

BRUH... YOU JUST SAID THE HAWKS FIXTA DRAFT HIM.. NOW HE GETTING SHUT DOWN BY A WCC PLAYER?

One is a Freshman...One is a Junior who has played on the big stage before for the Hall.

Burris’ size will be tough on Lewis.

 

[HSWIZARD73]

BRUH... YOU JUST SAID THE HAWKS FIXTA DRAFT HIM.. NOW HE GETTING SHUT DOWN BY A WCC PLAYER?

I asked the same question on one of the threads. He has dude as the number 1 pick yet some guy from Mitty is gonna shut him down. And great point a WCC guy.

 

[ankleassassin]

7pm.

Mission?

 

[ankleassassin]

One is a Freshman...One is a Junior who has played on the big stage before for the Hall.

Burris’ size will be tough on Lewis.

what big stage? Seton Hall?

 

[jordan24]

Mission?

Vanden @ Riordan

 

[ankleassassin]

Vanden @ Riordan

it was a joke about mission

 

[jordan24]

Bells up 38-30 over Dublin at the Half

 

[Renard Monroe]

Bells up 38-30 over Dublin at the Half

Yeah I decided to come watch. Anthony Roy and Jalen Pierce in foul trouble in the first half for Dublin. The coaches kid is playing well for Dublin with 13 points and Devon Jackson. Denker and Elam playing well for the Bells in actuality the Bells are playing good team ball. Should be a good second half.

 

[jordan24]

73-69 Dublin. The Gaels come back after trailing at halftime to defeat Bellarmine. Dublin moves on to Sacramento to take on Sheldon. Congrats on a good season Bellarmine.

 

[Renard Monroe]

73-69 Dublin. The Gaels come back after trailing at halftime to defeat Bellarmine. Dublin moves on to Sacramento to take on Sheldon. Congrats on a good season Bellarmine.

Anthony Roy clutch plays down the stretch.

 

[jordan24]

WCAL/NorCal Wednesday Night Result/Thursday Games
Open Division Quarterfinal - Wednesday March 4th

• #5 Bellarmine 69 @ #4 Dublin 73
  • Third quarter woes doomed the Bells as in the CCS Open game last weekend. Dublin erased an 8-point halftime deficit and guts out the win in the closing minutes. Anthony Roy exploded for almost all of his points in the second half in spite of being in foul trouble. 4 Bells in double digits, but it was not enough. Congrats Bells on a very good season!

NorCal Div I Quarterfinal - Thursday March 5th - 7pm

• #9 Vanden @ #1 Archbishop Riordan
  • Crusaders face a long, fast and athletic Vanden Vikings squad. The SJS DIII Champions come off an upset road win last Tues night putting up 101 points on Clovis West. Vanden is led by its 6-5 WF Teiano Hardee. He's teamed up with a 6-6 soph big and quick slashing guards. Riordan will need to continue its focus on defending, rebounding and winning the 50-50 battle. Coach Curtin going to a traditional 2-guard, 2 forwards and center lineup played huge dividends in allowing Bryce and Jelani more space to either attack or pick apart the zone and man defenses it faced. Crusader bigs in particular SF Riiny and PF Rob Vaihola were the benefactor of this allowing post ups, open shots and/or opportunities to slash to the hole. Mor's length will be needed to minimize the Vikings slashing to the bucket. Help/weakside defense will be key to keep putback shots to a minimum. Question of the night: Will Riordan run with the Vikings? See you at the Crusader Forum!

Norcal Div III Quarterfinal - Thursday March 5th

• #5 Sacred Heart Cathedral @ #4 St. Mary's-Albany
  • SHC travels across the Bay Bridge and meets up with a coach very familiar with the Irish in former Riordan HC Rich Buckner. Coach Buck has his Panthers playing well after doing well in the TCAL. SHC looks to continue its fast-paced 3point shooting offense. Should be a close contest.
• #7 Carmel @ #2 St. Ignatius
  • SI survives against Bullard and now faces Carmel. The other "Padres" come in with an impressive 24-5 record, but don't let SI's 12-16 record fool you as they have earned the #2 seed playing in the tough WCAL and improving each week.

Saturday March 7th Open Division Semi-Final

• #3 Bishop O'Dowd @ #2 Mitty - 7pm
  • The Dragons, fresh off their NCS Open Title win over Dublin, travel to San Jose to meet the CCS Open Champions, Monarchs. Great matchup in store with Mitty's Burris vs Cal-bound Monty Bowser. Dragon Super Frosh big Jalen Lewis most likely draws breakout Monarch junior big Bhandal. Both teams appear evenly matched with size, skill and excellent coaching by veterans Kennedy and Richie. Of all these teams' successes, I do not recall if they have met in the past decade? Another must-see game!

 

[OpenRun]

Is the game Riordan game being streamed? Any updates?

