CCS public schools

[ClayK]

So Presentation had a tougher preseason schedule than SI -- and also played in a tougher bracket in the Jamboree.

No blame on SI, as coaches have to decide what's best for their program, but consider this: If a coach is looking at a league schedule where she (is this positive, PayTC?) will be .500 or below, maybe it makes it more fun for the girls to get some wins and have success. Postseason might be a factor, but the main thing is for the players to have a positive experience, and it's hard to do that with a difficult preseason schedule (say 5-9) and a difficult league schedule (say 4-8). A coach can't control the league schedule, obviously, so to avoid that 9-17 season, you have to make things easier in preseason.

 

[oldblueyes]

Sequoia- Hey maybe jitters got involved - Quad vs. Woodside like the purple in that one! This is all a process - These two Sequoia coaches should be credited with the Quads that we have today! Before Steve and Mike came on the scene girls hoops was played in front of just girls hoops fans - now we get to enjoy the 6:30 match up which many times is better than the boys game! It's time to play the bump and grind zone - sorry switch and slide match-up nightmare - Rossi it's coming out Fri night baby!

 

[colhenrylives]

Sequoia- Hey maybe jitters got involved - Quad vs. Woodside like the purple in that one! This is all a process - These two Sequoia coaches should be credited with the Quads that we have today! Before Steve and Mike came on the scene girls hoops was played in front of just girls hoops fans - now we get to enjoy the 6:30 match up which many times is better than the boys game! It's time to play the bump and grind zone - sorry switch and slide match-up nightmare - Rossi it's coming out Fri night baby!

Credit the Panthers with a nice comeback after being down by as many as 16 in the third period. It was a one-possession contest at the end. Cherokees managed to squeeze by in this one.

 

[ClayK]

It doesn't matter how many -- it's whether.

 

[oldblueyes]

I tip my hat to coach Ditto - Panthers were not on my radar - Did The Transfers play what kind of impact on game?

 

[colhenrylives]

I tip my hat to coach Ditto - Panthers were not on my radar - Did The Transfers play what kind of impact on game?

Unsure. Not there. Second-hand information late Wednesday. But, hey, a W is a W.

 

[colhenrylives]

Question: Currently, what's the strongest public school league in CCS? There doesn't appear to be much overall strength in Santa Cruz/Monterey. The 17-school PAL could make a decent case for best public in section. DeAnza? Not sure today. Thoughts?

 

[colhenrylives]

As of 8 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 20, the subjective top-ten-plus-one rankings for CCS public schools look like this:

1. Menlo-Atherton, 10-6
2. Aptos, 14-3
3. South SF, 11-3
4. Gunderson, 14-2
5. Aragon, 14-3
6. Carlmont, 14-3
7. Mills, 11-6
8. Saratoga, 13-4
9. Seaside, 13-3
10. North Salinas, 11-6
11. Palo Alto, 11-5

 

[ClayK]

I sort of like South San Francisco at the top -- they beat Woodside Priory, which M-A lost to, and they have the best win of the top three, over Prairie of Washington.

But they're all pretty good teams, and the question is what NorCal division they'll wind up in. I would think they could go far in D3, and maybe D2, but it's possible one of them will be D1.

 

[colhenrylives]

A month from now, it appears likely that SSF (CIF Division III) and M-A (CIF Division I) will meet in the PAL tourney. Any debate should be settled then. The wildcard could well be Aragon (CIF Division II).

 

[alwayslearning]

Priory didn't have Tatiana Reese when ssf beat them.

 

[colhenrylives]

SSF has not beaten M-A for a very long time (they don't play each other every year). So, until the Warriors manage to defeat the Bears, the latter will be above the former in most lists. So we shall see. And maybe it will happen in February.

 

[colhenrylives]

... and, again, Aragon lurks...

 

[colhenrylives]

Priory didn't have Tatiana Reese when ssf beat them.

Did she play vs. M-A?

 

[alwayslearning]

My guess is Reese missed Heritage, SSF, and Marin Catholic games. They aren't beating anyone half way decent without Reese in the lineup. She is the one kid they can't afford to not have, she does it all for Priory.

 

[ClayK]

Reese did not play against Miramonte either ...

 

[AptosHoops]

She did play vs MA

 

[colhenrylives]

Good knowledge.

 

[colhenrylives]

If Aptos wins the rest of its regular season tests, do they get popped into the CCS Open Division bracket?

 

[TurtleLoveCA]

Saw the Burlingirls play Cap Friday evening. They were horrible two years ago and not good last year, but Coach Joe Dito has done a terrific job with them and they're currently 11-6. Of their six losses, two were by 2 points and one was by 3.

