All-NorCal Girls Basketball ’17-’18

SECOND TEAM ALL-NORCAL 

Ali Bamberger All-NorCal

Ali Bamberger (Carondelet-Concord, Jr.), 6-2, Post
KEY STATS: Bamberger led the Open qualifiers with 20 points and 11 rebounds a game, but her presence inside was the key.

Karisma Ortiz (Archbishop Mitty-San Jose, Sr.), 6-0, Guard
KEY STATS: Ortiz was sometimes overshadowed by Haley Jones. Opponents knew full well how good she was: 14.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 4.5 assists a game, plus 80 percent from the free-throw line.

Ariel Johnson (St. Mary’s-Stockton, Sr.), 5-8, Guard
KEY STATS: Like Ortiz, Johnson had to battle for attention (in this case, because of Aquira DeCosta), but her 14.1 points and 4.5 assists a game were key in another great St. Mary’s season.

Sirena Tuitele (Pleasant Valley-Chico, Sr.) 6-1, Post
KEY STATS: The numbers are good — 15.1 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 steals, 1.6 blocks per game – but Tuitele was the engine that drove Pleasant Valley to a state championship game appearance.

Haley Van Dyke (Campolindo-Moraga, Sr.) 6-0, Post
KEY STATS: How about a North Coast Section record 60 points in a 73-50 win over Moreau Catholic-Hayward? Or 29.8 points, 17.3 rebounds, 4.8 steals, 3.7 assists and 3.5 blocks a game? But in a great year for NorCal talent, she has to settle for second-team honors.

THIRD TEAM ALL-NORCAL 

Briana Claros (Pinewood-Los Altos Hills, Sr.), 5-5, Guard
KEY STATS: Though Claros had good numbers for Pinewood (11.2 points and 4.4 assists per game, plus a 2.3 assist/turnover ratio), her leadership was just as important.

Maiya Flores All-NorCal

Maiya Flores (Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa, Sr.), 5-6, Guard
KEY STATS: Flores is the all-time leading scorer at Cardinal Newman, boys or girls. She led her team to the NorCal Open Division by scoring 14.1 points a game, and adding three rebounds and three assists.

Talo Li-Uperesa (Sacred Heart Cathedral-S.F., Jr.), 5-10, Post
KEY STATS: Li-Uperesa set the tone for Sacred Heart Cathedral’s physical style of play. That style earned them a NorCal Division I title. Along the way, she averaged 13.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game.

Zakiya Mahoney (Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland, Sr.), 5-9, Wing
KEY STATS: The intense, physical and talented Mahoney supplied the interior presence for the North Coast Section Division II champs. She averaged 13.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game.

Kiara Jefferson (West Campus-Sacramento, Sr.), Guard, 5-9
KEY STATS: She was the top player on NorCal’s only state championship team. Jefferson averaged 14.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.9 steals for a team that won not just one, but two California titles in a row.

Clair Steele (Miramonte-Orinda, Sr.), Guard, 5-5
KEY STATS: Though Steele averaged 16.9 points, 5.3 assists and a 2.5 assist/turnover ratio, her most impressive stat might be the 225 free throw attempts. And she made 78 percent of them.

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