PREP REVIEW : Nonleague Games Play Role in Determining Record Playoff Field

Loara High School is not among the 285 teams making up the largest field ever assembled for the Southern Section boys’ basketball playoffs.

Loara was left out of the 32-team 4-AA division despite a 15-7 record and a fourth-place finish in the Empire League.

Cypress, which finished last in the Empire League and lost twice to Loara en route to a 7-15 regular-season record, is included in the playoffs, which start on Tuesday. Pairings for all divisions were announced Sunday.

Cypress received an at-large berth in the 4-A division. At-large teams in Loara’s division include Claremont (8-16), Arlington (7-15) and Ventura (8-17).

Loara’s failure to gain a playoff berth can be traced to a weak nonleague schedule. The first criteria for selecting at-large entries was a point system introduced to the section by Woodbridge Coach Bill Shannon, also a member of the basketball advisory committee.

Under the system, a point is given to any team playing another team above its division. Another point is given to a team for defeating a team above its division or in its division.

Points also were awarded for victories against a league champion or co-champion in a team’s division or a higher division and for winning a preseason tournament.

Under the system, Loara received only nine points despite winning the Garden Grove and Pacifica tournaments. Claremont had 23 points, Arlington had 20 points and Ventura, the last team admitted to the 4-AA division playoffs, had 18.

“It hurts to see Cypress make the playoffs and we beat them twice,” Loara Coach Jerry Halpin said. “Then, you see teams like La Quinta and Costa Mesa with two wins, and they make the playoffs.

“We didn’t get credit for beating some good teams like Estancia, Western and John W. North because they’re lower-division teams. But we could have made the playoffs as a third-place team if we would have played better in the second round of league.”

Loara had 11 consecutive victories to open the 1989-90 season but has only four victories since Dec. 29. Loara won only one game in the second round of league play and four of its five opponents in the Empire League are at least a division lower than the Saxons. Still, Loara deserved better, said Dean Crowley, associate section commissioner, and there will be changes in the point system next year.

“We need to credit teams for what they do on the court and not for their master schedule,” Crowley said. “We’re rewarding teams for scheduling a team in a higher division, no matter if they win or lose.

“We’ve opened the playoffs to just about everybody, by and large, but there are some things we still need to work out. I said it would take three years to fine-tune the new playoff system, and I think we’re getting close.”

Only the Orange League failed to qualify more than three teams for the playoffs, with most of the county’s six-team leagues sending five teams into postseason play. All five members of the Angelus League made the playoffs.

Among the surprise at-large entries were Costa Mesa (2-19) in the 3-A, La Quinta (2-20) and Sonora (6-18) in the 3-AA and Cypress (7-15) in 4-A. Katella (6-17) could have qualified for the 29-team field in the 4-A playoffs, but Coach Tom Danley declined to petition for an at-large entry.

Jim Perry, La Quinta coach, didn’t apologize for his team, which had only two victories, making the playoffs. He said he met with his team Thursday and the players voted to petition for an at-large entry.

“I didn’t make up the system, I just turned the paper work in,” Perry said. “Should we be playing in the playoffs? Yeah, under this system. Under the old system, no way.”

Cypress Coach Kevin Loftus said he had no intention of petitioning for a playoff berth until he talked to Halpin last week.

“He pointed out that there are only 40 teams in the 4-A division and that it wouldn’t hurt to try and get in,” Loftus said. “We brought the petition form down to the CIF office on Thursday and now we’re in.”

Katella wasn’t the only county school that declined to petition for an at-large berth. Los Amigos (2-19) could have qualified for the 29-team field in the 3-AA, but chose not to compete in the playoffs.

The 5-A, which has 29 teams with a winning record, is the strongest of the section’s 10 divisions. Mater Dei (25-1) is the top-seeded team in the division and defending champion Capistrano Valley (17-8) is seeded fourth.

The division’s lower bracket is stacked with traditional powers Capistrano Valley, Los Alamitos, Ocean View and second-seeded Loyola. Mater Dei’s strongest opponents in the upper division appear to be Marina and Cajon.

After reviewing the bracket sheet, Ocean View Coach Jim Harris called the division “the Mater Dei Invitational.”

“If someone sat down and paired the playoffs like a tournament, they’d want to be sure of a good matchup in the championship,” Harris said. “That’s why Mater Dei is in one bracket and most of the other strong teams are in the other bracket.

“The team that advances from the lower bracket to the championship game will be either good or worn out.”

The quality of play in the lower divisions has been weakened under the new point system. In the 3-A, only 12 of the 32 teams in the bracket finished the regular season with a winning record. Rancho Alamitos (20-3) is the second-seeded team and Corona del Mar (16-9) is third.

Rancho Alamitos’ leading scorer, 6-foot-3 David Green, missed Friday’s regular-season finale because of a dislocated left thumb and will be examined today. Green’s status in the playoffs is questionable, but he should benefit from a first-round bye.

Green, averaging 16 points and 12 rebounds in Garden Grove League play, hit his thumb on the backboard while blocking a shot early in the second quarter of a 61-55 overtime victory over Pacifica Wednesday.

