The state finals of high school basketball action in the State of California are upon us with a loaded slate of six boys basketball games on Friday and Saturday at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
Saturday’s lineup is headlined by SoCal Open Division champion Sierra Canyon and four-star Cassius Stanley.
Saturday’s slate features a trio of CIF Southern Section teams and three teams from different sections in the North.
In the Division IV game, Immanuel of Reedley faces Ribet Academy of Los Angeles. The Division II game features Campolindo of Moraga and Colony of Ontario. Lastly, the 8:00 Open Division tip is between Sheldon of Sacramento and Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth.
Division IV: Immanuel vs. Ribet Academy at 12 noon
Immanuel makes its first trip to the state final. Coach Chris Woods and the Eagles are champions of the Central Sequoia League and CIF Central Section Division 3.
Immanuel (26-8) has four double-figure scorers, led by 6’0 senior leading scorer Jordan Rodriguez, who averages 18.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and a team high 4.2 assists and 2.5 steals. 6’4 sophomore Winston Williams averages 14.5 points and 10.3 rebounds while 6’6 senior Kaleb Daglish averages 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds. 6’2 sophomore Shawn Rodgers averages 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Ribet Academy makes its first trip to the state final since its Division V win in 1991. The Fighting Frogs are 26-3 and champions of the Harbor League and CIF Southern Section Division 4A. Ribet’s last loss was on December 21st.
The Pick: Immanuel
Division II: Campolindo vs. Colony at 4:00 p.m.
A pair of teams looking for their first state title are in the Division II final.
Campolindo is 26-7 and 0-1 in the state finals. They are champions of the Diablo-Foothill League and were runner-up in the CIF North Coast Section Division 3 final to previously nationally ranked Salesian College Preparatory.
Campolindo has won four straight games since that loss to Salesian. The Cougars are led by senior David Ahazie and their sibling duo of junior Carter Mahaney and freshman Aidan Mahaney. Ahazie leads the team in scoring with 16.8 points and steals with 1.4, Aidan averages 15.7 points and 3.8 rebounds, while Carter averages 13.3 points and a team high 3.9 assists.
Colony heads to Sacramento in its first state title appearance. Jerry De Fabiis’ Titans are 31-5 and the champions of both the Palomares League and also of CIF Southern Section Division 2A.
Colony is led by its senior 6’3 guard Sedrick Altman, who committed to Pepperdine University earlier in the winter.
The Pick: Campolindo
Open Division: Sheldon vs. Sierra Canyon at 8:00 p.m.
This is a rematch of last year’s state final but it has new storylines and new players.
Sheldon reloaded in the front court with 6’11 Long Beach State signee Joshua Morgan and leading scorer 6’8 four-star junior Marcus Bagley, who spent his freshman year last season at Sierra Canyon.
That front court duo was added to a talented roster of returnees that is 24-10 with backcourt mates Kaito Williams, Justin Nguyen, and Xavion Brown.
Sierra Canyon is 31-3 and are the reigning Open Division champions. The Trailblazers return to the state final with their core from last year’s win. That returning core includes Cassius Stanley, Vanderbilt signee Scotty Pippen Jr., Kenyon Martin Jr., L Simpson, and junior Terren Frank.
In addition, they brought in 7’0 Arizona signee Christian Koloko and enrolled 6’4 freshman UCLA commit Amari Bailey. Stanley and Simpson are both 2-0 in the state finals with their first win as freshmen with Harvard-Westlake.
This will be an exciting game full of Division 1 players and athleticism.
The Pick: Sierra Canyon
The official 52-page program for the finals is available to view online at
http://www.cifstate.org/sports/basketball/2019_State_Basketball_Program.pdf
