The Sacred Heart Prep boys basketball team hopes to follow in the footsteps of its vaunted football squad and bring home a second Central Coast Section Open Division title in two weeks.
The Gators will be making their first appearance in Open Division hoops and have six members of the football team to help lead the way.
Mason Randall, Mitch Martella, Andrew Daschbach, Justin Harmon, Nick O’Donnell and Kyle Stalder all contributed during the Gators’ historic 13-0 run to the title in football and all just completed a 14-0 run through the West Bay Athletic League.
Coincidence?
While the SHP football team was seeded No. 1, its basketball squad is No. 4. The Gators (22-2) will open on Friday against No. 5 Riordan (15-9) at Santa Clara High at 5:30 p.m.
A victory by the Gators most likely will earn them a date with No. 1 St. Francis in the semifinals on March 3. The title game will be March 6 at Santa Clara University at 8 p.m.
The top half of the bracket includes No. 2 Serra (19-5), which handed SHP one of its two losses. The Gators bring a 15-game win streak into the postseason.
In Division I, SCVAL El Camino Division champ Gunn (18-3) earned only a No. 9 seed while Palo Alto (17-7), which finished tied for second in the De Anza Division, was rewarded with a No. 5 seed. Menlo-Atherton (14-11), which finished fourth in the PAL South Division, got the No. 6 seed. The Bears reached the finals last season before falling to Bellarmine, 43-41.
Gunn opens Tuesday at home against Evergreen Valley at 7 p.m., and faces a tough road with Oak Grove and No. 1 Bellarmine as possible opponents.
Paly, which ended the regular season on a three-game losing streak, is one of seven teams from the De Anza Division to make the playoffs.
With defending Division IV champ SHP in the Open Division, Menlo School is the lone local team in Division IV. The Knights (16-7) are seeded No. 2 and will open Saturday, perhaps against WBAL rival King’s Academy, at Kaiser-Permanente Arena in Santa Cruz.
Division V features three teams from the WBAL, including No. 1 Pinewood (16-8), No. 4 Priory (14-9) and No. 7 Eastside Prep (12-12).
Pinewood is the four-time defending champion after topping Priory in the finals last year. The teams could meet in the semifinals next week. Pinewood’s run could depend on the health of injured senior Ryan Brice.
2015 BOYS CCS BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS
OPEN DIVISION
First round
Friday
No. 8 Fremont (18-5) vs. No. 1 St. Francis (20-4) at Santa Clara High, 7:30 p.m.
No. 7 Half Moon Bay (24-2) vs. No. 2 Serra (19-5) at Wilcox, 5:30 p.m.
No. 5 Riordan (15-9) vs. No. 4 Sacred Heart Prep (22-2) at Santa Clara High, 5:30 p.m.
No. 6 Palma (21-3) vs. No. 3 Mitty (15-9) at Wilcox, 7:30 p.m.
–
DIVISION I
First round
Tuesday
Cupertino (9-15) at No. 11 Milpitas (12-12), 7 p.m.
Alvarez (17-7) at No. 10 Independence (16-8), 7 p.m.
Wilcox (9-14) at No. 12 Santa Teresa (12-12), 7 p.m.
Evergreen Valley (13-10) at Gunn (18-3), 7 p.m.
Thursday
Cupertino or Milpitas at No. 6 Menlo-Atherton (14-11), 7 p.m.
Alvarez or Independence at No. 7 Salinas (19-5), 7 p.m.
Wilcox or Santa Teresa at No. 5 Palo Alto (17-7), 7 p.m.
Evergreen Valley or Gunn at No. 8 Oak Grove (15-9), 7 p.m.
Byes into quarterfinals: No. 1 Bellarmine (14-10), No. 2 Piedmont Hills (18-6), No. 3 Sequoia (22-5), No. 4 Homestead (16-7)
–
DIVISION II
First round
Tuesday
Yerba Buena (8-16) at No. 12 Lynbrook (10-14), 7:30 p.m.
Thursday
No. 11 Mt. Pleasant (13-11) at No. 6 Los Altos (10-14), 7 p.m.
No. 10 Overfelt (9-13) at No. 7 Santa Clara (13-11), 7 p.m.
Yerba Buena or Lynbrook at No. 5 Los Gatos (12-12), 7:30 p.m.
No. 9 Westmoor (13-12) at No. 8 Leigh (8-15), 7 p.m.
Byes into quarterfinals: No. 1 Leland (20-4), No. 2 Pioneer (21-3), No. 3 Willow Glen (11-13), No. 4 Christopher (16-8)
–
DIVISION III
First round
Tuesday
Soledad (9-15) at No. 11 Monterey (12-12), 7 p.m.
Jefferson (11-13) at No. 12 Branham (15-9), 7 p.m.
Thursday
Soledad or Monterey vs. No. 6 Burlingame (14-12), 7 p.m.
No. 10 Valley Christian (5-19) at No. 7 Saratoga (18-6), 7 p.m.
Jefferson or Branham vs. No. 5 Gunderson (12-9), 7:30 p.m.
No. 9 Prospect (10-13) at No. 8 Hillsdale (16-8), 7 p.m.
Byes into quarterfinals: No. 1 Sacred Heart Cathedral (13-11), No. 2 Aptos (20-6), No. 3 St. Ignatius (10-14), No. 4 Mills (21-5)
–
DIVISION IV
First round
Tuesday
King City (11-13) at No. 10 North Monterey County (18-5), 7 p.m.
Thursday
No. 11 Scotts Valley (9-16) at No. 6 Monte Vista Christian (16-8), 7:30 p.m.
King City or North Monterey County at No. 7 King’s Academy (11-13), 7 p.m.
No. 12 Del Mar (11-13) at No. 5 Harker (15-9), 7 p.m.
No. 9 Carmel (16-8) at No 8 San Lorenzo Valley (12-13), 7 p.m.
Byes into quarterfinals: No. 1 Santa Cruz (20-6), No. 2 Menlo (16-7), No. 3 Terra Nova (18-6), No. 4 Pacific Grove (18-5)
–
DIVISION V
First round
Tuesday
Downtown College Prep (9-8) vs. No. 11 San Francisco Christian (13-9) at Alma Heights, 7 p.m.
Jewish Community (7-11) at No. 12 St. Lawrence (10-11), 7:30 p.m.
Pacific Collegiate (9-10) at No. 9 Thomas More (18-4), 7 p.m.
Thursday
Downtown College Prep or San Francisco Christian at No. 6 Stevenson (16-7), 7 p.m.
No. 10 Anzar (13-11) at No. 7 Eastside Prep (12-12), 7 p.m.
Jewish Community or St. Lawrence at No. 5 Alma Heights (21-5), 7 p.m.
Pacific Collegiate or St. Thomas More vs. No. 8 Summit Prep (17-9) at Woodside old gym, 8 p.m.
Byes into quarterfinals: No. 1 Pinewood (16-8), No. 2 St. Francis CCC (22-4), No. 3 Oakwood (19-5), No. 4 Priory (14-9)
Kyle Stalder, a Sophomore, also played on the SHP football team that won the CCS Open Division and is on the SHP basketball team.
The Paly boys finished tied for second (not third) in the SCVAL De Anza Division.