Preview: NorCal Boys Finals

And then there were 48. That’s how many high school basketball teams continued practice schedules this week with dreams of a state title. The majority of that number gets cut in half on March 18 as 24 boys teams and 24 girls will attempt to take the last step to the state finals — which take place March 25-26 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. We’ll have preview glances for each of the regional championship games taking place in Northern and Southern California this Saturday. First up, the NorCal girls.

Here’s how they’ll roll out:

Thursday, noon: NorCal Girls
Friday, 8 A.M.: NorCal Boys
Friday, noon: SoCal Girls
Friday, 4 P.M.: SoCal Boys

CIF Boys Basketball Northern Regional Championship Matchups

OPEN DIVISION

MATCHUP: No. 1 Woodcreek-Roseville (31-2) vs. No. 2 Sheldon-Sacramento (30-3), 8 p.m. at Santa Clara University
HISTORY: Woodcreek is making its fifth regional finals appearance, and its fourth since 2010. The Timberwolves are winless in their last three attempts, though. Their only win came in the 2003 Div. II final. Sheldon is making its fourth overall appearance, and second trip to the Open final. The Huskies lost to Aaron Gordon and Archbishop Mitty-San Jose in the first NorCal Open title game. Their lone regional championship came in Div. I in 2012. Neither team owns a state crown.
WOODCREEK KEY TO VICTORY: Let the big dog eat. Timberwolves 6-foot-11 center Jordan Brown is the best player on any NorCal regional finalist. He’s averaging an obscene double-double of approximately 27 points and 16 rebounds per game. Foul trouble and the Huskies defense held him to just 13 in the first game, but he still sank two free-throws with 0.1 seconds left to win the Sac-Joaquin Section Div. I final 69-68.
SHELDON KEY TO VICTORY: Don’t change a thing. The Huskies came within 0.1 seconds of taking down Woodcreek in the SJS final. They defended Brown extremely well and led by as much as 10 at one point. Woodcreek overcame Brown’s pedestrian night with strong 3-point shooting. So if Sheldon follows the same blueprint, there’s no reason to think it won’t have a great shot at victory.
PREDICTION: Sheldon 64, Woodcreek 61

DIVISION I

MATCHUP: No. 3 James Logan-Union City (27-5) vs. No. 9 Palo Alto (26-4), 4 p.m. at Santa Clara University
HISTORY: This is Logan’s first trip to the regional championship in 30 years. The Colts went three straight years from 1985-87 and were only victorious in their first appearance. Meanwhile, Palo Alto returns for the first time since riding Jeremy Lin to the 2006 state title. It’s the Vikings fourth overall appearance; they also won in 1993, and finished the job at state then too.
LOGAN KEY TO VICTORY: Believe in balance. Logan has been extremely consistent and not particularly flashy all season. But don’t be fooled. The Colts are about as well-rounded a team as you’ll find at this level. They share the ball and the spotlight as four different players average at least 10 points. Avoid any hero ball. Execute the game plan. Raise the banner.
PALO ALTO KEY TO VICTORY: Ride the wave. Palo Alto is undoubtedly playing its best basketball over the past two weeks and needs to continue to feed off that confidence. Maintaining a defense that has held opponents to an average of just 52.6 points over 30 games would be a good plan as well.
PREDICTION: James Logan 59, Palo Alto 57

DIVISION II

MATCHUP: No. 3 Moreau Catholic-Hayward (24-9) at No. 1 St. Francis-Mountain View (21-9), 6 p.m.
HISTORY: Moreau Catholic’s only other regional finals appearance came in 2014, when it defeated Salesian-Richmond 61-52 in the Div. IV championship. That preceded to straight years of opening-round losses in the Open Division for the Mariners. St. Francis is in its ninth trip to this stage (the most of any NorCal boys team the season). The Lancers have four regional titles, which includes their last appearance in 2010.
MOREAU CATHOLIC KEY TO VICTORY: Make everything come up Milstead. For as great a freshman season 6-5 swingman Kyree Walker is having, the Mariners are Damari Milstead’s team. The four-year starting senior guard is averaging 25 points on the season, but has raised that mark to 30 points over Moreau’s last four games. He was one rebound shy of a triple double (27 pts., 9 rebs., 10 asst., 4 stls.) in a regional quarterfinal win over Beyer-Modesto.
ST. FRANCIS KEY TO VICTORY: Dictate pace. Milstead and Walker thrive in the open floor for Moreau, and the Mariners have other role players who can find rhythm if there’s a good flow. St. Francis can play up-tempo, but would be better served to keep Moreau bottled up.
PREDICTION: St. Francis 66, Moreau Catholic 59

