Like the girls, we go 50 deep with writeups and comments on all for the final version of this feature for the 2009 season. Key decisions made on what to do with D5 champ Windward plus Folsom and Newark Memorial.

By Ronnie Flores, Senior Editor

(Contributing: Mark Tennis, Steve Brand, Paul Muyskens, Harold Abend; Expanded out to 50 deep for the final ratings of the season; After all games played through CIF state finals; Previous rating in parentheses.)

1. Westchester (Los Angeles) 35-2 (1)
With its 49-31 victory over McClymonds of Oakland in the Div. I state title game, the Comets will finish ranked No. 1 in the state of California for the fifth time since the 1998 season. Coach Ed Azzam, the CalHiSports.com state coach of the year in 2002, might have done his best coaching job ever with an underclass-dominated lineup that relied on its defensive prowess, chemistry and the on court leadership of senior guard Dominique O'Connor to capture its first state title since 2005. O'Connor was the offensive catalyst with a game-high 16 points in the win over Mack and the Comets' defense held the Warriors to 20 percent shooting the entire game. Westchester also set a SoCal record for most victories in a season.  
2. Martin Luther King (Riverside) 30-3 (3)
The Wolves saw their season come to an end in the SoCal Div. I regional final against top-ranked Westchester, 56-39. The Wolves, led by California Mr. Basketball candidate Kawhi Leonard, had two other losses, one against Wheeler of Marietta, Georgia and Centennial of Corona. The loss to Centennial was later avenged during the second round of league play. Coach Tim Sweeney is still quite disappointed with the way the game against Westchester was officiated, but the Wolves' role players didn't give Leonard enough support to win that game. Westchester was just a little deeper than the rest of the pack, but nonetheless the Wolves had a fine season.   

3. Taft (Woodland Hills, Calif.) 27-5 (4)
This guard-oriented club lost to King of Riverside for the second consecutive season in the SoCal Div. I regional semifinals. Although the Toreadors didn't win a section or regional title, they secured their highest-ever final rating because of the closeness of that game plus a narrow five-point loss to Westchester in the L.A. City Section finals. Led by all-state guard candidates Michael Williams and Justin Hawkins and bruising forward Terran Carter, the biggest win of the season for coach Derrick Taylor's club was its 67-45 victory over No. 4 Fairfax in the L.A. City section semifinals. Despite his graduation losses, Taylor is confident next year's club could be just as formidable.  

4. Fairfax (Los Angeles) 27-5 (5)
Led by EA SPORTS All-American candidate Renardo Sidney, Fairfax's highlight win was its 79-64 victory over Mater Dei of Santa Ana in the SoCal Div. I regional quarterfinal. The Lions also beat Div. I state champ and league foe Westchester once in three tries and lost by only one point to the Comets in the regional semifinals. Yet another good win turned out to be the one over Whitney Young of Chicago at the Nike Extravangza since Whitney Young ended up winning the Class 4A state title in Illinois. The stinker loss was the 67-45 setback to No. 3 Taft in the L.A. City Section semifinals as the Toreadors executed their game plan of slowing down Sidney to perfection. Very few teams had any success slowing down the USC recruit, as he's a lock to make the overall all-state team for the third consecutive season. Other key graduation losses will be swingman Solomon Hill, also headed to USC, and three-year veteran Lance Bailey. Westchester will definitely start off the 2009-2010 season higher in the preseason ratings than its Western League rivals.

5. Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 31-2 (6)
For a majority of the season, the Monarchs were not only the top-ranked team in the state, but also in the ESPN RISE FAB 50 national ratings. A January season-ending injury to Andy Brown finally caught up to Mater Dei in losses to King of Riverside and Fairfax of Los Angeles, both of which were double-digit losses. The regular season was highlighted with a tournament title at the prestigious City of Palms Tournament in Florida in which eventual Div. I state champ Westchester was handed one of its two defeats. You can definitely look at Mater Dei like it had two seasons and two teams, one with Brown and one without, but don't forget Mater Dei recorded a couple of quality wins without Brown, had time to adjust to playing without him and never made excuses for his absence. The games against King and Fairfax just weren't close enough to justify a higher final rating.    

