Sierra Canyon boys, Ontario Christian girls draw top seeds in Open Division basketball playoffs

Sierra Canyon boys’ basketball team and Ontario Christian’s girls’ team received the No. 1 seeds for the Southern Section Open Division playoffs when pairings were released on Saturday. It’s no surprise since those two teams have been No. 1 since the season began in November.

As they say in horse racing terms, they’re trying to go wire-to-wire, but each faces challenges to reach the Toyota Arena in Ontario for the championship games Feb. 28. Pool play begins Wednesday for boys and Thursday for girls.

There are two veteran teams in the Open Division that should provide competition to Sierra Canyon (22-1). No. 2-seeded Santa Margarita (26-3) and No. 3 Redondo Union (25-3) have both proven to be capable of winning big games against top opponents. Redondo Union owns wins over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame and Phoenix Sunnyslope, the No. 1 team in Arizona. Santa Margarita won the Trinity League tournament.

There were 12 teams selected for the Open Division, using a computer algorithm to rank teams, with four pools of three teams. Teams are guaranteed three games with boys’ quarterfinals Feb. 20, semifinals Feb. 24 and finals Feb. 28. Two teams won’t advance to state playoffs.

Crean Lutheran is seeded No. 1 in Division 1 boys. Gold Coast League co-champions Brentwood and Crossroads have already met twice and could meet a third time in the second round of the Division 1 playoffs if Brentwood defeats Fairmont Prep and Crossroads defeats Long Beach Poly. Longtime power Mater Dei made the Division 2 playoffs. Servite received its first playoff berth in Division 2 since 2022.

In girls’ brackets, defending state champion Etiwanda (27-2) is seeded No. 2 and always seems to play its best come playoff time. Last season, the Eagles knocked off Ontario Christian in the regionals. No. 3 Sierra Canyon (26-2) has South Carolina-bound Jerzy Robinson and will certainly be in contention for section, regional and state titles.

An Etiwanda-Sierra Canyon semifinal is looming for the right to play Ontario Christian. These three teams have dominated girls’ basketball this season.

In the City Section, Palisades is seeded No. 1 in Open Division boys after winning its first league title in 30 years. The Dolphins host El Camino Real on Wednesday in their eight-team bracket game. Cleveland is the No. 2 seed. The finals are Feb. 27 at L.A. Southwest College.

In girls, Westchester received the No. 1 seed in the Open Division and will host King/Drew on Wednesday. Birmingham is the No. 2 seed.