Central Cali's Section Championships: Day 2 Standout Performers

Fresno, CA - This past weekend, the CIF Central Section held its annual boys and girls Section Championships at Selland Arena, an event that is one of the best basketball championships in the state. Friday featured even division boys and girls championship games (Divisions 2, 4, and 6), while Saturday featured the odd division boys and girls title games (Division 1, 3, and 5). This article focuses on the standout players from Day 2 of the Section Championships from the boys games. In this article I include relevant stats from each player in their respective title game, how they played, and their impact on the game. I start with the standout players from the Saturday night headliner, the Division 1 title game.   Division 1: St. Joseph Knights (Santa Maria) 62 Buchanan Bears (Clovis) 34   [player_tooltip player_id='2436278' first='Malcolm' last='Price'] (6'2 | 2027) - St. Joseph (POG)   Price has come into his own this season and has been the Knights' second leading scorer at 21 points per game, but he has taken it up a notch in the postseason, as was evident with his 41 point showing in the quarterfinal round of the D1 Section playoffs. Malcolm didn't waste any time in the D1 Section title game, scoring 8 points in the opening quarter with a pair of threes, giving the Knights the 20 to 11 lead after one. He followed that up with 9 of the team's second quarter points to bump St. Joe's lead to 34 to 16 at intermission. Buchanan players and fans probably hoped that Price would cool down after the 10 minute halftime, but Malcolm continued to spray shots, scoring 13 points and two more threes in the third period. Price would chip in two more points in the fourth quarter, and ended with an event scoring high of 32 points, and a total of 5 threes to lead the Knights to its 2nd consecutive D1 Section title. Malcolm added 5 rebounds, and displayed elite shot-making from 3-levels throughout the game, off the bounce or the catch. Even more impressive was his 32 points were only two points less than the entire Buchanan team scored for the game, and over half of his team's point total. Price would earn player of the game honors.    [player_tooltip player_id='1956462' first='Julius' last='Price'] (6'3 | 2026) - St. Joseph    Price, the older brother to Malcolm, has been the leading scorer for the Knights this season at 22 points per game, and he would have a consistent night of scoring to complement his brother and give St. Joe's the additional points needed to win its second consecutive D1 Section title against Buchanan. Price would suffer a cut on his chin that pulled him out of the game several times to get bandaged up, which kept him from putting up more points in the game. Price had some timely buckets and ended with 13 points and a pair of threes to help his team win the D1 Section title, and for him to win his 3rd in his four years at St. Joseph, which is one more than former standout Tounde Yessoufou, to be one of the most decorated winners in the St. Joe's basketball program history. The Stanford commit has shown that he, along with his teammates, are capable of winning at the highest levels even after Yessoufou graduated last year.    Williams Sacre (6'8 | 2028) - St. Joseph    Sacre is one of the emerging wing/forwards on the West Coast, and he displayed his ability to impact both ends of the court in a variety of ways. Sacre made his presence felt on the glass and on defense, altering shots, deflecting passes, and jumping passing lanes to turn defense to offense routinely. Sacre would finish with 11 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 4 points to help his team win another Section title. Sacre also had what I felt was the play of the weekend, as [player_tooltip player_id='2436278' first='Malcolm' last='Price'], from the left wing, threw a lob, and Williams came flying in from the opposite side to throw down a dunk that got me out of my seat. The standout sophomore will look to help lead this team back for a shot at its 3rd consecutive Section title, but will likely see his national status jump up after the Spring and Summer club portions of the calendar.      Jaiden Anderson (6'3 | 2026) - Buchanan (POG)   Anderson had a strong start to the D1 Section title game, as he would score 5 of his 6 points in the opening quarter. Anderson would also pull down 7 rebounds, and helped keep the Bears close in the first quarter, with a score of 20 to 11. Despite the hot start for Anderson, he, along with the rest of the Bears team, struggled to score the ball. Anderson was a key player for Buchanan this season and improved his shot-making.     Brayden Harris (6'9 | 2026) - Buchanan    Harris had one of the best games I have seen him play in person this season, especially given the talent and size he had to go against for the St. Joe's. Harris had 14 points and 5 rebounds in the loss to the Knights, but he did his part showing off his ability to score in the paint, as well as spread the floor with the 3-ball. He will be a valued commodity at the next level, as he can impact the game now depending on where he decides to attend next season.   Division 3: Tulare Union Tribe 64 Central Valley Christian Cavaliers (Visalia) 43   Demaje Riley (5'10 | 2027) - Tulare Union (POG)   Riley has been one of the top two leading scorers for the Tribe the past two seasons, and he had his scoring arsenal on full display this past Saturday afternoon in the D3 Section title. Riley had the hot hand early, and he made the most of it, scoring 13 points, connecting on two threes in the first quarter to give his team the 21 to 11 lead. Riley would add 2 more threes in the second quarter, and helped keep his team up ten going into intermission, 29 to 19. Riley would finish with 25 points, knocking down 4 threes, and earned Player of the Game honors.    