6. De La Salle (Concord) 26-2 (7)
The Spartans move up a spot in the final ratings after McClymonds was throttled in the Div. I title game by top-ranked Westchester. Before they were upset in the CIF North Coast Section semifinals against Newark Memorial, Frank Allocco's boys defeated No. 8 Mack and swept No. 10 Monte Vista. The loss to the Cougars was a stinger, but De La Salle's overall log was stronger than any other team in Northern California from a ratings standpoint. Also included was an impressive win over No. 7 Dominguez. Several starters graduate,  including Cal-bound guard Brandon Smith,  but Allocco has big 6-9 John McArthur returning for what the coach hopes is a breakout season. Nate Appel, a 6-7 junior forward, and sophomore 6-3 guard Joe Stein also return.

7. Dominguez (Compton) 26-7 (8)
Although they lost to De La Salle by a greater margin than McClymonds, Dominguez can be ranked higher because of its overall body of work. The Dons, under first year coach Duane Cooper, lost by just two points to No. 3 Taft in the SoCal regional, plus they had more quality wins and played a tougher overall schedule than Mack. Keys wins included regular season triumphs over Bishop Montgomery, Oregon Class 6A state champ Jesuit of Portland, Fairfax, Etiwanda and a sweep of the Lynwood team that upset Los Alamitos in the CIFSS Div. I-AA playoffs. Considering it was Cooper's first year at the helm and he didn't have All-American Jordan Hamilton or Thurman Woods available all season, it should be considered a successful season even by the Dons' recent standards.  

8. McClymonds (Oakland) 29-2 (2)
With four Oakland police officers brutally gunned down last weekend, we admit it would have been nice to see Mack take home the Div. I state title to bring just a little positive news back to the city. It wasn't to be as McClymonds only made three field goals the entire first half in an eventual 49-31 loss to top-ranked Westchester of Los Angeles. First year coach Brandon Brooks' boys cut it to 26-19 before Westchester showed its superior depth and outside shooting ability. "We just couldn't pull it out tonight, but we couldn't get a call from the refs either,” said point guard Will Cherry, pausing to think what to say while staring into space and motionless after the game. Mack would have been ranked a few spots higher with a better showing against the Comets and not beating anybody of note outside of Northern California also accounts for the Warriors' six-spot tumble.

9. Eisenhower (Rialto) 32-3 (11)
The Eagles won the CIF Div. II state title with a 73-61 victory over previous No. 10 Rocklin last Friday at Arco Arena in Sacramento. We could have ranked Ike higher going into the game, but we knew it would play out on the court regardless. Under veteran coach Steve Johnson, the Eagles twice defeated Rocklin this season and became the first team ever from San Bernardino County to win a CIF state title in boys basketball. The ring-leader all season long for this perimeter-oriented club was Creighton-bound Andrew Bock, who finished with 17 points, three assists and three steals in the state title game. And when we say this team was perimeter-oriented, we mean it as they only carried one player on the roster over 6-foot-2, that being 6-foot-4 sophomore Bernard Ireland.   
 
10. Monte Vista (Danville) 28-4 (9)
The Mustangs drop a spot in the final ratings after Mack's poor showing in the CIF Div. I state title game. Monte Vista lost to the No. 8 Warriors by three points in the NorCal Div. I regional final. Had the Mustangs been able to pull out what was an eventual 46-43 loss, chances are they wouldn't have done any worse against the Comets than the Warriors did. Coach Bill Powers loses all five starters to graduation so next season looks a little uncertain at this time.

