Central Cali's Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings (6-10)

The high school season is days away from tipping-off and we are set for an entertaining season of basketball in the Central Section. After watching players and teams in various platforms of basketball, whether it is high school team, club team, or individual events, all of these venues were taken into account in putting together this list of Central Section Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings. This article includes the following information: team name, its key players, its current preseason rankings, its final ranking from last season in parentheses, and last year's record. In this article, we take a look at the #6 through #10 teams in these Central Cali Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings. This article will be followed by the a look at the Section's top 5 teams, as well as those that were on the bubble.   6. (HM) Bakersfield Drillers (20-11)   Key Players: [player_tooltip player_id='2700921' first='Kade' last='Johnson'] (6'4 | CG | Sr.); RJ Shehee (5'9 | PG | So.); Keshawn Black (6'4 | WF | Sr.); [player_tooltip player_id='2954303' first='Harlem' last='Johnson'] (6'3 | WF | Sr.); Omari Brown (6'6 | WF | Sr.); Ryze Niles (6'5 | F | So.); and Kameren Owens (5'10 | SG | Sr.)   The Drillers are coming off a successful season, as Bakersfield High got back to the respectability it had not had since the last time it won its league in 2020. After four consecutive seasons finishing below .500 and a shell of what the historic Driller basketball program has been in the Section and especially in the South Valley, Bakersfield finished second in South Yosemite Valley League play and were one of the only local teams to give Bakersfield Christian a challenge last season. The Drillers earned the #6 seed in the Division 2 Playoffs and lost a tough one by three in the second round to eventual D2 runner-ups Central of Fresno. Bakersfield brings back the core from last year's team, including standout senior, and one of the Section's best offensive weapons, [player_tooltip player_id='2700921' first='Kade' last='Johnson'] and super sophomore point guard RJ Shehee. Bakersfield has depth, length, size, athleticism, and are looking to earn the top seed in the D2 playoffs this coming season, as it is a base D2 school. If Division 1 has 8 teams, which I have been told it will, then the Drillers would have to be a top two seed in order to be moved up per CIF rules. I would still have the Drillers finishing behind league rival Bakersfield Christian, but at home will be its best shot to knock off the South Valley's top team the past 5 years. Bakersfield plays a tough schedule this season and will have a chance to prove themselves in the season opener against San Joaquin Memorial of Fresno, but will be without Shehee, who is still playing in the football playoffs. Seniors Keshawn Black, Omari Brown, and transfer [player_tooltip player_id='2954303' first='Harlem' last='Johnson'] will be relied upon to provide additional scoring alongside [player_tooltip player_id='2700921' first='Kade' last='Johnson'], and sophomore Ryze Niles has proven to be an impact player in the paint that gives the Drillers a physical and lengthy frontline.   7. (NR) Clovis Cougars (9-20)   Key Players: [player_tooltip player_id='2843567' first='Anthony' last='Smith'] (6'3 | PG | So.); Damon Jackson (6'5 | CG | Jr.); [player_tooltip player_id='2954272' first='Sier' last='Harbin'] (6'2 | CG | Jr.); Roman Felix (6'6 | WF | Fr.); Jackson Scarborough (6'9 | FC | Sr.); and Kayden Lewis-Burnley (6'3 | WF | Jr.)   The Cougars have been down in recent years and have been at the bottom of the TRAC for a minute now, as it did not win a game in league play last year. But the tides seem to be turning for Clovis High and, on-paper, it has one of the best looking rosters in the Section. Super sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2843567' first='Anthony' last='Smith'] has led the charge since the month of June and through the Fall portion of the season, as well as making a name for himself at several individual events. Smith was the top overall scorer at the Central Cali Prospects Junior/Senior Showcase in late August as an underclassmen, and followed that with a Top 30 Game selection for the All-Star Game of the illustrious Pangos All-West Frosh/Soph Camp held in late September. Smith will be joined by juniors Damon Jackson, Kayden Lewis-Burnley, and transfer [player_tooltip player_id='2954272' first='Sier' last='Harbin'] to make up one of the deepest group of perimeter talents in the Section, as well as the interior presence of Jackson Scarborough (who is returning after a year with San Joaquin Memorial) and freshman phenom Roman Felix to bolster a roster that looks to compete with the best. Can the younger talent outside of Scarborough mesh together, as it has shown signs of how good this team can be throughout the Fall, as well as times when the youth shows. However, despite some of the unknowns of the season, I have the Cougars ranked at #7 to start the year because of what I have seen, the talent on the roster, and some of the other TRAC programs seem to be down compared to years past.    8. (11) Clovis West Golden Eagles (Fresno) (13-18)   Key Players: Jace Kellogg (6' | PG | Sr.); Jamel Castro (6'5 | WF | Fr.); [player_tooltip player_id='2955798' first='Spencer' last='Kubit'] (6' | SG | Jr.); David Hinton IV (6'3 | CG | So.); and Deshawn Franklin (6'3 | WG | Jr.)   