DIVISION III

MATCHUP: No. 4 Mission-San Francisco (33-1) at No. 3 Vanden-Fairfield (30-3), 7 p.m.
HISTORY: Mission is not only makings its first regional finals appearance in program history, but it’s just the fourth appearance ever for a San Francisco public school. The only S.F. public school to reach a state final was Washington in 1982. Vanden, meanwhile, makes its seventh showing on this stage and its first since 1996. The Vikings have won twice, in 1990 and 1991.
MISSION KEY TO VICTORY: Don’t let the moment get too big. For obvious reasons, the Bears could be left feeling a lot of pressure prior to tip-off Saturday. Getting out to a fast start to could go a long way in making sure this history-making bunch stays loose.
VANDEN KEY TO VICTORY: Savor the home cooking. With the CIF choosing to go with just one neutral site for Open and Division I games, the Vikings get the rare opportunity to play for a regional title on their home floor — a place they’ve been dominant all season long. Vanden is 10-0 in its home gym with an average margin of victory of 25.6 points. Monterey’s 14-point CIF quarterfinal loss on March 8 was the closest any team has come to the Vikings on their home hardwood.
PREDICTION: Vanden 71, Mission 67

DIVISION IV

MATCHUP: No. 3 St. Patrick-St. Vincent-Vallejo (26-7) at No. 1 Palma-Salinas (25-4), 6 p.m.
HISTORY: St. Patrick-St. Vincent is snapping a 29-year regional finals drought after losing in its only appearance in 1988. Palma is 3-0 in regional finals, including last year’s Division IV championship. The Chieftains would end up losing the state final to Harvard-Westlake-North Hollywood last season, but they do have one state title from 1992.
ST. PATRICK KEY TO VICTORY: Rebound and run. The Bruins are an offensive basketball team averaging 71 points per game. Three seniors: Tavian Henderson, BJ Standley and Marquel Johnson all average 13 points or better. Palma will have a size advantage, so it’s imperative that SPSV box out, limit second-chance points and push the pace.
PALMA KEY TO VICTORY: Get stops. Also known as, play to their strength. The Chieftains are among the best defensive teams among the NorCal finalists, allowing opponents and average of just 47 points over 29 games. With SPSV’s three-headed monster, help defense will be critical.
PREDICTION: St. Patrick-St. Vincent 62, Palma 55

DIVISION V

MATCHUP: No. 2 Elliot Christian-Lodi (29-4) at No. 1 St. Francis-Watsonville (28-2), 6 p.m.
HISTORY: Both teams are making their first appearance in a regional final. St. Francis is looking to become just the third team from Santa Cruz County to reach a state final (Aptos in 1986, Santa Cruz in 2005). So it’s kind of a big deal.
ELLIOT CHRISTIAN KEY TO VICTORY: Communicate. It’ll be an extremely hostile environment in the gym known as the “Shark Tank.” St. Francis is 11-0 in the building this season and a standing room only crowd is sure to be on hand. So the Eagles will have to be especially vigilant about communicating and staying focused at both ends of the floor.
ST. FRANCIS KEY TO VICTORY: Defend the arc. Elliot Christian thrives on its 3-point shooting. The Eagles average 10.5 made 3’s per game and shoot 33.6 percent from distance as a team. Jimmy Beltz and Nate Bond can catch fire in a hurry. St. Francis has to have good close outs, or it could find itself on the wrong end of a 12-0 run really quick.
PREDICTION: Elliot Christian 74, St. Francis 73