In 2-AA, only 12 teams have winning records and 11 schools received first-round byes. No county team was seeded in the division.

In 2-A, 13 teams have winning records. Laguna Beach (19-5) is the top-seeded team and among 10 schools with first-round byes.

St. Margaret’s (17-4) is the second-seeded team in the Small Schools division.

Both the Tustin and Sunny Hills basketball teams will be without a starter when they play in the first round of the 4-AA playoffs Tuesday.

Phuong Tran of Tustin and David Ragsdale of Sunny Hills were declared academically ineligible last week. Ragsdale, a 6-foot-4 forward, was the Lancers’ leading scorer. Tran, a 5-11 guard, was the Tillers’ second leading scorer.

Two weeks ago, Sunny Hills lost guard Dominic Carnesi, who was academically ineligible.

Prep Notes

Los Alamitos has retired No. 4, which was worn by former basketball standout J.T. Snow. Snow, a three-year starter who graduated in 1986, attended the University of Arizona on a baseball scholarship. He will begin his second season of professional baseball later this month in the New York Yankees’ minor league system. Snow, who was an honor student, holds six school basketball records. . . . Century High will open its first varsity football season in the fall with a nonleague game at El Dorado. Marina will open its 1990-91 season against Lompoc and Napoleon Kaufman, one of the top returning backs in the state. . . . The Rams’ offensive coordinator, Ernie Zampese, University of Pittsburgh Coach Mike Gottfried, San Jose State’s Claude Gilbert and Valencia High School’s Mike Marrujo will be the guest speakers at the Orange County Athletic Directors Assn. football clinic Feb. 24 at Rams Park in Anaheim. The clinic, scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m., is free to all area coaches.

SOUTHERN SECTION BOYS’ BASKETBALL PLAYOFF PAIRINGS

DIVISION 5-AA

Arcadia (11-12) at Lynwood (26-1); El Rancho (15-8) at Alhambra (19-5); Saddleback (16-11) at Nogales (21-5); Millikan (19-7) at Hemet (9-14); Hesperia (10-14) at Redlands (20-6); Montebello (13-11) at Antelope Valley (20-5); Santa Ana (10-13) at Hawthorne (18-8); LB Jordan (10-15) at St. Monica (20-5).

Chaffey (15-10) at San Bernardino (24-2); Fontana (17-7) at Etiwanda (19-5); Lakewood (15-10) at Palmdale (15-10); Leuzinger (16-9) at St. Anthony (15-5); Fountain Valley (11-13) at Perris (18-6); Quartz Hill (14-10) at Simi Valley (17-8); Eisenhower (17-9) at Upland (19-7); Santa Monica (13-12) at LB Poly (21-2).

DIVISION 5-A

Irvine (11-15) at Mater Dei (25-1); Cerritos (20-5) at Esperanza (16-10); Huntington Beach (10-14) at Royal (20-6); Santa Maria (13-10) at Santa Barbara (20-6); Damien (17-9) at Canyon Springs (21-4); El Toro (19-5) at Indio (14-9); Diamond Bar (15-10) at Marina (17-8); Montclair (16-9) at Cajon (21-3).

Corona (15-8) at Capistrano Valley (17-8); Canyon Country Canyon (18-6) at Arroyo (21-4); Buena (17-9) at Pasadena (20-5); Warren (6-17) at Los Alamitos (19-6); Dana Hills (16-9) at Moreno Valley (19-6); Hart (18-7) at Ocean View (14-10); Victor Valley (11-10) at West Covina (19-6); Thousand Oaks (12-11) at Loyola (18-3).

DIVISION 4-AA

St. John Bosco (9-15) at Dominguez (9-15); Garey (11-12) at Rosemead (13-9); Bishop Amat (14-11) at Canyon (14-10); Arlington (7-15) at Whittier (18-6); Claremont (8-16) at Beverly Hills (20-5); Westlake (14-10) at Muir (14-10); Mountain View (13-9) at Ramona (10-13); Ventura (8-17) at Glendora (21-5).

Riverside North (9-12) at Mission Viejo (18-6); Tustin (18-7) at Sunny Hills (10-12); Agoura (13-8) at Crespi (11-11); Woodbridge (13-12) at Edison (17-8); Camarillo (16-8) at Walnut (20-3); Riverside Poly (16-9) at Norco (15-10); Gahr (12-13) at California (17-6); Torrance (11-12) at Compton (18-6).

DIVISION 4-A

Artesia (21-2), bye; Bosco Tech (3-19) at La Puente (12-11); Charter Oak (7-16) at Ganesha (11-11); El Modena (13-10) at Fullerton (11-12); Rio Mesa (12-14) at Righetti (10-13); Redondo (7-18) at Temple City (13-10); Ridgecrest Burroughs (16-6) bye.

Santa Fe (11-10) at La Mirada (16-8); Norte Vista (10-12) at Palm Desert (11-11); Los Altos (9-12) at Yucaipa (9-12); North Torrance (10-14) at Kennedy (16-6); Norwalk (10-13) at Bishop Montgomery (14-7); Garden Grove (11-12) at Buena Park (11-12); Cypress (9-15) at Mira Costa (15-8); San Marcos (21-6) bye.