11. El Camino (Oceanside) 31-4 (12)
The CIF San Diego Section Div. I champs beat No. 13 Etiwanda in the first round of the SoCal Div. I regional playoffs. The Wildcats then lost 65-52 to Div. I state champ Westchester in the following round.  ElCo might have been slightly underrated from a ratings standpoint during the season, but they had two stinker losses against Golden Valley of Santa Clarita and University of Los Angeles that they had to overcome. Before the loss to Westchester, the Wildcats had won 23 of 24 games. Six-foot-8 Luke Evans stepped up his play this year in the absence of graduated Cal-Hi Sports Grid-Hoop State Player of the Year Nelson Rosario and was the leading scorer with 18 points in the win over Etiwanda.    

12. Etiwanda (Rancho Cucamonga) 25-6 (13)
Coach Dave Kleckner's squad was clearly one of the top 10 teams in California before losing by three points on the road to No. 11 El Camino in the Div. I regional playoffs. Led by honors candidates Jordan Finn (6-4), Perris Blackwell (6-9) and DeRonn Scott (6-5), Etiwanda lost to state team of the year Westchester by only five points and split games with No. 3 Taft. It's scary to think how good they could have been had wing Rome Draper not being shelved by academics this season and as the old saying goes, it's not that you lose, it's when you lose that hurts. Westchester head coach Ed Azzam, whose team had trouble against the Eagles, may have summed it up best: "We have had a good run, but you have to have some luck and I think we lucked out by not having to play Etiwanda in the regional."      

13. Rocklin 33-3 (10)
Behind a tremendous showing of support from its nearby fan base, the Thunder got off to a rolling start in the CIF Div. II state title game before succumbing to No. 10 Eisenhower by 12 points, 73-61. Rocklin opened up with an 11-3 lead before its quick guards became too much for the Thunder to handle. In his final high school game, UCLA-bound Brendan Lane gave the fans something to remember with 26 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocked shots. The Thunder were just not quick enough to defend Eisenhower on the perimeter or turn the corner on their players while on offense. The loss was actually the second against Ike this season with the third loss coming back in early December against Fairfield.

14. St. Francis (Mountain View) 30-3 (14)
By virtue of taking two out of three from Sacred Heart Cathedral combined with the Irish's other losses, the Lancers stay in front of the CIF Div. III state champ in the final ratings. St. Francis also had a solid win over Fairfield in the Div. II NorCal regional semifinals before a 70-65 loss to Rocklin ended its season. The team loses just about everyone next year, including high-flying Shawn Grant. Two starters, junior guards Spencer Britschgi and Tim Wang, will return for head coach Mike Motil next season.   

15. Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco) 29-4 (15)
The Irish stay put in the final ratings after a 62-55 victory over previous No. 18 Ocean View of Huntington Beach in the CIF Division III state championship game, still behind their WCAL counterparts from St. Francis due to losing two of three to the Lancers. In the title game victory, four-year standout Jerry Brown had 11 points and 11 rebounds and Grid-Hoop USC-bound football standout Kevin Greene, who disclosed at the post-game press conference he plans on playing both basketball and football in college, finished with a Div. III title game record 20 rebounds to go with nine points. "Coach (Pete) Carroll asked me if I could dunk and I told him of course,” said Greene laughing. "That got him excited.” With Brown and Greene gone as well as other starters next year, coach Darrell Barbour will be looking for new kids to step up.

16. Salesian (Richmond) 31-4 (19)
The Pride capped off a spectacular season with a miracle 65-64 victory over No. 17 Bishop Montgomery in the Div. IV state championship game, the first state title in school history. Desmond Simmons rebounded a missed front end of a one-on-one by Bishop Montgomery's Justin Cobbs with 7.9 seconds remaining to play. He bolted up court 70 feet from a title and as he slipped, the ball bounced off his knee and leg directly to Jabari Brown. Brown then found Kendall Andrews under the basket and got him the ball just in time for Andrews to release a lay-up two-tenths of a second before the buzzer sounded and the red light on the backboard simultaneously lit up. Andrews was the hero but without Simmons' 31-point, 19-rebound performance Salesian wouldn't have been close. The Pride lost their first game to Sacred Heart Cathedral but beat a St. Mary's team that beat the Irish four times, including in the Div. IV NorCal title game. Another big win for Coach Bill Mellis boys, which move up three spots in the final ratings, was an MLK Day win over Newark Memorial at Hass Pavilion. Good news for Pride fans but bad news for the rest of Div. IV, is the team returns all five starters and will have 6-8, 285-pound freshman Freddie Tagaloa coming off the bench. Not only will they open next season as the team to beat in Div. IV, but as a probable top 10 team.

