High school basketball: CIF Southern Section championships headlined by national top 10 squads

Boys Open title matchup features No. 5 Centennial vs. St. John Bosco while No. 1 Sierra Canyon and No. 9 Etiwanda meet in the girls Open final.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Thomas Frey
By
Feb 23, 2023, 10:30am
Centennial (Corona) boys and the Etiwanda girls each look to defend their 2021-22 CIF Southern Section Open Division championship Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

Centennial (28-3) comes in ranked No. 5 in the MaxPreps Top 25 and faces 26-5 St. John Bosco (Bellflower) at 8 p.m.

The Huskies are led by McDonald's All American Jared McCain (Duke) and future UCLA forward Devin Williams and went 3-0 in Southern Section pool play to advance.

St. John Bosco took down then No. 8 Harvard-Westlake (Studio City) 62-55 and fell 55-53 to No. 11 West Ranch (Valencia) before beating St. Bernard (Playa del Rey) 60-47 in pool play to advance.

No. 9 Etiwanda (29-2) takes on No. 1 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) at 6 p.m. Last year, the Eagles beat Sierra Canyon at this stage 69-57. Sierra Canyon hasn't lost a game since, including a rematch against Etiwanda in the 2022 state playoffs. The Trailblazers are led by McDonald's All American Juju Watkins and roll into Honda Center 29-0 this season with wins over current No. 2 Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.) and No. 5 La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla). Junior Kennedy Smith fuels Etiwanda along with point guard Aliyahna Morris and senior forward Sa'lah Hemingway. Their two losses are to teams ranked higher in the MaxPreps Top 25.

A total of 20 Southern Section championship games across multiple divisions and four locations will all occur on Saturday.
Jared McCain and Centennial (Corona) take on St. John Bosco (Bellflower) in the CIF Southern Section Open Division championship Saturday at the Honda Center. (Photo: Jerrell Jordan)
Jared McCain and Centennial (Corona) take on St. John Bosco (Bellflower) in the CIF Southern Section Open Division championship Saturday at the Honda Center. (Photo: Jerrell Jordan)
CIF Southern Section championships

Honda Center

Division 1 Girls
1 p.m. — Marlborough (Los Angeles) vs. Orange Lutheran (Orange)

Division 1 Boys
3 p.m. — Etiwanda vs. Mater Dei (Santa Ana)

Open Division Girls
6 p.m. — No. 9 Etiwanda vs. No. 1 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth)

Open Division Boys
8 p.m. — No. 5 Centennial (Corona) vs. St. John Bosco (Bellflower)

Colony High School

Division III-AA Boys
12 p.m. — La Serna (Whittier) vs. St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy (Downey)

Division III-A Girls
2 p.m. — Rancho Christian (Temecula) vs. Chino

Division II-A Boys
4 p.m. — Rancho Christian (Temecula) vs. La Mirada

Division V-A Boys
6 p.m. — Santa Paula vs. Blair (Pasadena)

Division III-AA Girls
8 p.m. — Los Osos (Rancho Cucamonga) vs. Flintridge Prep (La Canada)

Edison High School

Division V-AA Boys
12 p.m. — Bosco Tech (Rosemead) vs. Lynwood

Division IV-AA Girls
2 p.m. — Buena Park vs. Rialto

Division IV-A Boys
4 p.m. — Sage Hill (Newport Beach) vs. Jordan (Long Beach)

Division V-AA Girls
6 p.m. — St. Margaret's (San Juan Capistrano) vs. Gahr (Cerritos)

Division II-AA Boys
8 p.m. — Orange Lutheran (Orange) vs. Tesoro (Rancho Santa Margarita)

Mira Costa High School

Division V-A Girls
10 a.m. — St. Monica (Santa Monica) vs. Oak Park

Division II-A Girls
12 p.m. — Brentwood School (Los Angeles) vs. Leuzinger (Lawndale)

Division IV-AA Boys
2 p.m. — Valencia vs. St. Bonaventure (Ventura)

Division II-AA Girls
4 p.m. — La Salle (Pasadena) vs. Hart (Newhall)

Division IV-A Girls
6 p.m. — Oakwood (North Hollywood) vs. Notre Dame Academy (Los Angeles)

Division III-A Boys
8 p.m. — Oakwood (North Hollywood) vs. San Gabriel Academy (San Gabriel)

Related Content