Central Cali’s Top 20 Team Rankings: Teams 6-10

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After two weeks of play, I have updated my team rankings from the initial preseason rankings. Most teams have played at least two games, with some playing as many as 4, but there are a few that will open up their season Monday, December 1st. The December tournament season will kick off this week and there will be a lot of games played over the next 30 days. Before that takes place, here is my updated list of team rankings. This article takes a look at the #6 through #10 teams in this updated list and includes the following information: team name, its key players, its current rankings, its ranking from last round of team rankings in parentheses, and its current record. I will follow this article with the Top 5 teams in the Section.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>6. (7) Clovis Cougars (2-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moving up one spot and coming in at #6 is the Clovis Cougars. The new look Cougars (coaching staff and players) are off to a 2-0 start and have earned wins over McLane, 80 to 65, and Dinuba by a large margin, 75 to 30. The Cougars will take on host team Edison of Stockton at the Winners Classic Tournament, followed by playing in the Clovis West Nike Invitational, where it will take on San Joaquin Memorial, Fremont of Oakland, and some other quality teams depending on how it fairs against those teams. Clovis then takes off to Vegas for the Tarkanian Classic, before ending the calendar year hosting its own Clovis Elks Tournament. The Cougars have a tough but manageable schedule throughout the month of December and depending on how it comes out of this month, it could jump into the Top 5. The Cougars have been led by standout sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2843567' first='Anthony' last='Smith'], juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2954272' first='Sier' last='Harbin'] and Damon Jackson, and freshman Roma Felix.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>7. (10) South Bakersfield Spartans (4-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Spartans have been dominant to start this season, as it has gone undefeated through four games and the main reason I have moved them up 3 spots to #7. It is not just the undefeated record, but the margin of victory being 27.5 points per game with wins over Ridgeview of Bakersfield, Hanford, Roosevelt of Fresno, and Immanuel of Reedley. The strength of schedule will pick up for the Spartans after a one-off game against Independence of Bakersfield on Tuesday, as it will head north to play in the Salinas Tournament, followed by the Clovis Nike Invitational. South Bakersfield has another one-off game against Centennial of Bakersfield before taking part in the Classic at Damien. The Spartans have been led by seniors Gavin Christian and Cliff Willis, both averaging close to, if not more than, 20 points per game, as well as juniors Eddie Ramey and Cam Hernandez, and senior Emani Myles. The Spartans are looking like the favorites to win the D3 Section title, but there is a lot of basketball to play.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>8. (9) Bullard Knights (Fresno) (3-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Knights move up one spot and come in at #8, as it has won 3 of its four games with the only loss coming at the hands of Tesoro of Rancho Santa Margarita. Its wins have come against Hanford, Gregori of Modesto, and Central East of Fresno. The Knights will take part in the Valley Children's Tournament at Clovis North this week, followed by the tournament at the Central Coast against Atascadero, Arroyo Grande, and Mission Prep of San Luis Obispo. The remainder of the month of December will have Bullard at Mission Prep for the Christmas Classic and Modesto Christian's Holiday Hoops Classic. Bullard has been led by senior standout Ja'Vance Coleman Jr., as well as sophomores TJ Dixon and Braelyn Kelly-Hutson, and freshmen Kiyan Wharry and Kingston Sligh. Despite the youth of the Bullard roster, the talent, size, and potential depth to go along with one of the top players in the Section in Coleman should keep them competitive throughout the month of December and heading into CMAC play.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9. (11) Justin Garza Guardians (Fresno) (3-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Guardians move into the Top 10 and land at #9 in this round of team rankings. The Guardians have handled business against Central Section appointments, with wins over El Diamante of Visalia, Washington Union of Fresno, and Kingsburg. The only loss has been at the hands of East Union of Lancaster, which has an upper class heavy roster, which seemed to cause problems for the relatively younger Garza roster on the road. The Guardians have been led by standout sophomore Josiah Wilson, who is averaging over 20 points a game with a big time showing of 26 points against Kingsburg. The Guardians take on Central Valley Christian this Tuesday before heading to the Central Coast to take on Mission Prep, San Luis Obispo, and Atascadero, with two of those teams in Divisions above Garza to boost its strength of schedule, and the Clovis Elks Tournament to end the calendar year.&nbsp; &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>10. (19) Kingsburg Vikings (3-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rounding out the Top 10 and making the biggest move up this list of team rankings is Kingsburg. The Vikings have been impressive to start the season with wins over Madera, Sanger, and Clovis West, which is one of the bigger upsets in the Section to start the season. The Vikings only loss was to Justin Garza by four points, 65 to 61, with standout freshman Izayah Perez going toe to toe with Garza's sophomore Guard Josiah Wilson, with Perez scoring 28 points to match the 26-point performance from Wilson. Kingsburg will host its own tournament this week, Lions Club Tournament, with games against Independence of Bakersfield, Fowler, and Tulare Western before Championship Saturday. Kingsburg will then play in the Andrew Bedoya Classic hosted by Dinuba and CVC before ending the calendar year playing at the Poly Wilhelmsen Tournament hosted by Mt. Whitney and Redwood of Visalia. The Vikings, led by seniors Jensen Hirschkorn and Peyton Swiney, juniors Alex Hanzak, and freshman Izayah Perez, have a chance to emerge from December as a D3 Section frontrunner, as it has the size to make it difficult for most D3 opponents.&nbsp; &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->