Strong schedule makes Palisades worthy of high playoff seed
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Those of you who saw the City Section boys’ basketball pairings might be wondering why Palisades, which finished third in the Western League, is seeded fifth out of 16 teams -- higher than four league champions.
The reason? Strength of schedule. Not only is Palisades deserving of its seeding, you could argue it should be fourth ahead of Coliseum League winner Fremont. No matter, assuming both teams win their first round games, that dispute will be settled on the court in the quarterfinals.
Consider that despite playing in the City’s toughest league the Dolphins have more victories (24) than all but one of the teams seeded in front of them. Also, five of Palisades’ six losses were in the top 10 of The Times’ Southland rankings: No. 4 Fairfax (twice), No. 5 Westchester (twice) and No. 6 Campbell Hall.
Washington potentially could’ve been picked fifth but the Generals didn’t win the Marine League title outright (they were co-champions with Gardena) and, more significantly, they lost to Palisades, 67-51, in a nonleague game.
In this reporter’s opinion, the selection committee did its homework.
The Dolphins also might have benefited from a more objective voting panel this year. In the past, when coaches of contending teams participated in the seeding process, teams in Palisades’ position were more apt to end up eighth or ninth.
I’m not a proponent of coin flips as tiebreakers (using overall record and/or point differential is more fair) but that’s a topic for another blog. It suffices to say, in regards to Palisades’ seeding, the jury returned a just verdict.
-- Steve Galluzzo