The Golden Eagles had a tumultuous season last year, as it entered the post-Vance Walberg era and ushered in a new regime that put together one of the toughest schedules in the state and beyond. Clovis West is not used to taking losses early but the teams it was losing to were some of the best in the state, if not the country. Despite being led by one of the top players, and arguably the best defensive player in the Section, in DJ Stickman (now at Fresno State) and current dynamic senior Jace Kellogg, the roster was not as talented as it had been in previous years and Clovis West decided to go in a different direction and brought back former assistant coach to Walberg, and former Golden Eagles standout, Tyrone Jackson. The Golden Eagles will be led by the dynamic lead guard Jace Kellogg and junior [player_tooltip player_id='2955798' first='Spencer' last='Kubit'], one of the Section's top 3-point shooters, as well as a cast of young and talented players headed by freshman Jermal Castro. I would have Clovis West behind rival Clovis North and Buchanan and just behind Clovis in the order of how the TRAC will end up, but there is no clear cut favorite this season, and the Golden Eagles could be in the mix if they can get wins over the two teams that wrestled the TRAC title from it last year for the first time in recent memory. There is pressure on the “newish” coaching staff to get back to its winning ways and the schedule this year should help in that endeavor.     9. (7) Bullard Knights (Fresno) (18-12)   Key Players: Ja'Vance Coleman Jr. (6'2 | PG | Sr.); TJ Dixon (6'2 | WG | So.); Dalen Mason (6'2 | CG | So.); Quinton Cuyler (6'3 | WF | So.); Kingston Sligh (6'5 | WF | Fr.); and Kiyan Wharry (5'11 | PG | Fr.)   The Knights have had a wild Summer to say the least, and not in the way that the coaching staff wanted. Seniors Dalen Felder (2 time CMAC MVP) and Sean Smith-Sharkey transferred out of Bullard and left the state, which took the Knights from being one of the top teams with a senior heavy backcourt trio along with Ja'Vance Coleman Jr., to not knowing what this team would be going into the 2025-2026 season. Despite the loss of one of the best scorers and one of the better two-way guards in the Section, the young talent at Bullard to go along with the stellar play of Coleman throughout the Fall portion of the season is the reason I have Bullard in top 10 to start the year. Coleman will lead the team this year in points and assists, as well as one of its top rebounders and the flow of the team will go as he goes. Coleman had some monster scoring games at the California Scholastic Live tournament in June, and has established himself as one of the top lead guards in the Section. It will be the young but talented pieces around Coleman that will determine the level of success the Knights have this season, with sophomores TJ Dixon, Dalen Mason, and Quinton Cuyler and freshman standouts Kingston Sligh and Kiyan Wharry as the main underclassmen expected to make an impact. The Knights will try to keep pace with CMAC 1 League favorites San Joaquin Memorial, but will be on the cusp of the D1 playoffs if it stays at 8 teams this season.     10. (15) South Bakersfield Spartans (19-11)    Key Players: Cliff Willis (6'2 | PG | Sr.); Gavin Christian (6'4 | WF | Sr.); Emani Myles (6' | CG | Sr.); Eddie Ramey III (6'2 | PG | Jr.); and Cameron Hernandez (6'1 | SG | Jr.)    Rounding out the top 10 and coming off a productive season despite falling short of its goals to win a Section Title is South Bakersfield. The Spartans earned another co-South Yosemite Mountain League title with rival North Bakersfield and were seated #4 in the Division 3 playoffs, placing them on the same side of its league rival North. After splitting the regular season match-ups, the Spartans had to go to the Stars gym and lost a close one by a score of 51 to 46, the closest anyone came to the D3 Champs. The Spartans return the core of its roster from last year and the expectations this season are to win league again and to bring home a D3 title with an upper-class heavy roster. South returns two players that were co-league MVPs the last two years in seniors Cliff Willis and Gavin Christian, along with juniors Eddie Ramey III and Cam Hernandez and are set to play a rigorous schedule again this season to get them ready for a playoff run. With North Bakersfield returning last year's co-league MVP in junior Ethan Saenz (one of the top point guards in the Section), the Stars will give the Spartans all it can handle, but the rest of the Stars roster is young and South needs to take advantage of their veteran players in looking to secure the top seed in D3. There are other teams that will challenge the Spartans like Garza of Fresno and Kingsburg, but it seems to be South's to win this season.

The high school season is days away from tipping-off and we are set for an entertaining season of basketball in the Central Section. After watching players and teams in various platforms of basketball, whether it is high school team, club team, or individual events, all of these venues were taken into account in putting together this list of Central Section Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings. This article includes the following information: team name, its key players, its current preseason rankings, its final ranking from last season in parentheses, and last year's record. In this article, we take a look at the #6 through #10 teams in these Central Cali Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings. This article will be followed by the a look at the Section's top 5 teams, as well as those that were on the bubble.