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  • Devin Ugland

Little change in updated SoCal Top 20

There was bound to be movement.

With the start of league play, coupled with weekend basketball showcaes, surely someone would fall unexpectedly.

No. 1 Chino Hills got a scare from El Cajon Foothills Christian, but hung on to remain unblemished.

No. 24 Long Beach Poly provided a little resistance to No 2. Torrance Bishop Montgomery, but succumbed to David Singleton, Ethan Thompson, Jordan Schakel & Co.

The highest ranked team to lose last week was Los Angeles Fairfax. The Lions were stunned by No. 17 Harbor City Narbonne, 60-58, in the championship of the Huntington Park Tournament.

Here's the updated HoopsByUgland.com Top 20 Plus Five:

1. Chino Hills (14-0 / No.1) Observation: The Huskies narrowly defeated Foothills Christian, 85-83, in the Sierra Canyon Super Showcase to remain unbeaten. Lonzo Ball went for another triple-double, scoring 24 points to go along with 13 rebounds and 10 assists. Next up: The Huskies begin their Baseline League slate Tuesday at Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos 2. Torrance Bishop Montgomery (16-0 / No. 2) Observation: The Knights blew out Narbonne, 82-46, in a nonleague game and then took down Long Beach Poly, 59-47, Saturday in the Westchester Basketball Challenge Next up: The Knights open Del Rey League play at Gardena Serra Wednesday 3. Chatsworth Sierra Canyon (11-1 / No. 3) Observation: The Trailblazers beat up on Windward, 103-70, in a Gold Coast League opener, then went on to defeat Las Vegas Desert Pines, 74-59, Saturday in the Sierra Canyon Super Showcase Next up: A Gold Coast League game at home against Santa Monica Crossroads 4. Santa Ana Mater Dei (15-2 / No. 5) Observation: For anyone who thought Mater Dei would lose a league game this season: The Monarchs won their first two Trinity League games - over Orange Lutheran and Anaheim Servite - by a combined 43 points. Next up: A Trinity League road game against San Juan Capistrano JSerra Monday 5. El Cajon Foothills Christian (9-3 / No. 8) Observation: Is it possible to lose a game and move up in the rankings? It is this week for Foothills Christian. The Knights had plenty of opportunities to knock off No. 1 Chino Hills at the Sierra Canyon Super Showcase, but fell by two, 85-83. T.J. Leaf added a 43 point (20 of 24 field goals) and 21 rebounds to his McDonald’s All-American and California State Player of the Year resumes. Next up: A Coastal League match-up Wednesday against Solana Beach Santa Fe Christian at Cuyamaca College. 6. Redondo Union (12-3 / No. 6) Observation: The Sea Hawks are a well-balanced and disciplined bunch which helped them take down Gahr, 65-45, Saturday in the Westchester Basketball Challenge Next up: Redondo opens Bay League play at Inglewood Tuesday 7. Encino Crespi (16-1 / No. 9) Observation: The Celts are two games into their Mission League slate, beating St. Francis by 25 and held on for a two-point overtime win over Harvard-Westlake. Crespi’s winning streak now stands at 16 games since suffering a season-opening loss against Peninsula. Next up: Crespi will be on the road at Loyola 8. Los Angeles Fairfax (15-2 / No. 4) Observation: The Lions advanced to the championship game of the Huntington Park tournament with wins over Lake Balboa Birmingham, Sylmar and Long Beach Rancho Dominguez, but fell in the title game to Narbonne. Next up: A Western League match-up against Los Angeles Hamilton 9. Corona Centennial (10-5 / No. 7) Observation: The Huskies won three of the six games they played without senior center Ike Anigbogu with all three of those L’s coming in consecutive games. Centennial’s three game losing streak has come against some stiff competition: No. 8 Fairfax, No. 2 Bishop Montgomery and No. 20 Westchester. Next up: Anigbogu will be back as the Huskies open Big VIII play against Riverside M.L. King 10. La Verne Damien (15-1 / No. 10) Observation: The Spartans dominated Fresno Sunnyside, 85-44, in the Ron Massey Classic at Long Beach Jordan High. Next up: Damien hosts Rancho Cucamonga in a Baseline League opener Tuesday 11. San Diego St. Augustine (12-3 / No. 11) Observation: The loss to No. 19 Alemany in the Sierra Canyon Super Showcase came without talented junior guard Otto Taylor, which is why the Saints did not drop in the updated rankings. Next up: St. Augustine continues Western League play Tuesday at home against San Diego University City 12. Santa Margarita (10-5 / No. 12) Observation: Junior power forward Adrease Jackson scored 22 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in his Trinity League debut - an 88-71 win over San Juan Capistrano JSerra Next up: The Eagles continue Trinity League play with a trip to Bellflower to take on St. John Bosco 13. Santa Monica (13-2 / No. 16) Observation: Senior shooting guard Jonah Mathews continues to put up big numbers in the scoring column, the most recent outburst being a 21-point performance in a 66-51 win over Long Beach Millikan Saturday in the Westchester Basketball Challenge. Next up: The Vikings begin Ocean League play Wednesday night at Hawthorne 14. Chino Hills Ayala (13-2 / No. 13) Observation: The Bulldogs are coming off back-to-back blowouts last week. First was a 98-53 nonleague win over West Covina and the second an 87-53 Palomares League decision over Diamond Bar. Next up: Ayala travels to Claremont Tuesday for its second league tilt 15. Los Alamitos (14-3 / No. 14) Observation: Senior point guard and UC Irvine-signee Eyassu Worku surpassed Jason Cunningham as the schools’ all-time scoring leader in a Sunset League win over Huntington Beach Edison Friday. Next up: A Sunset League road game at Fountain Valley Wednesday 16. Orange Lutheran (13-3 / No. 15) Observation: Chris Williams scored 17 points in a nine-point loss to Mater Dei and followed that up with 17 more in a four-point win over St. John Bosco. Next up: The Lancers will be on the road at Servite on Wednesday 17. Harbor City Narbonne (10-5 / NR) Observation: The Gauchos picked up a huge win over then No. 4 and current No. 8 Fairfax in the Huntington Park Tournament championship game. Next up: Narbonne is on the road at Los Angeles King/Drew in a Marine League game on Wednesday 18. Montebello Cantwell-Sacred Heart (11-4 / No. 17) Observation: The Cardinals had close calls with Altadena Renaissance Academy and Cerritos Gahr last week, but pulled out narrow wins in both. Next up: A Del Rey League game at Gardena Serra on Friday 19. Mission Hills Alemany (12-5 / No. 19) Observation: The Warriors have won three straight games since their loss to Cantwell in the Jordan Brand Take Flight Challenge. Those wins came over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, West Hills Chaminade and San Diego St. Augustine. Next up: Alemany is on the road at Studio City Harvard-Westlake on Wednesday 20. Los Angeles Westchester (11-5 / No. 22) Observation: Keith Fisher scored 17 points in Westchester’s 59-54 win over No. 9 Corona Centennial Saturday in the Westchester Basketball Challenge Next up: A Western League road game Monday at Palisades. 21-25: 21. Eastvale Roosevelt (10-5); 22. Inglewood (12-4); 23. Woodland Hills Taft (13-4); 24. Long Beach Poly (9-7); 25. Moreno Valley Rancho Verde (16-0)


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