More Teams Make State Regional

The state basketball tournament opens today and for the first time the Southern California Regional will include all section runners-up playing in Division I rather than three teams getting left out of the mix.

The Northern California Regional always included section champions and runners-up. But with a three-round regional format, the Southern California Regional, which included City Section teams in Division I, had to choose among four runners-up for one at-large berth.

In the Southern California Regional boys’ tournament, Southern Section Division I-A runner-up Lake Forest El Toro will play host to San Diego Section runner-up Oceanside El Camino and Southern Section Division I-AA runner-up Newhall Hart will travel to Central Section runner-up Clovis in first-round games at 7 tonight. The winners will advance to the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

City champion Westchester was seeded No. 1 in Division I and will play host Tuesday to the El Toro-El Camino winner. Southern Section Division I-AA champion Etiwanda, which was seeded second, will play host to the Hart-Clovis winner. City runner-up Fairfax was seeded third but will travel in its quarterfinal game Tuesday to San Diego Section champion La Mesa Helix.

Other top-seeded teams in the boys’ tournament are Compton Dominguez in Division II, which features Santa Ana Mater Dei seeded second; North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake in Division III; North Hollywood Campbell Hall in Division IV; and L.A. Price in Division V.

In the Southern California Regional girls’ tournament, each champion and runner-up in Southern and City sections were selected to play in the Division I quarterfinals Tuesday. San Diego Section champion Carlsbad will play host to Central Section runner-up Fresno Central at 7 tonight in first-round game. San Diego will travel to Central Section champion Bakersfield Stockdale in the other first-round game tonight.

Long Beach Poly, the Southern Section Division I-AA champion, was seeded first in Division I and will play host to the San Diego-Stockdale winner on Tuesday. Moreno Valley Canyon Springs, the Southern Section Division I-A champion, was seeded second and will play host to the Central-Carlsbad winner.

Other top-seeded girls’ teams are Fullerton Troy in Division II, La Puente Bishop Amat in Division III, La Jolla Country Day in Division IV and San Luis Obispo Mission Prep in Division V.