17. Bishop Montgomery (Torrance) 28-5 (20)
It was the kind of ending you see in dreams, when suddenly everything turns into slow motion. Only some dreams are nightmares and that's just the way the Knights' season ended as Salesian (Richmond) scored with less than a second remaining to capture the state Division IV title, 65-64. Some would say that's justice since BM lost in the section semifinals and in other than the Southern Section would never have even had the chance to extend its season. But the Knights proved they belonged in the title game, not only in the double overtime regional win over Price (Los Angeles), the second time they beat Price, but also in earlier victories over the likes of Los Angeles City power Taft (Woodland Hills), Leuzinger (Lawndale) and Windward (Los Angeles). Coach Doug Mitchell will have some rebuilding to do now with the graduation of four starters led by Justin Cobbs, who scored 24 points in the title game, and three-point maker Michael Panaggio. Cobbs tried to take complete blame for the loss after missing the front end of one-and-one with 7.9 seconds remaining but coach Doug Mitchell quickly said the Knights wouldn't have even been at Arco without their star player. Expect next year's team to be built around 6-9 Richard Soloman.

18. Windward (Los Angeles) 28-6 (NR)
His players are not as tough or focused defensively compared to his playing days, but what Windward head coach Miguel Villegas had quite a bit of talent for a Div. V school and just enough teamwork and moxy to secure the a top 20 spot. In the Div. V state title game, Windward got a big game from its big guns as UCLA-bound Anthony Stover finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and seven blocked shots while Michigan-bound Darrius Morris netted 25 points. Without adding it up, we can tell you the overall won-loss record of the six teams the Wildcats lost to (Westchester, Bishop Montgomery, Rocklin, Leuzinger, Campbell Hall and Bellevue of Washington) is outstanding. Villegas also has a nice building block for next year's team with the return of forward Wesley Saunders.        

19. Leuzinger (Lawndale) 26-7 (NA)
Talk about losing at the wrong time. The Olympians really gave away a game against Thousand Oaks, otherwise they've be in front a Windward team they did beat in a close game. Still, it was a banner season for coach Reggie Morris and his crew. Led by Jerry Evans (15.3 ppg), Leuzinger lost by just one point to eventual D2 state champ Eisenhower in the SoCal regional playoffs. The team also posted wins over Taft of Woodland Hills, Ocean View of Huntington Beach and Jordan of Long Beach.

20. Newark Memorial (Newark) 27-6 (NA)
Coach Craig Ashmore's team played as tough a schedule as you can imagine. One loss was to San Leandro. Another was to hot early-season Bishop O'Dowd at the MaxPreps tournament down at Torrey Pines where the Cougars also lost to Div. V state champ and No. 18 Windward. Salesian, Monte Vista and McClymonds were the other losses. The big win, of course, was the NCS semifinal 39-33 victory over No. 6 De La Salle. There were also two wins against both Sacramento and Berkeley. Freshman guard Casey Norris looks like a solid prospect for next season and junior guard Isiah Clark also returns, but that's about it.

21. Folsom 31-2 (16)
Despite a great season that saw them only lose twice, the Bulldogs will probably wonder how much better their season could have been if they could only have beaten the Monte Vista of Danville. The Mustangs were responsible for both losses and since neither game was that close it's a five-spot slide for them in the final rankings. Three Bulldogs averaged in double figures with senior Tony Johnson leading the way with 17.3 ppg and sophomore Kori Babineaux averaging 14.5 ppg.

