Poly’s Punishment Shakes Up Seedings

With the announcement of the Southern Section girls’ basketball playoff pairings on Sunday, there already was a clear line of losers.

And everyone has the best team in the division to blame.

Defending Division I-AA champion Long Beach Poly, 2-24 after forfeiting 20 games this week for using an ineligible player, is now the Moore League’s fourth-place entry instead of holding the No. 1 spot in the division after being the top-ranked team all season.

The Jackrabbits are positioned to rip through a string of league champions who probably wouldn’t have faced them until at least the quarterfinals.

“I had mixed feelings,” said Coach Anthony Williams of Mira Loma Jurupa Valley. “Obviously, we would prefer not to play them as early as the quarterfinals, but my goal of winning a title hasn’t changed. Had they not participated, anybody who wins it would get an asterisk.”

Third-seeded Jurupa Valley (24-3) would be matched against Poly in the quarterfinals. An even bigger loser is Santa Monica (20-2), the Ocean League champion that would play host to Poly in the first round Saturday if the Jackrabbits beat Lawndale Leuzinger (12-13) in a wild-card game on Thursday.

The Jackrabbits could face Golden League champ Palmdale (18-9) in the second round, second-seeded Etiwanda (25-3) in the semifinals and top-seeded Lynwood (16-4) in the finals.

Poly is ranked No. 3 by The Times, No. 3 in the state by Cal-Hi Sports and No. 28 in the nation by Student Sports.

Other top-seeded teams announced were Ventura (22-4) in Division I-A, Fullerton Troy (25-1) in II-AA, Newbury Park (20-6) in II-A, Santa Margarita (22-4) in III-AA, La Puente Bishop Amat (27-1) in III-A, Los Angeles Marlborough (21-2) in IV-AA, L.A. Windward (22-3) in IV-A, L.A. Pacific Hills (23-2) in V-AA and Santa Maria Valley Christian (20-5) in V-A.

Newbury Park assumed the No. 1 position in Division II-A because Irvine Woodbridge (23-3) was beaten, 49-45, in the Sea View League season finale Thursday by Santa Ana Foothill (21-5), which overcame a 41-34 fourth-quarter deficit.

Foothill is seeded second, Woodbridge third, where it would face Newbury Park in the semifinals. Fourth-seeded South Torrance (21-7) would be matched against Foothill in the semifinals.