DIVISION 3-AA

Morningside (23-3), bye; Burbank (3-18) at Azusa (14-12); Newbury Park (7-16) at Atascadero (16-6); Palos Verdes (12-14) at Lompoc (18-5); Rim of the World (11-11) at Pomona (19-6); South Torrance (6-18) at Estancia (15-9); Glenn (5-16) at Rolling Hills (15-11); Sonora (6-18) at Western (18-5).

Foothill (18-6), bye; Compton Centennial (10-11) at Savanna (16-10); Troy (11-11) at Servite (13-10); La Quinta (2-20) at Trabuco Hills (16-8); Laguna Hills (9-14) at Newport Harbor (18-7); Bassett (11-11) at Culver City (14-9); Bolsa Grande (8-13) at El Dorado (14-10); Brea-Olinda (21-5), bye.

DIVISION 3-A

Harvard (21-2), bye; Blair (6-17) at St. Francis (7-14); Monrovia (2-17) at Pacifica (11-11); Covina (6-15) at San Dimas (17-7); Mayfair (0-22) at St. Bernard (13-11); Dos Pueblos (11-13) at Cabrillo (11-11); Santa Paula (2-18) at San Luis Obispo (12-10); La Canada (18-6), bye.

Corona del Mar (16-9), bye; Costa Mesa (2-19) at St. Paul (6-15); Duarte (10-12) at San Marino (14-10); Northview (16-6), bye; Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (13-10), bye; Calabasas (10-12) at Moorpark (13-9); South Pasadena (12-10) at Bellflower (9-12); Rancho Alamitos (19-4), bye.

DIVISION 2-AA

Santa Clara (20-0), bye; Pius X (2-18) at Salesian (4-16); Chaminade (12-10), Beaumont (13-9) and Tehachapi (18-3), bye; Santa Ynez (6-16) at Fillmore (6-16); Whittier Christian (13-11) and Cathedral (17-6), bye.

Twentynine Palms (20-1), bye; Valley View (10-9) at Verbum Dei (10-12); San Jacinto (6-15) at Santa Margarita (11-12); Palo Verde (18-6) and Nordhoff (14-8), bye; Serrano (1-20) at Marshall Fundamental (8-14); Murphy (13-9) and Banning (20-6), bye.

DIVISION 2-A

Laguna Beach (19-5), bye; Kern Valley (1-19) at LA Baptist (8-14); Big Bear (15-7), Bishop (14-9) and Crossroads (10-11), bye; Aquinas (8-14) at Western Christian (15-8); Orange Lutheran (15-10), bye.

Santa Maria St. Joseph (16-7), bye; Paraclete (9-13) at St. Bonaventure (9-12); Bell-Jeff (9-14) at Serra (12-11); Miraleste (13-11) and Riverside Notre Dame (13-10), bye; Silver Valley (12-11) at Mojave (14-8); Oak Park (8-15) at Cantwell (12-9); Valley Christian (19-5), bye.

DIVISION 1-A

Mission Prep (16-4), bye; Villanova Prep (4-14) at Boron (14-8); Capistrano Valley Christian (8-15) at Southern California Christian (13-8); Glendale Academy (14-4) at Chadwick (16-8); Oakwood (9-9) at Bishop Diego (14-8); Brethren (15-8) at Hesperia Christian (20-3); Campbell Hall (9-13) at Mammoth (14-6); La Sierra Academy (12-7) at Holy Martyrs (19-1).

Mary Star (6-14) at Pasadena Poly (16-5); Sherman Indian (11-6) at Brentwood (17-7); Coast Union (10-10) at Thacher (8-5); La Verne Lutheran (10-12) at Woodcrest Christian (17-5); Ontario Christian (13-9) at Flintridge Prep (13-7); Faith Baptist (14-10) at Cate (10-5); Rosamond (10-10) at Providence (12-9); Montclair Prep (18-4), bye.

SMALL SCHOOLS DIVISION

Garden Grove Claremont (5-11) at Ribet Academy (20-2); Abundant Life Christian (11-7) at Immanuel Christian (5-1); Valley Torah (11-6) at South Bay Lutheran (16-7); LA Lutheran (13-8) at Valley Christian Academy (13-5); Lone Pine (9-11) at Inland Christian (18-1); Rio Hondo Prep (13-7) at Southeast Lutheran (9-10); Newbridge (14-8) at California Lutheran (11-7); Hemet Baptist Christian (11-11) at Elsinore Christian (19-2).

Coastal Christian (9-10) at Highland Hall (20-2); Victor Valley Christian (11-9) at Christian Center (13-5); St. Michael’s (6-4) at New Life Christian (14-6); Lancaster Bethel Christian (17-2) at Owens Valley (9-7); Bel-Air Prep (6-15) at Manoogian (11-4); North County Christian (15-5) at Pilgrim (16-2); Avalon (12-6) at Gethsemane Baptist (14-5); Ambassador Baptist (14-7) at St. Margaret’s (17-4).

All Games Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.