San Francisco Secures No. 1 Ranking in First CCCMBCA Poll

City College of San Francisco Sits Atop the CCCMBCA Poll

City College of San Francisco, one of six unbeaten teams in the state and the defending state champions, received 31 of the 35 No. 1 votes casted in the first poll of the CCCMBCA coaches. San Francisco (6-0) also begins the week with the No. 1 spot in the Massey Ranking which gauges a team's strength of second.

The Rams are averaging 86.7 points a game ninth best in the season, led by Malcomb Johnson, a 6-foot-5, redshirt sophomore from Bakersfield, CA. Johnson played previously at CSU Dominguez Hills. Johnson is averaging 19.2 points and 8.2 rebounds a game. Three of the San Francisco's wins have been by less than 10 points, including its last two victories — 82-78 over No. 15 Fresno City and 78-76 over unranked West Valley.

Fullerton, one of three southern teams to receive a No. 1 vote, comes in at No. 2. The Hornets are off to a 5-1 start. Since losing to No. 5 Citrus on November 8, Fullerton has scored wins over unranked San Diego City (a state finalist last season), No. 4 Mt. San Jacinto and No. 7 Cerritos. The Hornets, who will get another shot at Citrus on December 1, has four players scoring in double figures, led by Lance Coleman, an Irvine Valley College transfer and an all-conference selection last season, at 16.8 points a game.

Santa Rosa lands at No. 3. The Cubs, who fell to San Diego City in last year's state championship quarterfinals, is off to a 5-1 start. It appears, Santa Rosa has recovered from its 91-62 thrashing by Wester Arizona with three consecutive wins at the Shasta Tournament. Circle December 5, Santa Rosa will host No. 1 San Francisco. The game will feature CCSF's Johnson vs. Santa Rosa sophomore 6-5 guard Skylar Chavez, the state's third-leading scorer at 25.7 points a contest.

The south goes on a run, claiming the next five slots and six of the next seven. Mt. San Jacinto, which won its first five games, lands at No. 4. The Eagles' lone setback was an 81-74 loss to No. 2 Fullerton. In the loss, Fullerton outrebounded the Eagles by 12 and somehow managed 18 offensive rebounds leading to a number of second-chance baskets. Mt. San Jacinto is getting balanced scoring with five player scoring double figures and a team scoring average of 82.4 points a game, 18th in the state.

Citrus, which has wins over Fullerton, Santa Monica, Chaffey and Riverside, flies in at No. 5. The Owls' losses have been to San Diego City and Saddleback on consecutive night. Since then, Citrus has run off five straight wins as sophomore guard Psalm Maduakor, the Owls' leading scorer, has posted double figures in Citrus' last five games.

East Los Angeles lands at No. 6 thanks to the Huskies' 81-72 victory over No. 7 San Bernardino Valley. East Los Angeles, which began the season as the south's top-ranked team has lost two of its last four, including a 67-61 loss to unranked West Los Angeles. The Huskies face a tough four game stretch — vs. Saddleback, vs. Riverside, vs Copper Mountain (all at Riverside) and a then a road contest against No. 8 Cerritos on December 21.

San Bernardino Valley lands at No. 7. The Wolverines will compete in the Antelope Valley Tournament (Santa Monica and Rio Hondo) before hosting San Diego City, visiting Chaffey and then Riverside in what figures to be hotly contested contests.

Cerritos won its four first games of the season before suffering a 69-61 setback to No. 2 Fullerton. The Falcons will play 10 games over the course of the next 22 days. And they will be tests – Grossmont Tournament where they could see San Diego City in the finals, followed by single games with No. 10 Allan Hancock (on the road), Fresno (at Sequoias), Shasta (at Sequoias), Sequoias (on the road) and then East Los Angeles on December 21 at home.

Gavilan breaks the south's run in the poll, coming in at No. 9. Gavilan, under second-year coach Dallas Jensen, is off to a 6-1 start. Its lone loss being a two-point setback at No. 10 Allan Hancock. The Rams are getting 13.3 points per game from sophomore guard Ibn Zaid who has scored 19, 15 and 15 in his last three contests. Sophomore forward Daylon Potts has 83 rebounds which is a state-best with his 11.9 rebounds a contest (had 17 vs. Modesto) good for third in the state.

Rounding out the Top 10 is Allan Hancock, a state finalists last season. The Bulldogs are off to a 6-1 start. Lone setback coming against No. 17 Yuba at home. Allan Hancock is averaging just 77 points a game (38th in the state) with no players averaging more than nine points a game. The Bulldogs' hold on a top 10 ranking might be short lived as Allan Hancock is 19th in the Massey Ranking and won't play but one ranked opponent in the month of December (home to No. 8 Cerritos on December 8).

State Poll
1. San Francisco City (764 points) 6-0
2. Fullerton (606) 5-1
3. Santa Rosa (522) 5-1
4. Mt. San Jacinto (521) 6-1
5. Citrus (507) 6-2
6. East Los Angeles (495) 4-2
7. San Bernardino Valley (455) 5-1
8. Cerritos (449) 4-1
9. Gavilan (427) 6-1
10. Allan Hancock (426) 6-1
11. Las Positas (422) 4-0
12. Long Beach (384) 6-1
13. Southwestern (311) 7-2
14. Copper Mountain (301) 6-2
15. Fresno City (262) 3-3
16. Columbia (244) 4-0
17. Yuba (237) 5-3
18. Canada (217) 6-1
19. Mendocino (209) 5-0
20. San Joaquin Delta (204) 4-1

Northern California
1. San Francisco City
2. Santa Rosa
3. Gavilan
4. Las Positas
5. Fresno City
6. Columbia
7. Yuba
8. Canada
9. Mendocino
10. San Joaquin Delta
11. Sequoias
12. Feather River
13. Los Medanos
14. Lassen
15. Cabrillo

Southern California
1. Fullerton
2. Mt. San Jacinto
3. Citrus
4. San Bernardino Valley
5. Cerritos
6. East Los Angeles
7. Allan Hancock
8. Long Beach
9. Southwestern
10. Copper Mountain
11. San Diego Miramar
12. Riverside
13. San Diego City
14. Compton
15. tie, Chaffey and Santa Monica