BTW, Cap has a freshman, April Tuason #2 who is starting at the point. She is going to be really good. Very small, but by the time she's a senior, she will be one to watch.

 

[AptosHoops]

Col
I think Aptos has a couple of good losses (Dublin and St Francis) but it will depend on how MA and SSF finish. If one of the PAL schools can run the table I think they will make it due to strength of schedule.

Whatever school makes it gets the pleasure of the Monarch's though.
My revised CCS open participants.
1. Mitty
2. Pinewood
3. Eastside
4. SI
5. V.C.
6. SHC
7. Presentation
8. MA
I think it is a toss up for the 3 teams in the WCAL that are D2 outside of Mitty. I think VC, Pres and S.F. are all really similar and pick em's.

 

[ClayK]

What is the CCS rule for postseason qualification? I've heard it's either
.500 in league or .500 in preseason but not .500 vs. teams in your division. And it's not
.500+1?

 

[TurtleLoveCA]

.500 in EITHER Conference or non-conference play.

 

[OnBall8]

as of now Catherdral is under .500 in both. They will have to beat both Pres and Valley, I believe, to end the first round robin 3-2. Then would obviously have to duplicate that feat again in the second half of league. It could come down to the wire for them, possibly opening a spot for open

 

[colhenrylives]

Col
I think Aptos has a couple of good losses (Dublin and St Francis) but it will depend on how MA and SSF finish. If one of the PAL schools can run the table I think they will make it due to strength of schedule.

Whatever school makes it gets the pleasure of the Monarch's though.
My revised CCS open participants.
1. Mitty
2. Pinewood
3. Eastside
4. SI
5. V.C.
6. SHC
7. Presentation
8. MA
I think it is a toss up for the 3 teams in the WCAL that are D2 outside of Mitty. I think VC, Pres and S.F. are all really similar and pick em's.

The injection of the dominant private/parochials changes the entire thread. The whole point was to focus on the publics, who are relegated to an after-thought status in the CCS calculus.

 

[alwayslearning]

Aptos, SSF, MA are legit possibles for public schools in CCS

champ from SCVAL Palo Alto? will be discussed as well as champ from MBL Seaside? No way Gunderson or Sobrato will be in the discussion.

WBL could get 3 in Pwood plus 2nd and 3rd place finisher. Menlo has win vs SI early, but losses to MA and Woodside Priory recently. John Paye doesn't want to go Open anyways.

my guess is WCAL-5 WBL-2 and 1 public Aptos who will win out their league (5 pt loss to SF and 1 pt loss to Dublin, only big loss is to Presentation).

BUT, whatever public gets in open will play Mitty 1st round which sucks for them.

 

[ClayK]

But being in the Open means they are in NorCals for sure -- and could, by competitive equity, wind up playing in Division 3 or lower.

 

[AptosHoops]

I would be ok with a 50 (Could be more) point whooping by Mitty for an automatic spot in Norcal and a chance to play up to two more open teams.

I still think it will be either MA or SSF if they can run the table and win PAL tourney. Specifically the PAL South is a lot better than the SCCAL.

I think P.A., Seaside and Gunderson have no chance as they have all took large losses vs Aptos this year.

 

[OnBall8]

But being in the Open means they are in NorCals for sure -- and could, by competitive equity, wind up playing in Division 3 or lower.

Clay, also along the lines of competitive equity and how it relates to sections, what do you think about how the CCS will deal with their open div? Will they continue to limit each enrollment div to 3 teams? It mattered before because obviously you couldn't send more than 4 (3 open, 1 div champ) to NorCal's if none made the norcal open. But with competitive equity, and not knowing beforehand where the committee will place the teams, would they still have to bother with this rule? If all 6 WCAL teams are fit for CCS open, why not put them there regardless of enrollment...

 

[ClayK]

CCS is interesting, because it refuses to submit more than 18 teams to NorCals, and if a team is not submitted by its section, it cannot play in NorCals. So if a semifinal team in Division I was very good, and far better than the Division 4 runnerup, CCS would not submit the Division 1 team.

Next year, I understand that CCS will submit 20 names, but still, that means NCS and SJS will get more NorCal participants, relatively speaking. (They each have 24 automatic qualifiers, but there are 80 slots that are filled by qualifiers, meaning eight will be at-large teams nominated by their sections.)