22. Los Alamitos 27-2 (17)
After 25 straight wins, the Griffins' season came to a shocking end in the early rounds of the Southern Section Division I-AA playoffs by a 70-69 final in overtime against Lynwood. Towards the final portion of their winning streak, the Griffins went a perfect 10-0 in Sunset League play which included a pair of wins over Marina of Huntington Beach with a non-league win over Etiwanda thrown in between all the league play. Los Al was a perfect 4-0 at the El Dorado tournament back in December and in a span of four days picked up wins over Cajon and Mayfair. James Walker led the team in scoring with an average of 14 points per game and rebounding with a 7.3 per game.

23. Sacramento 26-7 (NA)
There was little difficulty in beating Del Oro for the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship as the Dragons cruised to a 71-44 win at nearby Arco Arena.  After blowout wins over West Valley and Analy, Sac High got another opportunity to play on the Sacramento Kings' home court but lost to eventual state champion Sacred Heart Cathedral of San Francisco in the NorCal Division III championship game by a 77-65 final score. Sac also defeated Modesto Christian early in the season and then went and played in the Crusaders tournament and picked up wins over Sylmar and Inglewood and lost by just four points to Taft. San Diego State-bound Chase Tapley averaged 23 points a game while sophomore Josiah Turner and junior Travon Abraham each averaged 14 points a game and will be key parts in the Dragons trying to get back to Arco Arena next season.

24. Ocean View (Huntington Beach) 27-8 (18)
Teams that live by the three-point field goal often die by it. Such was the case for Jim Harris' club in the cavernous confines of Arco Arena where the Seahawks hit a miserable 29 percent (5-17) from long, long range in the 62-55 Division III championship loss to Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco). Comparatively, Sacred Heart Cathedral only took three from beyond the arc. Worse than missing was when they missed as Ocean View fell farther and farther behind until the gap was 17 points in the third quarter and few believed even a late surge, which closed the gap to six with two minutes to go, would be enough. It wasn't. The Sea Hawks' losses were to good clubs - Leuzinger (Lawndale), Etiwanda (Rancho Cucamonga), Diamond Ranch (Pomona) and to M.L. King (Riverside). But there were no glaring wins, although victories over Inglewood and Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood) in the Southern California Regional final, were quality. The good news is the Seahawks only lose one starter, returning 6-6 Anthony Brown, 6-7 Ryan Okwudibonye, junior guard Steven Yoon and soph guard Anthony Keller. There's lots of potential among four freshmen on the championship roster as well.

25. San Leandro 24-4 (NA)
Three of the four losses were early but it's the last one to Monte Vista that ended San Leandro's season and sealed the Pirates' final pecking order in these rankings. Coach Sean MacKay's club played McClymonds tough early in the season and also recorded quality wins over Newark Memorial, Sacred Heart Cathedral and Sheldon of Sacramento. In fact, after a loss to No. 12 Etiwanda, the Pirates reeled off 18 consecutive wins.   

THE NEXT 25
(All listed without previous ranking.)

26. Tesoro (Las Flores) 28-5
A strong finish en route to the Southern Section Division I-A title landed Steve Garrett's Titans just one spot from the Top 25. Tesoro won 15 of the last 17 games, including impressive victories over West Valley (Hemet), Santa Monica and Ventura in the title game before a season-ending 62-53 loss to Martin Luther King (Riverside).

27. Loyola (Los Angeles) 26-7
With junior Miles Cartwright making a name for himself, the Cubs won 16 of their last 18 games but lost by six points both times to eventual Division II state champions Eisenhower in the section championship and SoCal Division II championship games. Other than a win over a 30-win Thousand Oaks squad in the playoffs, the Cubs didn't have very many big wins over tough competition this season. They did defeat Mayfair and Centennial of Corona early in the season and avennged a loss to Harvard-Westlake by defeating the Wolverines in the rematch.

