Girls’ basketball: This top 25 takes me to the Summit

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Thought about Etiwanda, Los Osos, South Torrance, Colony, Marlborough ... and came up instead with another team from Fontana. How can Summit make The Times’ top 25? Well, sometimes, I throw a dog a bone. It’s hard, I tell you, trying to balance a body of work with ‘What have you done for me lately.’

Would Summit beat Etiwanda, South Torrance, Colony or Marlborough? Heck, I don’t know that they can beat Pacific Hills (a possible quarterfinal opponent) in Division II-A, but that near-pristine record became a little more credible in the last 12 days, and no one else has really distinguished itself. Not by winning, anyway.

Who’s in: Summit.

Who’s out: Bishop Amat.

So what happened?

Narbonne (24-4): The Gauchos had a six-point lead on Washington in the fourth quarter when Reiko Thomas left the game with an injury. Narbonne, which had beaten the Generals by eight points in their first meeting, went on to lose, 48-47. So how far do you drop a team ranked No. 4 under those circumstances? How about three spots, to No. 7, just to drive home the point they’re still accountable for every result. Problem is, Narbonne has beaten No. 5 Brea and No. 6 Redondo. I tell ya, rankings make no sense after 25 games.

Washington (24-5): Maybe the team with the biggest gripe for not being included this week. They did beat Narbonne, after all. If only they had done it straight up. If only they had not lost to Burbank Burroughs and Huntington Beach. If only they had a track record that inspired more confidence. I will grant them this: I sure didn’t think at the beginning of the season they would be in this conversation.

Cajon (24-3): CalHiSports.com has the Cowgirls ranked No. 12 in the state, yet they remain No. 13 in the Southland? Do I really have it in for the area’s most talked-about team (as implied in one of those basketball forums)? Nah, I just didn’t think the victories over Etiwanda (+4), Ventura (+2) or wildly inconsistent Marlborough (+15) warranted a bump ahead of No. 12 Ayala (which has beaten Cajon) and No 11 Perris (which should face Cajon in the Division II-A semifinals). Ever notice those are the top three seeded teams in the division and they’re all lumped together in the top 25? Funny how that stuff works, isn’t it.

Summit (24-1): Inclusion of the SkyHawks really goes against the principles of what I think it takes to be included in the top 25. Frankly, their schedule was soft. However ... on Feb. 2, Summit defeated Corona Santiago by 16 points. A week earlier, Santa Margarita defeated Santiago by 17 points. Santiago has played some pretty good teams tough. Maybe it’s just a hunch, but I also like the SkyHawks having six players who are 6-0 or taller, and four of them who are at least 6-2 -- and all of them coming back next season. They arrive at No. 25. But a word of warning: You win girls’ basketball games with guards.

Bishop Amat (19-7): It’s tough to drop the Lancers out of the top 25. At No. 22, they were ranked directly behind the team that beat them for the second time this season, No. 21 Bishop Montgomery. Since beating Cajon in the second round of the Ayala tournament to improve to 11-0, Bishop Amat is 1-6 against top 25 opponents, and only one of those losses was by fewer than 11 points. B.A. is B-Y-E.

-- Martin Henderson

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