 

[TurtleLoveCA]

Vanden leads 35-32 HT. Bryce has 19

 

[OpenRun]

Vanden leads 35-32 HT. Bryce has 19

Please keep them coming

 

[TurtleLoveCA]

I'm posting Riordan v Vanden updates in NorCal QuarterFinal thread. Too many posts here

 

[Irish_Cheers]

Carmel beat SI 59-42.

 

[jordan24]

WCAL/NorCal Wed/Thursday Results
Open Division Quarterfinal - Wednesday March 4th

• #5 Bellarmine 69 @ #4 Dublin 73
  • Third quarter woes doomed the Bells as in the CCS Open game last weekend. Dublin erased an 8-point halftime deficit and guts out the win in the closing minutes. Anthony Roy exploded for almost all of his points in the second half in spite of being in foul trouble. 4 Bells in double digits, but it was not enough. Congrats Bells on a very good season!

NorCal Div I Quarterfinal - Thursday March 5th

• #9 Vanden 62 @ #1 Archbishop Riordan 76
  • This game did not disappoint! First of all, Vanden laid it all on the court, despite losing its top player Teo Hardee to a broken hand he suffered in the first half. Riordan came out strong in the opening minutes. Vanden came back after Riordan's first assault and took the lead back hitting 3 point shots, slashing drives, sheer hustle put backs and nailing its FTs ending the half with a 3 point lead. Despite Hardee being out, the Vikings went to a 2-3 zone and held a solid 6-point lead with 2min to go in the 3rd. Riordan's man D then tightened up and its offense exploded off its D and movement for a 22-0 run up to 4 min to go in the game. Riordan then managed the clock and hit necessary FTs to win going away. This game was close throughout and you could feel the intensity in the Crusader Forum. Not the prettiest game compared to Tuesday night, but give credit to the talented Vikings for pushing the tempo and forcing the Crusaders to switch on their dribble penetration and kick outs. Bryce had a huge game as the Vikings were playing up tight on him and Bryce simply blowing by his defender for some strong finishes at the bucket. Je'Lani played great D and feeding his teammates including the hot hand of Monroe. Bigs did a good job, especially in the 2nd half making Vanden earn any shots in the key. Good games by Rob V., Mor, and Chan. Riiny cooled down from Tuesday night, but hit a clinching 3 late in the game. Great turnout by the Vanden fans with the Riordan crowd notching it up in the second half. Gotta give credit to the Riordan staff in controlling the students on the floor during the on-court altercation and for the Crusaders and Vikings players holding each other back to eliminate any possible player ejections. Disappointed to not see the band as I understand they have a competition this weekend, but really liked the live DJ as it got the students fired up! Next up: The mighty Spartans of De La Salle Saturday night at the Forum.

Norcal Div III Quarterfinal - Thursday March 5th

• #5 Sacred Heart Cathedral 64 @ #4 St. Mary's-Albany 68
  • Coach Buck's Panthers hold on to defeat the Irish. Congrats SHC on a good season!
• #7 Carmel 59 @ #2 St. Ignatius 52
  • Upset of the night, as many were anticipating a possible SHC-SI DIII NorCal title matchup. From the reports I heard, Carmel was on fire and it was enough to hold off the late charge by the 'Cats. SI will be a team to reckon with next year.

Saturday March 7th Open Division Semi-Final

• #3 Bishop O'Dowd @ #2 Mitty - 8pm
  • The Dragons, fresh off their NCS Open Title win over Dublin, travel to San Jose to meet the CCS Open Champions, Monarchs. Great matchup in store with Mitty's Burris vs Cal-bound Monty Bowser. Dragon Super Frosh big Jalen Lewis most likely draws breakout Monarch junior big Bhandal. Both teams appear evenly matched with size, skill and excellent coaching by veterans Kennedy and Richie. Of all these teams' successes, I do not recall if they have met in the past decade? Another must-see game! NOTE TO DRAGON FANS: Get there early as I believe there's a girls game before. You will also be directed to sit upstairs in the opposite side bleachers as the main bleachers are reserved for Mitty.

Saturday March 7th Division I Semifinal

• #4 De La Salle @ #1 Archbishop Riordan (Crusader Forum - 6pm)
  • One of the DI semi-finals everyone is looking forward to see! (in addition to Salesian-Campo semi!). The Spartans are very WCAL-like. They come from a strong league with the likes of Dublin, DV and Monte Vista, play stifling D, are well-coached and have some very young talented players in 6-6 super soph Chris Bunch, 6-4 Jeremiah Dargan and 6-6 240 lb post Noah Clifford. Riordan will need to rely on its senior guards for its leadership, scoring and finding their open teammates. All hands on deck for the Riordan bigs in boxing out and rebounding. Will be interesting if DLS goes to a 2-3 zone. I believe they play strictly man D. Who's going?!? Who do you like?!?