28. Thousand Oaks 30-3
Winners of 20 straight games before the 57-52 setback to tall Loyola (Los Angeles) in the Div. II SoCal Regional semifinals, the Lancers had an impressive season. The biggest win was a 59-55 victory over a Leuzinger (Lawndale) team many thought would win it all while tournament losses to Santa Monica and Santa Margarita (RSM) came as the team was still jelling.

29. Rancho Verde (Moreno Valley) 24-6
Although there were only four seniors on the Mustangs' roster, it will be tough to replace Mike Snaer, almost a weekly entry in the state highlights. Losing by just seven points to Mater Dei (Santa Ana), 72-65, in the I-AA playoffs was a good an indicator how solid this club, that beat Jordan (Long Beach) 72-63, was all season.    

30. St. Mary's (Berkeley) 28-6
Four of the Panthers' losses were to No. 17 Salesian, the Div. IV state champs. The other two were to Sheldon of Sacramento and Monte Vista of Danville, with whom they split. Another key win came against Div. III state champ Sacred Heart Cathedral of San Francisco. If coach Manny Nodar's troops only could have gotten over then hump against Salesian, which will be a tall order again next season.

31. Jordan (Long Beach) 23-6
The Panthers are one spot ahead of the Jackrabbits after beating Harvard-Westlake early in the season and then winning the Moore League over Poly as the two teams split the two matchups this season.  Jordan had an early exit in postseason play as they opened with a win over Bell Gardens before losing at home to Rancho Verde. Seniors Will Ervin and Stephan Heard each averaged in double-figure scoring to lead the team on offense.

32. Poly (Long Beach) 23-6
There were several nice wins before league play got underway as the Jackrabbits defeated Gahr, Leuzinger and Mayfair before stumbling a few times and finishing behind Jordan in the Moore League. In the always tough Southern Section Division I postseason, the Jackrabbits won twice before falling by just three points to Dominguez of Compton to end their season.

33. Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood) 27-7
Head coach Greg Hilliard's team struggled early in the season, mainly because it was so young. After a split in the regular season with Loyola, though, the Wolverines then played their better basketball at the right time as they captured the Southern Section Division III-A championship with a win over Gahr of Cerritos.

34. Diamond Ranch (Pomona) 24-5
Coach Loren Grover's team had the misfortune of running into a red-hot Gahr (Cerritos) team and still almost pulled it out in a 63-62 Southern Section III-A quarterfinal loss. The team still owned impressive wins over Ocean View, Bishop Montgomery and Serra twice with losses to Top 5 teams like Martin Luther King (Riverside) and Mater Dei (Santa Ana).

35. Canyon (Anaheim) 26-7
It took the Comanches a while to get out of the gate as they understandably lost five of their first 10 games playing against competition like Los Alamitos and Mater Dei (Santa Ana). But once Canyon got rolling, it won 19 straight, including a 52-48 victory over Santa Margarita (RSM) for the CIFSS III-AA title. The season ended against hot-shooting Ocean View, 66-57 - another loss to a quality team.

36. Dana Hills (Dana Point) 24-4
The Dolphins were another Orange County club that got stronger later in the season. They lost to Canyon and split with Tesoro before giving Etiwanda all it could handle in the final loss of the campaign.

37. Inglewood 24-8
Senior guard Dashawn Gomez popped in 18.7 ppg for the Sentinels, who got drilled in the Division III SoCal regional final by Ocean View but in the CIFSS playoffs posted a wild 97-93 overtime win over Div. IV state finalist Bishop Montgomery. Inglewood also notched two wins during the season over Santa Monica and beat Price, Perris and Ventura.

38. Price (Los Angeles) 28-7
It was a different kind of season for the Knights, who weren't in the Division V state rankings and playoffs but still were solidly in contention in Division IV. The best win was against Pacific Hills and in the playoffs Price didn't go out until an 85-82 contest with D4 state finalist Bishop Montgomery.

39. Redlands 25-4
If you don't think the Terriers were quality, ask Eisenhower (Rialto). Redlands beat the state Division II champs, 88-84, even though there wasn't a player taller than 6-5 on the senior-laden roster. The Terriers also owned a 86-73 win over Colony (Anaheim) before falling to Martin Luther King (Riverside) in CIFSS I-AA quarters.

