SOUTHERN SECTION BASKETBALL PREVIEW : FRONTIER LEAGUE : Calabasas

COACH: Bill Bellatty, 7th season

LAST SEASON: 11-12; tied for 3rd in league, 3-5

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Calabasas started its practices on a high note: The Coyotes found a 6-5 transfer from Riverside in the gym looking to try out for the team. Bellatty said that senior center Anthony Hampton could turn out to be the best big man Calabasas has ever had. Only one starter returns from last season: senior off-guard Brian Schmidt. Point guard will be shared by seniors Brian Bruskrud (6-0) and Jeff Maren (5-9). Helping Hampton underneath will be three players: sophomore Sam Cunningham (6-3), junior Mike Dye (6-2) and freshman Billy Hoover (6-0).

OUTLOOK: The arrival of Hampton has brightened the Coyotes’ outlook. “This new kid will make a big difference,” Bellatty said. But it still looks like an uphill climb. “We’re fit for last, or next to last,” Bellatty said.

Fillmore

COACH: John Wilber, 2nd season

LAST SEASON: 12-11; 5th in league, 2-6

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Two starters return, led by senior point guard Danny Ocegueda (6-2). “Danny is going to make things happen,” Wilber said. Also shouldering the scoring load will be senior forward Rudy Alcantar (6-3), back from last year. Fillmore will look for strong play in the post from senior center Mike Meza (6-6). Twin brothers Scott DeCuir (6-3) and Brian DeCuir (6-0), both juniors, will start. Scott will play big forward and Brian will play shooting guard, Wilber said. The rest of the team will prove itself as the season unfolds.

OUTLOOK: It might be tough to crack the power triumvirate of Santa Clara, Santa Paula and Nordhoff. “It’s gonna be tough,” Wilber said. “We’ll try to compete with those guys, but we sure are an underdog in this situation.”

Nordhoff

COACH: Dick Sebek, 17th season

LAST SEASON: 13-10; tied for 3rd in league, 3-5

PLAYERS TO WATCH: If any team has a prayer of beating Santa Clara, it is Nordhoff, which has All-Ventura County guard Tim Sebek (6-4) back. Sebek, a senior and the coach’s son, averaged 23 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists last season. “He’s our main player, that’s for sure,” Dick Sebek said. Sebek will be paired on the court with his brother, Mark Sebek (6-2), a sophomore swingman who started most of last season. More experience returns in senior off-guard Kevin Cochran (6-0), an all-league player who averaged 14.5 points, and in senior guard Nacho Vega (5-9), a standout running back on the football team who averaged 10.7 points last season. The new addition to the lineup might be senior Dan Paine (6-5), a center who will be the team’s featured inside player.

OUTLOOK: It is hard to think any team will unseat Santa Clara as league champion: The Saints have won 60 consecutive league games. But Nordhoff, which figures to battle for second with Santa Paula, won’t mind trying.

Santa Clara

COACH: Lou Cvijanovich, 34th season

LAST SEASON: 28-5; 1st in league, 8-0

PLAYERS TO WATCH: It looks to be business as usual in Oxnard, where the three-time defending Southern California Division IV champion will have four starters back from a team that lost in the state championship game to Hayward last year. Perhaps the steadiest of the four is senior guard Chris Cole (6-foot-4), the Southern Section Division IV player of the year as a junior. Though Cole averaged just 10 points, his defense, passing and court sense make him Santa Clara’s most dangerous player. Senior point guard Art Barron (6-0), an All-Southern Section choice, is the team’s most prolific scorer, leading Santa Clara with a 15-point average last season. Barron also is the team’s best three-point shooter. The Saints have bulk too. Senior forward Stevie Amar (6-4), a second-team All-Southern Section player, averaged 12.3 points and led the team with 8.9 rebounds. More size comes with senior center Isaiah Mustafa (6-3), a great leaper who averaged 11.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while starting every game last season. Three players are in the running to join the experienced quartet in the starting lineup: seniors Pat Lampson (6-6), James Wachsman (6-3) and Ray Guillen (6-4).

OUTLOOK: Last year’s team came one game shy of winning a third consecutive state championship, so there is little reason to believe the same scenario won’t unfold again. The same team, for all practical purposes, returns a year stronger and a year smarter.

Santa Paula

COACH: Tom Donahue, 2nd season

LAST SEASON: 12-10; 2nd in league, 4-4

PLAYERS TO WATCH: The Cardinals return size, talent and all five starters, raising hopes that Santa Paula will field a strong team. Leading the way is All-Southern Section guard Joey Ramirez (6-0), a senior who averaged 22 points last year. “He’s our clutch guy,” Donahue said. “And he’s a great foul shooter.” The big guy returns, too, in senior center Terry Bell (6-8). Bell averaged 14 points and nine rebounds last season. Senior off-guard George Albanez (6-2) and his 12-point average return, as does senior power forward Kevin Krossley (6-2), who “plays bigger than he is,” according to Donahue. Senior swingman Charley Hyde (6-3), the fifth returning starter, is coming off a productive summer. Sixth man Patrick Villa (6-4) can play down low and senior guard Art Marcelo (5-9), who made second-team all-league last season, will lend punch off the bench.

OUTLOOK: Santa Paula has the talent to make the race for second place interesting. They played Nordhoff four times last season and split the series.