Sacramento boys basketball Top 20: Who’s No. 1 between Monterey Trail, Folsom or Inderkum?
As league play tipped off for boys basketball in the greater Sacramento region, one thing has become clear: There is no unanimous top-ranked high school team.
It’s anyone’s guess and anyone’s game, which adds to the intrigue in what figures to be a wide-open, unpredictable and fun season.
Destiny Christian Academy, which since 1977 was known as Capital Christian before a summer church takeover, started this season top-ranked by The Bee and is No. 4 this week. The Lions and coach Mike Llorente opened with a satisfying victory over Vanden and have suffered losses to out-of-section or out-of-state programs in big tournaments designed to bond and toughen the team, and then rediscovered themselves on Monday night in a Metro League opener.
DCA beat No. 14 Grant 60-37 as senior leaders Jephte Tambala and Jaylen Valdez each scored 14 points and sophomore Nick Andreotti went for 16, hitting all five of his 3-point shots.
Monterey Trail rises
Monterey Trail is top ranked by The Bee this week, subject to change certainly. The Mustangs of the Elk Grove Unified School District have close losses to Fresno programs Clovis East and Memorial, then won its bracket in the Desert Holiday Classic.
Monterey Trail coach Robert Fields pleaded for calm when his group trailed Folsom 16-0 on Saturday night to beat the Bulldogs 71-67 in Folsom’s New Year’s Challenge. Tireless and versatile senior guard Rashawn Inglemon had 30 points to lead the charge, as the Mustangs bound into a Delta League opener Wednesday at home against No. 7 Sheldon. Both are in a league race that also includes No. 5 Franklin, led by returning Bee All-Metro guard Aiden Rollins, who is averaging 23.0 points for longtime coach Ken Manfredi.
Monterey Trail is the highest-ranked team in the Sac-Joaquin Section by CalHi Sports, the decades-long site that ranks teams, settling in at No. 21, a spot ahead of Folsom. The Mustangs are led in scoring and rebounding by 6-foot-7 freshman forward Devaughn Dorrough with averages of 19.0 and 9.7, respectively. Inglemon averages 15.4 points, and fellow senior guard Derron White leads the club with 5.8 assists.
Sheldon is a misleading 6-8 with six losses to out-of-area teams in state-wide tournaments. Coach Joey Rollings has for years taken his team out of state for elite tournaments, and the weary Huskies drove to Idaho, Las Vegas and Southern California to flex their muscle. Rollings said the Huskies have the ability to win another Delta League crown but he is challenging his group to play tougher and smarter.
Folsom fury
Folsom is ranked second by The Bee, having impressed with an 87-46 blowout of national powerhouse Mater Dei of Santa Ana to win its bracket in the Desert Holiday Classic on Dec. 30. The Bulldogs made 19 3-pointers and senior do-all guard Chase Rawlins earned tournament MVP honors.
The other loss for Folsom coach Mike Wall was to out-of-section power Redondo Union on Nov. 30. Folsom bounced back from its loss to Monterey Trail to open Sierra Foothill League play on Monday night with a 65-48 victory over No. 11 Rocklin as Rawlins and Alec Day each scored 12.
Rocklin opened the season 8-2 and has since lost five straight, including an 80-77 setback to Sheldon and defeats to out-of-section teams Fairfax of Los Angeles, La Jolla County Day of San Diego County. Thunder coach Steve Taylor has challenged his team to be smarter with the ball and to be more fundamentally sound.
Inderkum surge
And there are the Inderkum Tigers, who have an argument to be top ranked. The Tigers and head coach Fred Wilson of the Natomas Unified School District are 10-1 with close wins over the two Fresno teams that edged Monterey Trail. The Tigers have a 57-42 win over Sheldon on Dec. 27 and a recent 77-65 triumph of No. 9 Christian Brothers to open Capital Valley Conference play.
The Tigers are led by star sophomore point guard Siincere Hudson, averaging 19 points, and forwards Taylen Goodman and Malachi Johnson along with swingman LJ Chadwick and Jaeden Goodman.
