If Sacred Heart Cathedral of San Francisco and St. Mary's of Stockton both win in CIF Northern California Div. III regional semifinals on Thursday night, how big will Saturday's final be at ARCO Arena in Sacramento?
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| Andrew Drennen | |
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| Kelli Thompson of Long Beach Poly looks to pass during CIFSS Div. I-AA semifinal game vs. Lynwood. |
If Sacred Heart Cathedral wasn't in the same division as St. Mary's, it's doubtful that the Rams would be as high as No. 3 in the FAB 50. But that is indeed the case, which gives St. Mary's an opportunity to perhaps move up to No. 1 for the final rankings should it defeat the Fighting Irish and then go on to finish unbeaten overall with a CIF Division III state title in tow.
California's other highly-ranked FAB 50 team, Poly of Long Beach, might be the best squad in the country right now, especially if the Jackrabbits' 66-33 destruction of Long Beach Millikan in the CIF Southern Section Div. I-AA championship is an indictator. Poly had an earlier loss to Millikan, which since has been avenged twice. The Jackrabbits also weren't as cohesive earlier in the season when they played Sacred Heart Cathedral and lost by 16 points.
Who knows what would happen now in a Long Beach Poly vs. Sacred Heart Cathedral or Long Beach Poly vs. St. Mary's matchup? Certainly, the Jackrabbits might be too tough for anyone. Still, those earlier results have to count in the rankings so Poly must be behind the Fighting Irish and also must be behind St. Mary's especially if the Rams end up with a win over Sacred Heart Cathedral.
The other top six teams from the previous Rivals.com FAB 50 in girls basketball also remained the same and one of those, Cy-Fair of Houston, has capped an outstanding season with a state championship.
Cy-Fair routed previous No. 9 DeSoto, 50-33, in the Class 5A state title game after losing in the state title game the year before. Returning EA SPORTS All-American Nneka Ogwumike went for 17 points and 17 rebounds as Cy-Fair improved to 114-2 with her in the lineup the past three seasons. The Lady Bobcats lost to Cinco Ranch and Pflugerville early in the season, but then rolled to 37 consecutive victories. On their way to the title, they beat previous No. 43 Dulles and also avenged the loss to Cinco Ranch, 49-41.
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| Rutgers guard Epiphanny Prince is a former standout at Murry Bergtraum (New York, N.Y.), the nation's No. 2 team. |
Murry Bergtraum of New York, No. 2 in the FAB 50 and still looking like the only non-California team with a chance to finish in the top spot, plays Francis Lewis this weekend in the New York Public Schools Athletic League playoffs. The unbeaten Lady Blazers began their postseason last week with a 79-33 romp past Boys & Girls of Brooklyn.
(All teams listed with most current win-loss record; Previous ranking listed in parentheses; Look for the next Rivals.com FAB 50 girls basketball rankings next week.)
1. Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco, Calif.) 31-0 (1)
2. Murry Bergtraum (New York, N.Y.) 20-0 (2)
3. St. Mary's (Stockton, Calif.) 32-0 (3)
4. Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) 27-2 (4)
5. Notre Dame Academy (Fitchburg, Va.) 24-2 (5)
6. Cy-Fair (Houston, Texas) 39-2 (6)
7. St. Michael Academy (New York, N.Y.) 23-1 (10)
8. Lewis & Clark (Spokane, Wash.) 29-0 (31)
9. Gentry (Indianola, Miss.) 36-0 (34)
10. Dunbar (Louisville, Ky.) 29-2 (7)
11. Lakota West (West Chester, Ohio) 25-1 (12)