Brayden Stevenson (5'9 | 2026) - Tulare Union    Stevenson, the program's new all-time leading scorer, would play more of the facilitating role in the first half, given Riley had the hot hand, which led to Stevenson accumulating 5 assists. But it was his big 10 point 3rd quarter, with a pair of threes, that had a major impact on the Tribe extending its lead going into the final frame, 44 to 29. Riley would finish with 17 points, around his season average, and generated 3 steals that allowed Tulare Union to get out and run in the open court.     [player_tooltip player_id='3269168' first='Grant' last='Hyde'] (6'4 | 2027) - Central Valley Christian (POG)   Hyde has made major strides in his game this season, and he had a strong second half showing in the D3 Section title game. After a slow start scoring the ball in the first half, Hyde would put up 14 of his 17 points after intermission to help his team try and make a comeback. Despite the loss to the Tribe in the D3 Section title game, 64 to 43, Hyde had an impressive double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds, and will be a focal point for the Cavs next year.    Jayden Bergman (6' | 2028) - Central Valley Christian    Bergman had a great sophomore season and earned league MVP honors for the Cavs, who went undefeated in league play. Bergman was the only player for CVC to put up quality scoring numbers in the first half to help keep his team relatively close. Bergman would score 8 points before the break, and ended with 13 points and 3 steals. Bergman, only a sophomore, will be the driving force for CVC next season, as it will return the majority of its core and has some young players that will be more impactful next season.   Division 5: Coalinga Horned Toads 63 Santa Maria Saints 62   Daymen Tamayo (5'11 | 2026) - Coalinga (POG)   Tamayo was on beast mode in the D5 Section title game, as he would play every minute of the game and came up big in moments that mattered most, in what was arguably the most entertaining game of the Section championships. Tamayo would lead all scorers with a game-high 26 points to go along with 9 rebounds. Tamayo did not connect on any threes, but his ability to use the crossover and hesitation to get his defender off balance, and score at the basket or on the mid-range jumper was nearly automatic in the D5 championship. Tamayo would be the main reason the Toads were able to keep the score equal before Tucker Corona would score his only point of the game after being fouled with less than a second on the clock to win the title. Tamayo added 4 steals to get some easy buckets in transition and was named Player of the Game.   Patrick Salazar (5'9 | 2028) - Coalinga   The sophomore Salazar made some timely shots and plays, and despite not reaching his season average in scoring, he made the right plays that helped the Toads win the D5 Section title. Salazar would score 11 points, connecting on a pair of threes, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals, with his final steal of the game in the final seconds of the game that got the ball to Corona who was fouled on a lay-up attempt and hit one of two free throws to win the game, 63 to 62.Impressive sophomore that I will need to add to my class of 2028 players rankings.    Nehemiah Mejia (6'1 | 2026) - Coalinga    Mejia had an impressive double-double and was a major part of why the Toads were able to edge out the Saints for the one point win in the title game, Mejia would finish with 10 points and a monster 14 rebounds, which gave his team second chance scoring opportunities, as well as limiting the Saints to single shot possessions.    Julius Medina (6'2 | 2026) - Santa Maria (POG)    Medina was lights out for the Saints in the D5 title game and did all he could to help his team compete for a Section championship, but fell short by one point, 63 to 62. Medina caught fire in the second quarter, which extended to the 3rd quarter, as he connected on 6 threes over the course of those two periods. Like Tamayo, Julius would play all 32 minutes of the game and it took its toll a bit in the final period, as shots were not falling at the clip they were in the first three quarters of the game. Medina would finish with 25 points and 9 rebounds and earned Player of the Game honors for the runner-ups, but I know he wanted to finish his high school career with a Section title. Elite shooter with a great motor.    Jordan Medina (6'1 | 2026) - Santa Maria   Medina, brother of Julius, had a strong showing in the championship game against Coalinga, as he put up 16 points and 8 rebounds for a near double-double showing to help his team as much as possible. Medina scored some key baskets down the stretch and was active on the glass, but the Saints would come up short, ending the hopes of he and his brother ending high school with a title.

Fresno, CA - This past weekend, the CIF Central Section held its annual boys and girls Section Championships at Selland Arena, an event that is one of the best basketball championships in the state. Friday featured even division boys and girls championship games (Divisions 2, 4, and 6), while Saturday featured the odd division boys and girls title games (Division 1, 3, and 5). This article focuses on the standout players from Day 2 of the Section Championships from the boys games. In this article I include relevant stats from each player in their respective title game, how they played, and their impact on the game. I start with the standout players from the Saturday night headliner, the Division 1 title game.