Granite Bay stunner
An example of how deep the region a glance at the SFL that includes Bee-ranked Folsom, Rocklin, Oak Ridge, Jesuit, Del Oro and Whitney. Add Granite Bay to the list of sudden league contenders as the program known for years for pulling playoff upsets under coach Jason Sitterud.
On Monday in an SFL opener, Granite Bay may have found itself in registering its biggest win of the season, a 71-60 effort at Oak Ridge in El Dorado Hills as guard Keegan Ladines had 10 points and 11 assists to help lead the way.
Granite Bay came in at 3-11 with local losses to Woodcreek, Christian Brothers and Franklin and seven losses to out-of-area programs.
▪ What adds to the curiosity of the rankings debate is that the following teams will be in the Division I playoffs: Monterey Trail, Folsom, Inderkum, Franklin, Vanden, Sheldon and No. 8 Oak Ridge, not to mention one-loss Lincoln of Stockton, three-time defending section champion Modesto Christian and 15-1 Atwater.
Those in D-II will include No. 10 Jesuit, No. 11 Rocklin, No. 12 Christian Brothers, No. 16 Rio Americano, No. 17 Del Oro, No. 18 Sacramento and Granite Bay, among others.
MT Showcase
Monterey Trail on Saturday will host an all-day showcase in its Elk Grove gym with all games carried on the NFHS Network through ABC JAM Productions.
The schedule: Pleasant Grove of Elk Grove vs. St. Patrick/St. Vincent of Vallejo at 11:30 a.m.; Venture Academy of Stockton vs. The King’s Academy of Sunnyvale at 1 p.m.; No. 16 Rio Americano vs. Archie Williams of San Anselmo at 2:30 p.m.; Sacramento High vs. Amador Valley of Pleasanton at 4 p.m.; Lincoln of Stockton vs. No. 6 Vanden at 5:30 p.m. and capped by the 7 p.m. contest between Monterey Trail and section powerhouse Modesto Christian.
Stat marvels
▪ Romello Bruhn of Woodland Christian leads all section scorers with a 29.3 average, according to statistics inputted by coaches and stat keepers on MaxPreps.
▪ Mark Lavrenov of Rocklin, a Sacramento State commit, is second in the section in scoring at 26.9 points and No. 1 in rebounding at 13.8 as a fourth-year varsity player.
▪ Dylan Eddings of Vacaville Christian is second in the section in rebounding with 12.0 a game.
▪ Ren Marsh of Roseville is second in the section averaging 3.4 3-pointers made.
▪ JoJo Rapolla of Rodriguez of Fairfield leads the section with 7.1 assists.
▪ Siincere Hudson of Inderkum is second in the section in assists with 6.4
▪ Matt Manfredi of Union Mine is third in the second in assists with 6.2.
▪ Max VanLaningham of Woodcreek leads the section with 4.3 blocks a game.
▪ Jacob Butler of Lincoln is second in the section with 3.8 blocks a game.
The Bee’s Top 20
(Records entering Tuesday)
1. Monterey Trail (11-2)
2. Folsom (12-2)
3. Inderkum (10-1)
4. Destiny Christian (6-8)
5. Franklin (13-2)
6. Vanden (9-5)
7. Sheldon (6-8)
8. Oak Ridge (11-2)
9. Christian Brothers (12-3)
10. Jesuit (9-4)
11. Rocklin (8-7)
12. Woodcreek (13-2)
13. Antelope (12-4)
14. Grant (9-4)
15. Placer (14-2)
16. Rio Americano (11-4)
17. Del Oro (8-7)
18. Sacramento (6-7)
18. Vista del Lago (8-4)
20. Natomas (6-7)
Bubble: Casa Roble (13-3); Colfax (10-4); Elk Grove (12-2); Granite Bay (4-11); Kennedy (9-4); McClatchy (9-4); Nevada Union (11-5); Twelve Bridges (12-4); Whitney (12-3).
This story was originally published January 7, 2025 at 11:19 AM.