West Valley Retains State's Top Ranking; Mt. San Jacinto Creeps Closer

West Valley, one of four unbeatens, retained the top ranking in this week’s CCCMBCA Top 30 poll. Mt. San Jacinto, another unbeaten, closed the gap between No. 1 and No. 2, however.  Meanwhile, Fullerton moved from No. 5 to No. 3 and San Diego City climbed from No. 7 to No. 4 after beating Yuba, previously No. 4, in the finals of the Grossmont Tournament. Yuba dropped to No. 5, followed by San Francisco and Sequoias. Unbeatens Cerro Coso and Cabrillo both broke into the top 10 at No. 8 and No. 9, respectively, while Columbia fell to No. 10 after a 22-point loss to Cabrillo.

Here is a complete breakdown of the poll as voted by the CCCMBCA coaches.

1. West Valley (8-0) — West Valley maintained its No. 1 ranking. Since the November 21 ranking, the Vikings have outscored its three opponents, 307-212. West Valley has four games remaining in 2023, including two key games in Las Positas (Dec. 6) and Chabot (Dec. 8), both ranked in this week’s CCCMBCA Poll.

2. Mt. San Jacinto (8-0) — Mt. San Jacinto, one of four unbeaten teams, maintained its hold on the No. 2 ranking after consecutive road wins at LA Pierce and Cypress. The Eagles which inched closer to West Valley this week, will meet unranked Riverside (Wednesday) and East Los Angeles (Thursday) and ranked Saddleback (Saturday) in the Riverside Tournament this week. Interestingly, it has been 14 days since Riverside (3-3) last played and 20 days for East Los Angeles (2-2). Meanwhile, Saddleback (6-3) lost two of three last week at the Grossmont Tournament.

3. Fullerton (6-2) — With San Francisco losing to Yuba and Yuba losing to San Diego City, it opened the door for Fullerton to climb two spots this week. The Hornets beat West LA and San Bernardino, both ranked opponents, since its two-point upset loss to Moorpark. This week, Fullerton will host is 37^th Annual Fullerton Classic. The Hornets will take on #16 LA Southwest and #4 San Diego City (Friday) before closing it out against Southwestern. Currently, Fullerton holds the top ranking in the Non-conference RPI ranking.

4. San Diego City (8-2) — San Diego City climbs three spots after winning the Grossmont Tournament, featured by a two-point win over Yuba. Since losing to San Jose City on Nov. 18, the Knights have won four straight games — three coming against ranked opponents. This week, San Diego City will play its final two non-conference games — vs. #3 Fullerton (Friday) and #12 West LA (Saturday).

5. Yuba (6-1) — Yuba slips a spot this week after dropping the championship game to San Diego City at the Grossmont Tournament. The 49’ers has three remaining non-conference contests before opening Bay Valley Conference play on Dec. 19. There is a very strong chance that Yuba won’t see another ranked opponent until the regional tournament.

6. San Francisco (8-2) — San Francisco falls to No. 6 this week after suffering a 13-point loss to Yuba, which then went out and lost to San Diego City in the finals of the Grossmont Tournament. The Rams haven’t won consecutive game since the San Bernardino Valley Tournament in early November. Next week, San Francisco will compete in the Tristian Hill Tournament at San Joaquin Delta — where the finals could feature a West Valley vs. San Francisco final.

7. Sequoias (5-2) — Sequoias climbs a spot this week thanks to Columbia falling. I know I shouldn’t have — but why not, so I took a peek at the Winning Percentage Index report. Curious with two loses to San Francisco and wins over Allan Hancock (has lost some luster), San Jose and Cuesta where Sequoias might stand in the Winning Percent Index. And, while I can’t reveal their exact location, I can say I was a bit surprised. The Giants have seven more non-conference games remaining. Unfortunately, that group of seven are 27-34 and only two currently have winning records. The Winning Percent Index report will be released on Jan. 2 and every week after.

8. Cerro Coso (7-0) — Cerro Coso is one of four remaining unbeatens in the state. Shockingly, two are from the Inland Empire Athletic Conference. Cerro Coso’s non-conference RPI ranking is even better than Mt. San Jacinto, the other unbeaten in the conference. Cerro Coso has five remaining non-conference games before opening conference play on Dec. 20 against – you guessed it — Mt. San Jacinto. But between now and then, Cerro Coso faces the likes of #11 Moorpark (Dec. 6) and #22 Citrus (Dec. 16).

9. Cabrillo (10-0) — Cabrillo began the year ranked #22. Today Cabrillo lands at #9 after winning its first 10 games of the season, highlighted by victories over Merced and Columbia. Its last four games Cabrillo has scored 100 or more points and six of 10 broke the century mark. Five games remain in Cabrillo’s non-conference schedule, none of which are ranked.

10. Columbia (9-1) — Columbia had its nine-game win streak snapped when the Claim Jumpers got jumped by Cabrillo 102-80. The loss dropped Columbia four spots. Columbia surrendered 56 second-half points to Cabrillo. The road to redemption is short as Columbia has just three non-conference games remaining before opening Central Valley Conference play at home against Sequoias.

11. Moorpark (8-2) — Moorpark retains its #11 ranking after claiming the consolation championship at the Grossmont Tournament. The Raiders’ losses read like a who’s who — Cerro Coso, San Francisco and Yuba. As luck would have it (for us fans), Moorpark gets a shot at redemption on Wednesday when Moorpark visits #8 Cerro Coso.

12. San Jose City (8-2) — San Jose City maintains its No. 12 ranking, despite suffering its second loss of the season (to Sequoias, no shame there). The Jaguars have six remaining non-conference games. They close out 2023 with a road game at San Francisco and then open 2-24 with a home game against Chabot. 

