Prep spotlight: How Riordan basketball is gearing up for another state run

RIORDAN ROAD BACK TO OPEN STATE FINAL STARTS NOW Archbishop Riordan has made its expectation clear this season Get back to the Open Division state title championship Through two games the San Francisco school has shown that it has more than enough to make another run Riordan has opened the season with wins over La Mirada and California doing so with multiple key transfers not playing This is an opportunity for us to get better so we have to take advantage of it Riordan coach Joey Curtin disclosed The guys that are not playing are really supporting the guys that are playing And I think that s just been kind of our special sauce you know and part of our practices of guys just supporting each other Archbishop Riordan s DJ Armstrong reacts after dunking the ball against California s Brayde Kuykendall in the fourth quarter of their contest at Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco Calif on Thursday Dec Archbishop Riordan defeated California - Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group The Crusaders went on a magical run last season going - and hosting the NorCal Open Division title But in the Open state title battle the Crusaders were uncompetitive against Roosevelt-Eastvale in an - loss Riordan graduated substantial contributors from that company including Jasir Rencher Nes Emeneke John Tofi Ryder Bush and Kirby Seals Curtin acknowledged that his defense might take a step back but believes the unit will get better as the season progresses We ve also been scoring in the s so we re a little bit more potent offensively Curtin disclosed It s just all in the want to get back to the level of last year which we won t get to in the preseason but we want to make sure we get that by league and playoffs Nathan Canilao ST IGNATIUS BALL PLAYS FOR SELF DAD You could say Charlie Ball was meant to play for St Ignatius Despite growing up two minutes from Serra in San Mateo SI s senior linebacker opted to follow in his father s footsteps by enrolling at the City school He was primed for a big junior year last season but tore his lateral collateral knee ligament and missed out on SI s run to the CCS Open Division championship He was still there to help on the sideline all season long but it wasn t the same Now healthy and on the field he s led SI to a Central Coast Section Division II championship and is the Wildcats leading tackler with stops St Ignatius' Charlie Ball sacks Sacred Heart Cathedral quarterback Michael Sargent Friday Nov during the annual Bruce-Mahoney competition at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco Calif Karl Mondon for the Bay Area News Group In the Cats championship encounter win over Sacred Heart Cathedral his pick-six was the crucial play that tied the battle and got SI back in it en highway to a - win It s awesome Ball revealed This is what I dreamed of all rehab all recovery This was a special moment especially for me To win a section championship I watched these guys do it last year and I just sought to get back to this moment and win one with these guys It felt good It s even better than I dreamed of Christian Babcock ACALANES SENIOR POINT GUARD LEADS YOUNG GROUP Last season Lexi Le was content being a role member The shifty guard played alongside a starting lineup that included four seniors in a year in which the Dons went - But now Le will be Acalanes featured athlete Acalanes High s Lexi Le brings the ball down court as she's guarded by University s Anna Beischer in the second quarter of their battle at Acalanes High School in Lafayette Calif on Tuesday Dec Jane Tyska Bay Area News Group She made strides to work on her offensive meeting over the summer and now runs the show for the Lafayette school as the crew s starting point guard It was a lot to get used to at first Le mentioned after scoring points in a win over University-San Francisco on Tuesday I m gonna have to be more of a playmaker Last year I was just kind of a role participant touched the ball when I needed to shoot when I needed to So it s definitely really different but it s good to know that my coach trusts me as much as she does Nathan Canilao AMADOR VALLEY STILL TRYING TO FIND IDENTITY It s no secret that Amador Valley is loaded with talent Between crafty point guard Jaylen Smith sharpshooting off guard Cade Krueger and shifty wing Elijah Stanley the Dons have plenty of scoring in their lineup But even after impressive showing against James Logan Sunnyslope-Arizona and Carlmont coach Willis Gardner wants to see more out of his unit We ve got good individual players but we re not a good organization playing right now Gardner mentioned We re still not putting it together yet and it s early but I m just not liking the flow In their last two games against Sunnyslope and Carlmont the Dons have struggled playing a full battle through with consistent execution especially on the defensive end Gardner is hoping Dublin transfer Cameron Anderson and American transfer Arman Mahavni can get cleared in the near future to add to an already potent lineup Nathan Canilao TKA SOPHOMORE SENSATION BLOCKS OUT NOISE The Kings Academy sophomore Boss Mhoon has had quite the summer The -foot- guard made a name for himself on the AAU circuit and was invited to participate in the USA Basketball U Camp ESPN in recent weeks labeled Mhoon as the nd-ranked prospect in the country for the Class of But with all the hype Mhoon hasn t cared much for the extra noise I m just trying to keep my head down and keep working Mhoon announced I know there s a lot of hype around me right now but I m just trying to block out the noise and look at what is in front of me TKA ranked fourth in the Bay Area News Group s preseason rankings is expected to be one of the top teams in the section with Mhoon as the Knights featured performer The sky s the limit for Boss TKA coach Cameron Bradford announced I don t think there s anyone in the section that can stay in front of him Nathan Canilao Related Articles Prep roundup No Riordan dominates No California to open Crusader Classic Prep roundup Acalanes girls crush University Bellarmine outduels Monte Vista Prep roundup No St Ignatius squeaks by No Clayton Valley at NorCal Tip Off Classic Prep football roundup El Cerrito beats Ukiah for NCS Division III title Bay Area high school football roundup Best of Week action MOUNTAIN VIEW COACH WINS TH COMPETITION Mountain View boys soccer coach Jim McGuirk won his th career match on Tuesday night as the Spartans opened their season with a - win at Milpitas McGuirk has coached Mountain View for over three decades The Spartans won the CIF NorCal Division II championship last season the first NorCal title of McGuirk s tenure Christian Babcock