12. Southridge (Beaverton, Ore.) 22-4 (13)
13. Highlands Ranch (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) 21-3 (15)
14. Sapulpa (Sapulpa, Okla.) 25-1 (15)
15. Lower Richland (Hopkins, S.C.) 26-0 (16)
16. Bob Jones (Madison, Ala.) 35-2 (29)
17. DeSoto (DeSoto, Texas) 37-2 (9)
18. Centennial (Circle Lakes, Minn.) 27-0 (19)
19. Prairie (Brush Prairie, Wash.) 21-4 (11)
20. Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) 27-3 (20)
21. Murrah (Jackson, Miss.) 29-1 (21)
22. Oak Ridge (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) 33-1 (30)
23. Heights (Wichita, Kan.) 21-1 (33)
24. Midfield (Midfield, Ala.) 32-1 (nr)
25. Wakefield (Raleigh, N.C.) 30-0 (36)
26. Sequoyah (Tahlequah, Okla.) 25-2 (38)
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| EA SPORTS All-American Elena Delle Donne and her team at No. 35 Ursuline Academy (Wilmington, Del.) are closing the season strong. |
27. Heritage Christian (Indianapolis, Ind.) 28-2 (nr)
28. Baron Collier (Naples, Fla.) 31-3 (44)
29. Lexington Catholic (Lexington, Ky.) 27-4 (45)
30. Winter Haven (Winter Haven, Fla.) 30-3 (8)
31. Whitney Young (Chicago, Ill.) 30-3 (nr)
32. Hoover (Hoover, Ala.) 30-2 (32)
33. Woodson (Washington, D.C.) 27-5 (39)
34. St. John the Baptist (West Islip, N.Y.) 22-4 (42)
35. Ursuline Academy (Wilmington, Del.) 17-6 (49)
36. Cardinal O'Hara (Springfield, Pa.) 22-2 (50)
37. Buffalo Grove (Buffalo Grove, Ill.) 33-4 (28)
38. Incarnate Word (St. Louis, Mo.) 28-3 (nr)
39. Lake Gibson (Lakeland, Fla.) 26-4 (27)
40. Paint Branch (Burtonsville, Md.) 20-0 (nr)
41. Carmel (Carmel, Ind.) 23-4 (nr)
42. Washington (South Bend, Ind.) 23-3 (25)
43. Cinco Ranch (Katy, Texas) 30-8 (nr)
44. Bellaire (Houston, Texas) 36-2 (17)
45. Redondo (Redondo Beach, Calif.) 28-3 (nr)
46. Mill Creek (Hoschton, Ga.) 27-1 (nr)
47. Narbonne (Harbor City, Calif.) 30-4 (nr)
48. Hickman (Columbia, Mo.) 29-0 (nr)
49. Heritage (Virginia Beach, Va.) 23-1 (nr)
50. Ben Davis (Indianapolis, Ind.) 26-2 (28)
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| The reason that Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas is not nationally-ranked in the FAB 50 (but is by everyone else who does national rankings) is that La Jolla Country Day and standout Janae Fulcher happen to have beaten Bishop Gorman. |
Thirty-Five More On The Bubble Teams:
A.B. Miller (Fontana, Calif.) 29-2
Auburn Riverside (Auburn, Wash.) 22-3
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) 32-4
Bishop Moore (Orlando, Fla.) 28-4
Bolingbrook (Bolingbrook, Ill.) 28-4
Central (Andover, Kan.) 23-0
Central Catholic (Portland, Ore.) 22-3
Clay-Chalkville (Pinson, Ala.) 28-7
Detroit Country Day (Birmingham, Mich.) 24-1
Dickinson (Dickinson, Texas) 35-5
Duncanville (Duncanville, Texas) 34-5
Dulles (Sugar Land, Texas) 24-5
Frisco (Frisco, Texas) 35-4
Highland (Gilbert, Ariz.) 31-3
Huntington (Huntington, W. Va.) 23-1
King (Milwaukee, Wisc.) 21-1
Lincoln (Dallas, Texas) 29-4
Madison (Houston, Texas) 26-4
Marshall (Chicago, Ill.) 26-7
Midwest City (Midwest City, Okla.) 23-1
Millington Central (Millington, Tenn.) 35-1
Morris Catholic (Denville, N.J.) 27-0
Mt. Lebanon (Mt. Lebanon, Pa.) 27-3
Mt. Notre Dame (Cincinnati, Ohio) 24-2
Regina (South Euclid, Ohio) 24-2
Regis Jesuit (Aurora, Colo.) 22-2
Shabazz (Newark, N.J.) 26-2
Shelbyville Central (Shelbyville, Tenn.) 27-5
Skyline (Salt Lake City, Utah) 21-2
Southwood (Shreveport, La.) 37-3
South Sioux City (South Sioux City, Neb.) 24-1
Sparkman (Harvest, Ala.) 26-4
St. Frances (Baltimore, Md.) 35-5
T.C. Williams (Alexandria, Va.) 22-1
Trenton Central (Trenton, N.J.) 27-1