40. Santa Monica 22-9
It was an outstanding boys-girls season for SaMoHi and the boys did their part with quality victories over Reseda, Serra of Gardena and Thousand Oaks. In the Southern Section playoffs, the Vikings went on a roll with wins over Chaparral of Temecula and Perris, which was the team that upset Centennial of Corona.

41. Castro Valley 23-5
The Trojans had their season come to an end in the NCS semifinals losing by four in overtime to Monte Vista. All five of their losses were against teams with at least 20 wins, including Hayward, Bishop O'Dowd and San Leandro, a team they also defeated to split the two-game series.

42. Centennial (Corona) 24-4
The football powerhouse wasn't half bad in basketball, either, to which Martin Luther King (Riverside) can attest after dropping a 73-71 decision to the Huskies that they later reversed. Centennial's season ended when the Huskies fell behind early and could not get the big run against Perris.

43. Fairfield 25-8
The Falcons were one of only two teams to defeat Rocklin this year as the Falcons defeated the Thunder early on and nearly picked up a second win in as many tries before losing by four in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II championship game. The team's other playoff loss was to St. Francis of Mountain View in another close contest.

44. Pacific Hills (Los Angeles) 28-7
With Derick Flowers (17.1 ppg) and Alex Osborne (15.7 ppg) leading the way, the Bruins showed their worth in wins over Loyola, Rancho Verde and Serra of Gardena. They couldn't do much with Windward, though, with a loss during the regular season and another loss in the playoffs.

45. Lynwood 19-7
There were impressive wins over Loyola and Crenshaw before league play got underway, but the Knights' biggest win of the season came in the Southern Section Division I-AA playoffs when they went on the road and knocked off Los Alamitos. Junior Keon Pledger was the go-to guy for the Knights as he finished with a 22.3 ppg average.

46. Junipero Serra (Gardena) 23-8
The Cavaliers are always in the mix in Division IV as a state power and this year was no different. They split with Division III finalist Bishop Montgomery and recorded wins over Harvard-Westlake, San Diego Hoover and Palo Verde of Las Vegas, which was a state finalist in Nevada. Serra's eliminating playoff loss wasn't too shabby, either – by just five to Ocean View.

47. Murrieta Valley (Murrieta) 25-2
The Bryce Lenhart-Dylan Bohanan-led Nighthawks just could not put it together against Capistrano Valley (Mission Viejo) in the CIFSS playoffs. A somewhat soft schedule didn't help but the Nighthawks were able to avenge a loss to Chapparal and just two losses overall was impressive.

48. Berkeley 25-4
What stands out about the Yellowjackets is their dominance of the Alameda County Athletic League plus wins over Bishop O'Dowd and Castro Valley and a four-point loss in the NCS Div. I playoffs to Newark Memorial. In its next game, Newark Memorial knocked off De La Salle.

49. Bellarmine (San Jose) 21-9
The Bells lost to a lot of tough teams during the regular season but never really had a marquee win to showcase how good of a team they might have been. They did win the Central Coast Section Div. I title, though, and then lost by just one point to Newark Memorial in the NorCal regionals. Senior Niyi Harrison (headed to Santa Clara) was the leading scorer as he averaged 15 points per game.

50. Hoover (San Diego) 28-8
Coach Ollie Goulston's bunch captured their second straight San Diego Section title but were ushered out of the SoCal Regionals by taller, deeper Loyola (Los Angeles). Losses to Windward (Los Angeles) and Serra (Gardena) also hurt. This is a team to watch next year as new reported state single-season blocked shot leader, 6-9 soph Angelo Chol, leads the way.

Note: Check the final state rankings by divisions for even more expanded lists of the state's best teams.

Comments or corrections? Email mark@studentsports.com and be sure to leave a comment of your own so others can check out what you have to say.