13. West LA (6-2) — West LA moves four slots after winning its Wild West Shootout this past weekend. Unfortunately, it will have to be a quick celebration as West LA competes in the Fullerton Classic, taking on #16 LA Southwest and #4 San Diego City this week.

14. Las Positas (9-1) — Since losing to American River on Nov. 3, Las Positas has run off eight consecutive wins. Although, none have been against ranked opponents, eight wins is eight wins in any athletic circle. Las Positas will play its first ranked opponent this season — Wednesday when the Hawks fly into Saratoga to square up against #1 West Valley.

15. Chabot (9-2) — Chabot might be the poll’s biggest gainer, climbing nine spots behind three consecutive wins since the last poll. Two of the wins were against ranked opponents, including a win over Monterey in the championship game of the Monterey Bay Classic. The loss knocked the Lobos off the unbeaten list.

16. LA Southwest (6-2) — A loss to unranked Ventura causes LA Southwest to slip in this week’s poll and out of the top 15. The Cougars have an opportunity re-establish themselves as a top 15 team this week, with games against #3 Fullerton and #13 West LA at the Fullerton Classic.

17. Allan Hancock (5-4) — Losses in three of its last four games dropped Allan Hancock out of the top 10 this week. The Bulldogs have seven non-conference games remaining in order to figure things out before the start of Western State-North play, where the Bulldogs are expected to compete with Moorpark for the title.

18. Merced (8-1) — Merced extended its win streak to six games. The Blue Devils have yet to play a ranked opponent which is probably keep them from breaking into the top 15. Currently, Merced ranks 16^th in the non-conference RPI. Their first chance at playing a ranked opponent may be in the finals of the Modest Tournament should West Hills-Lemoore make the finals.

19. Sacramento City (8-0) — Sacramento City continues to climb. Sacramento City played just one game since the last poll but climbed substantially due to upsets of the teams just above them. Sacramento will play its first ranked opponent in the opening round of the Modesto Tournament. The Panthers will meet West Hills-Lemoore, ranked #29, in the first round on Thursday. Despite not playing a ranked team Sacramento has one of the north’s strongest RPI rankings in non-conference play.

20. Monterey Peninsula (7-1) — Monterey slipped a spot after failing to hold homecourt in the finals of the Monterey Bay Classic. The Lobos fell to Chabot by 21 points, snapping its seven-game win streak. Monterey has six remaining non-conference games, the final three against currently ranked opponents.

21. Saddleback (6-3) — Despite going 1-2 at the Grossmont Tournament, the Bobcats managed to fall just three slots in this week’s poll. It helped that Saddleback’s two losses were to highly ranked San Diego City and Moorpark. One thing you can say about Saddleback coach Jeff Oliver is he isn’t afraid to schedule tough or storied programs. This week, the Bobcats take on Ventura, San Bernardino Valley and Mt. San Jacinto in Riverside. Two of the games will be rematches (Saddleback wins) from earlier this season. 

22. Mt. San Antonio (7-1) — The next four spots begin a series of finger pointing — I beat you, yea but he beat you and you lost to…you get the idea. … Mt. San Antonio lost to Chaffey but beat Santiago Canyon and Citrus … and the Mounties have a better non-conference RPI than …

23. Chaffey (8-1) — … Well, we beat Mt. San Antonio but lost to Santiago Canyon … and we have a better non-conference RPI than Santiago Canyon and Citrus …

24. Santiago Canyon (7-3) — … So, we lost to Mt. San Antonio, but beat Citrus…… and we have a better non-conference RPI than Citrus…

25. Citrus (6-2) — Citrus we lost to Mt. San Antonio and Santiago Canyon, so that is how we got here — after being #16 in the last poll.

26. Skyline (7-2) — Skyline was held to 19 second-half points in a 20-point loss to Santa Rosa last week. Normally that would probably been enough to get knocked out of the top 30, but Trojans recovered with a win over Diablo Valley, giving them seven wins in nine tries, enough to keep them in this week’s poll – but it was close as the point spread among the remaining eight teams who received votes were one point.

27. Los Medanos (6-3) — Los Medanos makes its first appearance in the CCCMBCA top 30 this week. Los Medanos has won four of its last five games and missed out on upsetting Sacramento City by one point. Los Medanos will get another opportunity on Dec. 12 when the Mustangs visit Sacramento City. They also get a shot at #12 San Jose City on Wednesday. Two victories could propel them up the rankings.

28. West Hills-Lemoore (6-2) — West Hills-Lemoore tumble a few spots after a 32-point slacking by Allan Hancock. The Golden Eagles have now lost to two ranked opponents while playing the north’s 18^th toughest non-conference schedule. Two of West Hills-Lemoore’s final non-conference games feature ranked opponents – Citrus (Dec. 13) and Skyline (Dec. 21).

29. Irvine Valley (6-2) — Irvine Valley captured the consolation championship at the Monterey Bay Classic. Doing, so kept the Lasers in the top 30. Irvine Valley has three remaining non-conference games, including a key matchup with #22 Mt. San Antonio on Friday.

30. Cosumnes River (5-3) — With San Bernardino Valley and East Los Angeles colleges falling out of the top 30 it opened the door for Cosumnes River. Cosumnes River held off four other teams to earn the final spot in this week's poll. Cosumnes River’s three losses have been to ranked opponents — Columbia, twice; and Las Positas. Hawks have four remaining non-conference games before starting Big Eight Conference play.

Next poll is scheduled for December 18.