HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL : SOUTHERN SECTION PREVIEW : DELPHIC LEAGUE

Buckley

COACH: Byrd Milic, 4th season

LAST SEASON: 4-16; 7th in league, 0-12

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Buckley has the unenviable task of playing in the toughest league in the Southern Section, if postseason success counts for anything. In 1991-92, four of the seven teams in the league played in a Southern Section final, and two won championships. Four teams in the league are ranked in their division top 10 in Cal-Hi Sports’ preseason polls. Only five Buckley players stand 6-foot or taller. Workhorse center Steve Moon (6-foot-1) returns for his fourth year on the varsity. He averaged 7.0 points and 9.3 rebounds as a junior. Junior guard Eric Biddle (5-10) returns at guard. Junior guard Sean Ervin (5-9) is a returning letterman and one of the team’s most improved players. Sophomore forward Alex Hubert (6-3), up from the junior varsity, will start at forward. “He’s going to get thrown right into the thick of it,” Milic said. Taryll Jackson, a 5-11 baseball standout, will play at point guard along with junior Mitch Brim (5-10), a transfer from Montclair Prep. Sophomore Max Ciano (5-11) is the top reserve at forward. Juniors Yaniv Arazy (5-9), Alex Eshaghian (5-10) and Bardia Anvar (5-7) will play at guard.

OUTLOOK: “We want teams to have to work hard to beat us,” Milic said. “We don’t want them to be able to take a night off and still win.” Milic expects no miracles. “This is a very, very tough league,” he said.

Campbell Hall

COACH: Jon Palarz, 2nd season

LAST SEASON: 22-8; 3rd in league, 7-5

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Campbell Hall won the Southern Section Division V-AA championship last winter, beating rival Faith Baptist, 50-40, in the final. In fact, the Vikings have played in the division final two years in a row and might have the players to make it three. Senior guard C.J. Thompkins (6-2) is expected to have a banner year. Thompkins averaged 12.7 points and 6.8 assists last year and is one of the region’s best guards. Alex Lopez, a 6-10 junior, is bigger (245 pounds) and considerably stronger after a summer of hitting the weights. Lopez averaged 12.4 points, 6.8 rebounds and four blocked shots last season. The team’s third returning starter, 6-6 senior forward Scott Glass, averaged 8.5 points and 6.4 rebounds and is expected to boost his production. There are holes to fill, however. Harold Sylvester, a 5-11 junior guard, is expected to move into the lineup along with senior forward Micah Stott (6-0). Sylvester and Stott were reserves last season. Sophomore guard Aaron Lee (5-9) is up from the junior varsity.

OUTLOOK: Campbell Hall, ranked second in Cal-Hi’s Division V preseason poll, has yet to beat Crossroads. And, as usual, the road to the league championship runs through Crossroads, which has three returning All-Southern Section players in 6-9 center Austin Croshere, 6-4 forward Bakir Allen and 5-7 guard Travon Dugar. Croshere signed early with Providence and Allen signed with UC Santa Barbara. Crossroads is ranked first in the state by Cal-Hi in Division IV and is the section’s defending IV-A champion.

Faith Baptist

COACH: Stuart Mason, 8th season

LAST SEASON: 27-7; tied for 1st in league, 11-1

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Faith Baptist advanced to the state Division V final in Sacramento last season but has lost four starters, including a pair of All-Southern Section picks. James DeCarriere, a 5-9 senior guard who averaged 11.2 points, is the lone returning starter. “Basically, it’s all new,” said Mason, The Times’ Valley coach of the year in 1991-92. Good news has arrived in the form of several new faces, though. Freshman forward Son Cochran (6-3), sophomore guard Tony Hogatts (6-3) and senior guard Leonard Colon (6-0) are new to the program and are contending for starting jobs. Sophomore forward Judd Granzow (6-4), who plays for the football and baseball teams, also could start. Junior guards Charlie Misseijer (5-10), Todd Weaver (5-11) and John Carranza (5-11) are the first players off the bench. Mason expects Carranza, a transfer from Santa Maria St. Joseph, to be a spark plug.

OUTLOOK: “At guard, we’re a little deeper, but in size we’re hurting a little bit,” Mason said. Despite the loss of several key players, most notably longtime standouts Alex Estrada and Peter Rasmussen, Faith Baptist remains a highly regarded program. Cal-Hi Sports ranked the Contenders 10th in the state in its preseason Division V poll. “That’s probably a little optimistic,” Mason said.