“All roads go through Corona Centennial.”
That’s the statement from Sherman Oaks Notre Dame basketball coach Matt Sargeant and probably the sentiment of every coach trying to win the eight-team Southern Section Open Division playoffs after the bracket was released Sunday.
Centennial (25-3) is the two-time defending champion and received the No. 1 seed for the tournament, which will be broken into four-team pools, with the pool winners meeting Feb. 25 at the Honda Center.
“Our reward for being No. 1 is to play two Mission League teams,” Huskies coach Josh Giles said.
The Huskies will open at home Friday with a fan favorite game that should sell out in seconds — vs. No. 8 seed Chatsworth Sierra Canyon. Then there’s home games against No. 5 Notre Dame and No. 4 Torrance Bishop Montgomery.
Studio City Harvard-Westlake (28-1) was ranked No. 1 in every coaches’ poll since Jan. 9 but was given the No. 2 seed. The Wolverines host No. 7 Playa del Rey St. Bernard on Friday in their pool opener, then have games against No. 6 Bellflower St. John Bosco and No. 3 Santa Clarita West Ranch.
Much intrigue will be focused on Sierra Canyon, which lost three games in the last two weeks to Mission League rivals Harvard-Westlake and Notre Dame after being considered one of the nation’s top teams before the season. Bronny James returned from a knee injury but the status of Isaiah Elohim, another standout suffering from an ankle injury, is uncertain. The Trailblazers were the last team in. Otherwise, they would have been the No. 1 seed in Division 1, which went to Etiwanda.
The girls’ eight-team Open Division tournament revolves around No. 1-seeded Sierra Canyon (26-0) and No. 2 Etiwanda (26-2). It’s as if their roles have been reversed from last season when Etiwanda was unbeaten and defeated Sierra Canyon in the final. The Trailblazers haven’t lost since, winning the regional and state titles last spring before going unbeaten in the regular season behind the nation’s No. 1 player, Juju Watkins.
“They are top to bottom the best team I’ve seen in a long time,” Etiwanda coach Stan Delus said.
If Sierra Canyon and Etiwanda can make it through their pools, they would meet Feb. 25 at Honda Center.
Sierra Canyon hosts No. 8 Bishop Montgomery on Saturday, followed by games against No. 5 Ontario Christian and No. 4 Newport Beach Sage Hill. Etiwanda hosts No. 7 Corona Santiago, then plays No. 6 Windward and No. 3 Santa Ana Mater Dei.
In the Division 1 boys’ playoffs, Santa Ana Mater Dei is seeded No. 2 behind Etiwanda. It’s the first time in 10 seasons the Monarchs failed to make the Open Division.