 

[alwayslearning]

CCS needs to get in line with the other sections in Norcal.
Yes, it does water down the Norcal playoffs but it does allow for more hard working kids, coaches, fans to continue playing and getting that playoff experience. CCS needs to get rid of their division limits. If there are 5 or 6 deserving teams in a division then so be it.
and Section champions surely shouldn't be travelling to a semifinal loser of another section.

 

[ClayK]

On the one hand, I see the point CCS is trying to make: The seasons are too long, and we want to encourage kids to do other sports.

But the reality is that specialization rules the day, for better or worse, and few kids overlap a winter sport with a spring sport.

But on the other hand, I know from building (or trying to build) programs that there are steps along the way. One of those steps is making the section playoffs, and a big one is getting into NorCals. So we're the 16th seed and we lose by 40 -- the kids understand that, and they also understand that they've taken a step forward by advancing out of section play. The next step is to be competitive at NorCals and eventually maybe win a game.

That kind of progress is part and parcel of building a program that gives athletes a sense of accomplishment and a positive feeling about their time in high school sports.

 

[colhenrylives]

By far the most pressing and persistent issue in CCS is the vast gulf between the publics and the private/parochials. The WCAL and the WBAL are, arguably, the two best overall girls' basketball leagues in all of NorCal. That's top-to-bottom. Both are private/parochial setups. The publics, unfortunately, have been relegated to strictly also-ran status in the big picture. No CCS public school has played for a state title (or won one) since 1988. That drought is expected to continue in 2018. During this 30-year period, the private/parochials have captured 28 state crowns. They have finished as runners-up another 15 times. That's a grand total of 43 state championship appearances for the private/parochials vs. zero for the publics. Every public school player and coach in this section knows the grim reality of what they face. It's not pretty. This season, the situation is even further magnified by the top national ranking of unbeaten Archbishop Mitty. If anything, the gap here has become a yawning chasm. It has become the varsity vs. the JV's in the worst way possible. Is it hopeless? The statistics are not heartening.

 

[ClayK]

Well, look at it this way: Gunderson is rated 175th in the state by the MaxPreps' computer, meaning if Gunderson is on the list of teams submitted to the CIF committee by CCS, it would be at the bottom of the Division V bracket and should have a chance to do well. Seaside and Saratoga also could be D5 by competitive equity, so there's your chance.

 

[colhenrylives]

Thanks for the tentative display of hope. I will now head over to St. Naismith's Church of the Latter-Day Optimists and light a crude candle. Maybe fervent prayer can work a modern CCS hoops miracle.

 

[colhenrylives]

Well, look at it this way: Gunderson is rated 175th in the state by the MaxPreps' computer, meaning if Gunderson is on the list of teams submitted to the CIF committee by CCS, it would be at the bottom of the Division V bracket and should have a chance to do well. Seaside and Saratoga also could be D5 by competitive equity, so there's your chance.

There's a solution: Put all of the worst teams in the lowest possible bracket and let them slug it out among themselves. Someone has to emerge with a trophy at the end of the chaos. Let the games begin.

 

[colhenrylives]

A CCS public school historical footnote: Prior to Burlingame's 1988 CIF Division III state championship, Los Gatos played for CIF Division I titles on two occasions, in 1982 and 1984, losing both times. Those public school ballclubs, coached by John Mackey, were outstanding. The daughter of former NBA great Jerry Lucas was a roster member and key contributor. Suzie Meckenstock was the LG star back in those early days of CIF girls' state competition. In 1981, Lynbrook also secured a runner-up Division I finish at the state level. So, with a bow back to the 1980's, prior to the onset of the utter domination of CCS girls' hoops by the private/parochials beginning in the very early 1990s, the three most accomplished female CCS programs were Lynbrook, Los Gatos and Burlingame, with Steve Picchi's 36-2 Panthers as the sole CIF champion.

 

[BBallCoach73]

Let’s just call it like it is. Privates/Parochials are A different entity . If you need to list hometown in your guide you’re playing to an advantage.
Not begrudging em, but it’s at a competitive advantage.

 

[colhenrylives]

Let’s just call it like it is. Privates/Parochials are A different entity . If you need to list hometown in your guide you’re playing to an advantage.
Not begrudging em, but it’s at a competitive advantage.

Without question. Apples and oranges. Entirely different enchiladas.

 

[ClayK]

But not all private schools are the same. If you split publics and privates, now you need divisions for each, and all of a sudden you have 12 "state champions" each year, or more.

And then, no matter how good a public school might be in a given year, it will always be assumed that the private school champ is the better, and this the publics never get any credit, regardless of level of play.

Those reasons, among others, are why almost every state that once had a public/private split has gone back to just one pool of teams.