CIF NorCal basketball: Franklin, Folsom win to set up clash. McClatchy girls advance
There’s an old saying that anything goes in a CIF State playoff tournament, and that includes satisfying home victories against storied programs and triumphant victories to ease a three-hour road trip home on a school night.
In Elk Grove, the No. 3-seeded Franklin Wildcats scratched and clawed their way to an 81-77 overtime victory over visiting Moreau Catholic of Hayward in a CIF Northern California Regional Division I boys basketball opener.
Benjamin Sandy scored 24 points, Kwali Simmons 20 and Aiden Rollins 15, and Marcus Cephus made four free throws in overtime to lift Franklin to its first NorCal victory under longtime coach Ken Manfredi. The Wildcats made the NorCal rounds for the first time since 2018.
With a program-best 28-4 record, Franklin on Thursday will play at No. 3-seeded Folsom, a 68-64 winner of longtime San Jose powerhouse Bellarmine.
Jack Shull scored 23 for Folsom, Parks Weaver and Joven Dulay had 15 each, and Alec Day had 9 as the Bulldogs bounced back from a tight CIF Sac-Joaquin Section semifinal loss to Sheldon, which is in the NorCal Open bracket that starts Wednesday.
Franklin lost a close game to Modesto Christian in a section semifinal, and Modesto Christian topped Sheldon to take the D-I section title and is also in the Open bracket.
The road was kind to Jesuit in D-I but not so much for the team that defeated the Marauders in the section D-I finals.
Jesuit, seeded 16h, stunned top-seeded Buchanan in Fresno, 60-54, leading big in the first half and then hanging on with cool free-throw shooting down the stretch. Sophomore guard Maison Phillips made 7 3-pointers and had 21 points for Jesuit, and teammate Greg DuFosse had 12. The defending CIF State champions in D-II, the Marauders on Thursday visits No. 9 King’s Academy of Sunnyvale, an 85-73 winner over Marin Catholic of Kentfield.
Destiny Christian Academy of Sacramento defeated Jesuit in a thrilling section final, but as the No. 10 seed, the Lions lost at No. 7 Dougherty Valley in San Ramon, 84-58, capping the four-year varsity career of one of the program’s great player in senior forward Myles Wiggins.
CIF Northern California Boys Basketball
Division II
No. 2-seeded Sacramento High beat No. 15 Bullard of Fresno 91-77 and will on Thursday host No. 7 Amador Valley of Pleasanton after Amador Valley edged Serra of San Mateo, 62-58. Sac High was a section semifinal loser to Destiny Christian.
No. 9 Woodcreek of Roseville beat No. 8 Valley Christian in San Jose, 65-58, to earn a shot at top-seeded San Joaquin Memorial of Fresno on Thursday. Woodcreek was a section semifinal loser to Jesuit.
Fresh off of its first section title since 1988, No. 12 Placer fell at No. 5 University Red Devils of San Francisco, 106-89, ending the terrific prep careers of guards Emmett Rose and Joe Manley. Placer won the section D-III title and was placed in the D-II NorCal bracket based on overall rankings of all NorCal teams and the CIF’s competitive-equity formula.
Division III
Top-seeded Natomas, behind senior guard and all-time program scorer Manno Jenkins, beat No. 16 Carlmont of San Mateo 64-55 for the team’s 13th consecutive victory. Natomas is coming off of a section championship at Golden 1 Center.
Seeded 13th, Christian Brothers fell 85-63 at No. 4 Priory of Portola Valley, capping a trying season that including the stunning and sudden death of beloved freshman teammate Jaden DeJesus-Eves, who died in his sleep last week.
CIF Northern California Girls Basketball
Division II
McClatchy, the top seed in Division II, rolled longtime Northern Section power Pleasant Valley of Chico 61-41, a nice bounce-back from the section Division I title loss to St. Mary’s of Stockton, which is in the Open Division.
Daisy Throckmorton scored 20 and Mikayla Reyes 16 for the Lions, who on Thursday host No. 8 Salesian of Richmond, a 61-57 NorCal winner over No. 9 Oak Ridge of El Dorado Hills.
Also in D-II, No. 12 Del Oro of Placer County beat No. 5 Acalanes in Lafayette in Contra Costa County and will next play at No. 4 Oakland Tech; No. 6 Woodcreek downed No. 11 Justin-Siena of Napa and will play No. 14 Vanden, a 52-48 winner over Redwood of Larkspur in Marin County; and No. 10 Folsom beat No. 7 Chico 60-49 to earn a shot at No. 2 Sierra Pacific of Hanford of Kings County in a quarterfinal.
No. 10 Christian Brothers lost at No. 7 Saint Francis in Mountain View, 71-56, and No. 14 Antelope dropped a 63-57 effort at No. 3 Piedmont. Christian Brothers and Antelope were the top-ranked teams by The Sacramento Bee the entire season.
Division III
Top-seeded Placer, coming off the program’s first section championship since 1990, had its 18-game winning streak and dream season come to an end in Auburn, falling to No. 16 Notre Dame of San Mateo County, 44-39.
No. 7 West Campus of the Sacramento City Unified School District beat No. 10 Half Moon Bay 54-41 behind leaders Naomi Johnson and Loismary Justice for the program’s 18th consecutive victory. West Campus visits No. 2 East Union of Manteca next.
Division IV
Top-seeded Faith Christian of Yuba City rolled Rancho Cotate 67-31 for the program’s 22nd consecutive victory as senior star Lauren Harris scored 29 points.
Faith Christian next hosts No. 8 Miramonte of Orinda of Contra Costa County.
Division V
No. 2 John Adams Academy of El Dorado Hills won its first NorCal game, beating Sonoma Academy 54-29, and will host No. 10 Lowell of San Francisco next.
Woodland Christian, a defending CIF State champion seeded sixth this season, beat No. 11 Oakland 69-43 and will visit No. 3 Palma of Salinas.
Complete brackets, ticket and broadcast information are available on the CIF State website, cifstate.org/sports/basketball/bb_champ_info.
This story was originally published March 3, 2026 at 10:38 PM.