SBLive's Central Section Top 10 boys basketball rankings: These are not computer selections; St. Joseph, not Clovis West, at No. 1
With the regular season now complete it’s time to turn our attention to playoffs, more commonly known as Phase 3.
And of course, with playoff seedings there comes controversy.
St. Joseph from Santa Maria, our No. 1 team the entire season, was awarded the No. 3 seed due to their rankings on MaxPreps, the criteria used by the Central Section.
The Knights lost in last year’s Central Section Open Division title game on the road at Clovis West 72-63 in OT. Sophomore sensation Tounde Yessoufou leads the team at 26 ppg this season and is a load to guard at 6-foot-5.
Clovis West and Clovis North are seeded No. 1 and 2 and split their two games with each other and tied for a Tri-River Athletic Conference title. They will each receive a bye in the 12-team Division 1 playoffs and are led by Jackson Young and Jordan Espinosa respectively.
Our No. 4 team, San Joaquin Memorial was seeded 6th in the playoffs and pose a dangerous threat with 6-foot-7 senior Mike Davis Jr and guard Armari Carraway.
Defending D1 champion Bakersfield Christian, despite losing to unranked Independence last week, has the pieces in place to make a run with Bentley Waller and Gabe Gutierrez.
Our No. 5 team Centennial received the No. 4 seed led by Rippen Gill and No. 7 Stockdale boasts a strong senior class led by Jace Boston.
Mission Prep, Bullard and Lemoore round out the section’s Top 10. The Tigers are the lone team not in D1 and were seeded No. 1 in D2.
1. St. Joseph (23-6)
Last week: 1.
Playoff seeding: No. 3 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Arroyo Grande 77-49, Atascadero 92-42
Next game: Friday, winner of San Joaquin Memorial and Clovis East
2. Clovis West (25-2)
Last week: 2.
Playoff seeding: No. 1 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Central 92-48, Clovis East 81-76
Next game: Friday, winner of Bullard and Mission Prep
3. Clovis North (23-6)
Last week: 3.
Playoff seed: No. 3 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Central 71-49, Buchanan 68-40
Next game: Friday, winner of Bakersfield and Sanger
4. San Joaquin Memorial (20-8)
Last week: 4.
Playoff seed: No. 6 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Madera 94-21, Bullard 83-41
Next game: Wednesday vs Clovis East (18-11)
5. Centennial (21-4)
Last week: 6.
Playoff seeding: No. 4 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Garces 55-40, Frontier 67-38
Next game: Friday, winner of Stockdale and Edison on Friday
6. Bakersfield Christian (20-8)
Last week: 5.
Playoff seed: No. 7 in D1
Results (1-1): Beat Highland 75-62, lost to Independence 66-64
Next game: Wednesday vs Sanger (18-10)
7. Stockdale (25-3)
Last week: 7.
Playoff seed: No. 5 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Independence 71-49, Garces 72-64
Next game: Wednesday vs Edison (16-13)
8. Mission Prep (18-8)
Last week: 8.
Playoff seed: No. 8 in D1
Results (2-0): Beat Lompoc 92-61, Arroyo Grande 64-28
Next game: Wednesday vs Bullard (18-11)
9. Bullard (18-11)
Last week: No. 9
Playoff seed: No. 9 in D1
Results (1-1): Beat Edison 66-48; lost to San Joaquin Memorial 83-41
Next game: Wednesday at Mission Prep (18-8)
10. Lemoore (21-6)
Last week: 10.
Playoff seed: No. 1 in D2
Results (2-0): Beat Tulare Western 59-53, Hanford 67-55
Next game: Wednesday vs Sunnyside (16-7)
