Central Section boys and girls basketball is rolling toward the finish of the regular season before playoff seedings are set Feb. 16, starting the road to Selland Arena and the Valley high school championships March 2-3.
Here is a look at how league races are shaping up:
Boys
Tri-River Athletic Conference – Clovis West holds a one-game lead over Buchanan and Central with four games remaining. The Golden Eagles host the Bears on Friday.
County/Metro Athletic Conference – No. 1 San Joaquin Memorial and Bullard share the top spot at 5-1, but the Panthers recently defeated the Knights 75-67.
The two teams will meet again Feb. 13 at Bullard, likely to decide the CMAC title.
North Yosemite League – Sunnyside holds a two-game lead over Fresno and Roosevelt. The Wildcats visit the Warriors on Feb. 6 and travel to Roosevelt on Feb. 13.
East Yosemite League – Tulare Western is in control with a two-game lead. The Mustangs faced second-place Porterville on Thursday night.
West Yosemite League – Hanford has a one-game lead over Redwood with three games remaining. Mt. Whitney is third at 5-3.
The Bullpups host Hanford West on Friday before traveling to Mt. Whitney on Feb. 8 and closing WYL at Lemoore in two weeks.
Central Sequoia League – Selma leads the league by two games over Immanuel and Dinuba. The Bears swept the Eagles in the CSL and will visit the Emperors on Feb. 8.
North Sequoia League – Kerman is undefeated and has already swept second-place Washington Union.
Girls
County/Metro Athletic Conference – It is a two-team race between No. 1 Clovis West and No. 2 Clovis North, and the Golden Eagles have an edge after defeating the Broncos 63-54 on Jan. 24 and holding a one-game lead.
The teams meet again Feb. 9.
County/Metro Athletic Conference – San Joaquin Memorial is in command with a three-game lead over four teams tied at 3-3.
North Yosemite League – Fresno is rolling along. The Warriors hold a two-game lead over Roosevelt and Reedley at 6-0.
East Yosemite League – Mission Oak is rolling through the league and has a two-game lead over Porterville and Tulare Union.
West Yosemite League – Hanford is in control at 9-0, and winning by a margin of at least 20 points in each of the past seven games. Redwood is in second place at 7-2.
Central Sequoia League – Selma is riding an eight-game win streak and leads Exeter by two games. The Bears travel to Exeter on Feb. 6.
North Sequoia League – Yosemite is 6-0 with three teams tied for second at 3-3.
Tulare Union girl sets mark
Tulare Union junior basketball player Kiara Brown’s 46 points in the Tribe’s 72-64 victory over Monache on Tuesday was a school record, according to section historian Bob Barnett.
Brown was coming off a 27-point, 28-rebound, seven-block performance in a 66-52 loss to Mission Oak on Jan. 24.
On Jan. 26, she scored 35 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in a 68-42 win over Tulare Western.
Campbell breaks record; Clovis West pushes streak
Clovis West junior basketball player Madison Campbell set a single-season school record for 3-pointers, notching her 95th in the Golden Eagles’ 43-34 victory over Clovis on Jan. 26.
The previous mark was set by Kristi Fulton in 1991.
Clovis West also beat Central 68-23 to push its Tri-River Athletic Conference winning streak to 56, the second-longest in school history and approaching the record of 58 from 2005-11.
More notable marks
Barnett notes more achievements:
▪ Selma senior Tiveon Stroud became the third player on the team (joining fellow seniors Jr. Ramirez and William Pallesi) to score 1,000 career points. Stroud had 15 points in a 71-56 win over Kingsburg.
▪ Jazmine Soto of Strathmore became the third freshman in section history to score 600 points in a season as she finished with 18 points in a 61-40 win over Granite Hills on Jan. 24. Soto had a big night against Lindsay with 31 points, 10 steals and 10 free throws in a 68-39 win.
TRAC boys soccer showdown
Clovis High knocked off Clovis North on Tuesday in a TRAC showdown.
Oscar Rubalcava’s second-half goal lifted the Cougars past the Broncos 2-1.
That means Clovis and Clovis North are tied in the standings at 7-1 with two matches remaining.
The Cougars close out against Central and at Clovis West, while the Broncos host Clovis West and Buchanan.
Section soccer playoffs begin Feb. 13.
Coaching moves
Atnaf Harris is headed back to his alma mater.
The ex-Fresno State standout will be the football coach at Edison after spending two seasons at Roosevelt.
He led the Rough Riders to an 8-4 record this past season.
Harris spent two seasons in the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Fresno State, where he had 26 receptions for 285 yards and four touchdowns in 23 games over three seasons. He also played parts of three seasons in the Arena Football League. He finished his Edison playing career in 1996, but his local coaching résumé includes a stint as an Edison assistant before he went to Roosevelt.
At Edison, he replaces Jason Murray, who spent one season at the helm following Matt Johnson.
Marty Martin, meanwhile, resigned at Mt. Whitney.
He took over in 2011 after stops at Kerman and Clovis West. Last season, the Pioneers went 4-7 and 3-3 in the West Yosemite League.
Anthony Galaviz: 559-441-6042, @agalaviz_TheBee
The Bee’s Top 10 basketball rankings
Boys
Records through Jan. 31
Teams | Record | LW |
1. San Joaquin Memorial | 18-6 | 1 |
2. Clovis West | 22-3 | 2 |
3. Liberty-Bakersfield | 19-3 | 4 |
4. Bullard | 18-6 | 3 |
5. Bakersfield | 15-7 | 5 |
6. Tulare Western | 20-3 | 7 |
7. Fresno | 18-6 | 9 |
8. Central | 18-5 | 6 |
9. Buchanan | 13-12 | 8 |
10. Sanger | 17-7 | 10 |
Girls
Teams | Record | LW |
1. Clovis West | 22-3 | 1 |
2. Clovis North | 21-3 | 2 |
3. Independence | 17-4 | 3 |
4. Fresno | 19-1 | 4 |
5. Yosemite | 20-6 | 5 |
6. Sierra Pacific | 19-4 | 6 |
7. Bakersfield | 14-4 | 7 |
8. Mission Oak | 17-6 | 8 |
9. Stockdale | 19-4 | 9 |
10. Clovis | 15-9 | 10 |
This story was originally published February 01, 2018 1:56 PM.