LOS ALAMITOS – The CIF-SS unveiled its Open Division playoff draw for girls basketball on Friday but offered a second helping of elite competition Sunday.
A new, combined Division 1 field debuted with intriguing first-round games throughout a 32-team bracket, highlighting the release of the postseason pairings.
“It’s loaded,” Rainer Wulf, assistant section commissioner in charge of basketball, said of Division 1. “We wanted a second elite division. … We have the quality teams that dictate (it).”
No longer divided into I-A and I-AA, the consolidated Division 1 offers an Orange County dream duel Thursday: Rosary (16-10) at Troy (16-9).
The Fullerton neighbors and O.C.-ranked teams clashed in the Premier Division of the SoCal Holiday Prep Classic in San Diego in late December. Rosary, a CIF and state champion last season, won 48-35 but both teams have improved since.
Troy earned a share of the Freeway League title with an impressive 57-33 victory against Sonora last week.
“That’s going to be a doozy,” Orangewood coach Leslie Aragon said.
Division 1 offers two other county clashes in the first round Thursday: No. 2 seed Brea Olinda (22-4) playing host to at-large Orange Lutheran (11-11) and at-large Esperanza (16-11) at Fairmont Prep (16-8).
Orangewood Academy plays host to Valencia of Valencia, last season’s Division 1-AA champion.
“It’s a tough matchup,” Aragon said. “They lost some players (from last season) but that’s still a program that wins consistently.”
Even the high seeds face difficult games. Fourth-seeded Canyon of Canyon County plays host to St. Anthony from the strong Del Rey League. St. Anthony beat Open Division-bound Serra of Gardena, 65-61, last week.
Chaminade (17-7) earned the top seed with No. 3 Long Beach Poly looming on Brea Olinda’s side of the bracket.
The new-look Division 1 also aligns better with state qualifying, the section said. The top-four teams advance to the Division 1 SoCal regionals.
There will be plenty of competition for county teams in the other divisions.
In Division 2AA, South Coast League champion Aliso Niguel (16-7) plays host to Pacific Coast League runner-up Woodbridge (17-9) in a first-round game Thursday.
Empire League champion Kennedy (22-4) earned the No. 4 seed in Division 2A and a first-round bye.
Oxford Academy, with a county-best 25-1 record, claimed the top seed in Division 3A and a first-round bye. The Patriots could play Villa Park in the second round, Mission College Prep in the quarterfinals and then Cerritos in the semifinals.
“We got a pretty tough road,” Oxford Academy coach Dave Clifton said. “One through eight is tough, which it should be.”
Express League champion Samueli of Santa Ana and Anaheim are seeded second in Division 5-A and Division 5-AA, respectively. Both teams received first-round byes.
