Bouncing About the Hardwood

There are some sure things this season in girls’ basketball, like Brea Olinda will be ranked No. 1, Colleen Turnbull will take over a game, Giuliana Mendiola will hit a big shot and Chelsea Trotter will be accused of traveling.

That stuff is known.

Here is what’s largely unknown.

Five players to watch:

* Chanda McLeod, Marina: Came on strong at end of the season to provide inside presence that helped Vikings win section title, but won’t have player of the year Natalie Nakase feeding her this season. Last year: 13 points, 9.7 rebounds.

* Sarah Fister, Sonora: The 6-1 center with a nice touch legitimizes her skills against the likes of Mater Dei and Marina as Sonora steps up its level of competition. Last year: 17.7 points, 13.7 rebounds.

* Aprile Powell, Century: Finally in her senior season and twice a second-team all-county player, Powell will face defenses whose sole priority is to stop her. Last year: 20.5 points, 15.1 rebounds.

* Chelsea Trotter, Brea: Highly recruited junior forward is finally over the knee injury that kept her out as a freshman and slowed her last season. The state Division II player of the year, she is surrounded by the best supporting cast she’ll have in high school. Last year: 15.8 points, 8.9 rebounds.

* Veronica Johns-Richardson, Troy: She played in the shadow of leading scorer Heidi Hardeman last year but moves to forefront as a sophomore. Last year: 12 points, 4 assists, 4 steals.

Three breakout players:

They haven’t received many headlines in the past, but that’s about to change.

* Christina Patterson, Edison: A good shot and steady leader quietly showed signs last season she would elevate her game among the best in the county. Last year: 13.2 points, 6.4 rebounds.

* Romina Bollini, Rosary: Terrific inside player who has shown an ease playing against quality opponents. Last year: 14.2 points, 9.0 rebounds.

* Maile Shimoda, Mater Dei: Talented ballhandler has two years to make her mark, and she’ll do it sooner rather than later. Last year: 8.9 points, 3.7 assists.

Three underrated players:

They’re good, they’re just largely overlooked.

* Kim Omer, Esperanza: Tough perfectionist point guard has huge heart with nice three-point shot and newfound inside game. Her offense must be a factor for Aztecs to be successful. Last year: 10.7 points, 4.2 assists.

* Karyn Fierst, Marina: Competitor with strong court sense and a tough defense. She doesn’t back down from driving to the basket. Last year: 11 points, 2.5 assists.

* Jeri Costello, Brea: Could be a better athlete than teammate Trotter, but is seven inches shorter; a key component if Brea is to realize its aspirations for a national No. 1 ranking. Last year: 5.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 steals.

From the bench:

Three nonstarters last season who will play key roles this year.

* Jeri Armendariz, Brea: An undeniable talent at point guard while starting at University as a sophomore. She didn’t play much after transfer to Brea, but gets a chance to spread the wealth this season. Last year: 1.8 points, 2.8 assists.

* Marissa Ficklin, San Clemente: Won’t have to carry the team with Debby Caine and Colleen Turnbull around, but at 6-3, must play well enough so Turnbull can venture outside and not take all the defenders with her. Last year: 5.2 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.5 blocks.

* Katie Hardeman, Troy: Would have been just another face at Brea, but transferred to Troy and can help Warriors ascend to the upper crust and maybe even a rematch of last year’s section final--against Brea. Last year: 1.2 points, 1.5 rebounds.

Three coaches to watch:

For various reasons, they’re worth keeping an eye on.

* Kristen Okura, Aliso Niguel: First-year coach was a highly respected assistant at Brea during its unbeaten 1993-94 season.

* Eric Bangs, Woodbridge: Developed the Warriors into a state champion, left for three seasons, now tries to rebuild the program from scratch.

* Jim Weeks, Costa Mesa: Developed Mustangs into a section power in the early 1990s, then resigned for what he said was the good of the team. Passed over twice since then in favor of walk-on coaches, filed a grievance with school district in 1996 on procedure used to hire Coach Shontell Sherwood, who has since resigned.

Mark it on your calendar:

There’s plenty of intriguing regularly scheduled basketball worth watching, starting this week.

* Dec. 3--Canyon at Esperanza. Canyon will be solid and Esperanza is always good. Allison Gerber, the outstanding Aztec guard, faces her sisters, freshmen twins Kim and Nicole, who play for Canyon.

* Dec. 10--San Clemente at Troy. It’s one of the only times Troy, clearly talented, will be tested at the highest level outside a tournament game.

* Dec. 15--El Toro at San Clemente. The battle to determine who’s really No. 2.

* Jan. 2--Marina at San Clemente. As far as Marina is concerned, this is the battle to determine who’s really No. 2.

* Jan. 16--San Clemente at Brea. The county’s top two teams--at least in the preseason--features six players of NCAA Division I caliber.

* Jan. 23--Troy at Rosary. Most of the principal players in Troy’s 77-74 victory are back this season.

* Jan. 23--Narbonne at Brea Olinda. They finished 1-2 in the state, are considered the two best teams in California, and each has something to prove. If Narbonne wasn’t on probation for using ineligible players last season, this would pit two of the nation’s top three ranked teams.

* Feb. 6--El Toro at Brea. Giuliana Mendiola vs. Lindsey Davidson. El Toro’s raucous fans behind the Brea bench. The up-and-coming young guns vs. the proven program.

You look . . . familiar:

Getting a player back in the lineup after a year’s absence is just like finding an extra gift under the Christmas tree. Here are some players back in their school’s lineup after disappearing in 1997-98.

* Jennifer Smallwoood, Sr., La Habra: Started as a freshman, then was dogged by a series of injuries that kept her out of uniform as a sophomore and most of last season.

* Terrial Cole, Sr., Tustin: Started at point guard as a junior, but left seven games into the season for personal reasons.

* Kristen Mann, So., Foothill: Averaged 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists in seven games last season before being suspended, with four others, for disciplinary reasons.

* Tina Nguyen, Sr., La Quinta: Started as a sophomore but didn’t play last year so she could focus on academics.

* Lyndsay Weaver, Cypress: All-league player as a sophomore, suffered midseason ankle injury. She missed three games and never regained her all-league form.

* Ontaneque Ottrix, CQ Santa Ana Valley: A second-team all-league player as a sophomore, lived in Columbia, S.C., for a year but returned.

* Raven Hebert, Santa Ana Valley: She transferred to Riverside North last season, but will help the Falcons press opponents into submission this season.