Central Cali’s Preseason Top 15 Team Rankings (11-15)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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. We begin these Central Cali Top 15 Team Rankings with #11-#15, and will be followed by #6-#10.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>11. (NR) Justin Garza Guardians (Fresno) (22-8)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: Josiah Wilson (6'1 | CG | So.); [player_tooltip player_id='2956280' first='Payton' last='Powell'] (6'1 | CG | Sr.); Aaron Gonzalez |6'4 | WF | Jr.); Melkon Oganesyan (6'6 | F | Jr.); and Luke Poulsen |6'2 | WG | Jr.) &nbsp; </strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Guardians are coming off a successful year last season, as it would split the North Yosemite League title with Madera, going 8-2 in league play. Garza is base Division 4, but given its record and strength of schedule, the Guardians were bumped up to Division 3 for playoffs and earned the #6 seed and fell to Central Valley Christian of Visalia in the second round. Garza returns all of its core pieces from last year and will be the front-runners in the NYL this season, as it displayed quality play throughout the month of June and in various Fall events. The Guardians will be led by standout sophomore guard Josiah Wilson, who had a strong showing at the Next Up Showcase held in late August at CVCs gym and is currently ranked #5 in my most recent Class of 2028 Central Section Player Rankings. Wilson is looking to capitalize off an impressive freshman campaign where he led Garza in scoring. Garza has some length and interior size to go along with quality guard play in juniors Melkon Oganesyan and Aaron Gonzalez, and both can play fast in the open court, which allows the team to get out and run and play to its strengths. I anticipate that Garza will earn a high seed in the D3 playoffs this season and its play in the Fall is a key reason I have the Guardians in the top 15 to start the year.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>12. (NR) San Luis Obispo Tigers (21-8)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: Logan Missler (6'2 | CG | Sr.); Beau Crew (6'5 | WF | Jr.); and Vaughn Otto (5'11 | PG | Sr.)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers had an interesting season last year, as it would finish tied for second in the Central Coast Mountain League, which is like first place, as everyone in that league has been looking up to the mighty Knights of St. Joseph since Arroyo Grande had Gage Gomez in 2020. That earned the Tigers the #2 seed in the Division 2 Playoffs, but it was match-up against the heavily under-seeded #15 seed Hanford and 2025 grad Remy Barnes, one of the best scorers in the Section last year. San Luis fell short to the Bullpups and its season ended abruptly. Despite the tough loss to end the season, the Tigers return the core of its roster from last year including standout senior and leading scorer Logan Missler, ranked #12 in my 2026 player rankings, who will be one of the Section's leading scorers this coming season. San Luis has good length and size across the roster with junior Beau Crew leading the frontline. The Tigers will likely battle it out this coming season with Mission Prep for 2nd place in league and will look to get back earning a high seed for the playoffs and get some revenge for last year.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>13. (NR) Centennial Golden Hawks (Bakersfield) (16-13)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: Acen Zuniga (6'2 | GW | Sr.); Drake Jimenez (5'10 | PG | So.); Ryan Shaw (6'6 | WF | So.); Ryan Romain Jr. (6' | PG | Jr.); and [player_tooltip player_id='2932172' first='Giovanni' last='Fomusoh'] (6'2 | WG | Jr.)&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Golden Hawks had a bit of a drop off year last season, as it would begin the post-Rippen Gill era of Centennial basketball, who is now at College of Sequoias in Visalia, and had one heck of a four-year high school career that left an impact. The Golden Hawks have not really played much basketball since the end of last season, which came to an end in the first round of the Division 2 Playoffs with a loss to Sunnyside of Fresno. I was able to catch a practice last week and then the Golden Hawks were added last minute to the Super Saturday Showcase at Liberty of Bakersfield this past Saturday and Centennial has the length, skill, depth, and defense to be the front-runner in the South Yosemite River League, which looks to be competitive again like it was in the 2022-2023 season. Centennial will be led by several players, but sophomore Drake Jimenez, Senior Acen Zuniga, and newcomer junior Ryan Romain Jr. make-up a talented backcourt trio that plays both sides of the ball at a high level. Sophomore Ryan Shaw is one of the more intriguing players in the 2028 class, as he can hold down the post, as well as shoot the 3-ball at a high clip. The Golden Hawks play a fast pace brand of basketball with a focus on defensive pressure 94-feet to cause turnovers and easy transition points. Centennial will look to get back to the top of SYRL play, as well as earn a higher seed in the playoffs, and, with the Golden Hawks being a base D1 program, it could find itself back in the D1 playoff bracket.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>14. (NR) Hanford Bullpups (18-11)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Players: [player_tooltip player_id='2273494' first='Zander' last='Jensen'] (6'4 | CG | Jr.); AJ Williams (6'3 | WF | Jr.); [player_tooltip player_id='2779889' first='AJ' last='Johnson'] (5'11 | PG | Jr.); Joshua Jenkins (6'4 | WF | So.); and Larry Sain (6'3 | WF | Fr.)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bullpups had an up and down season last year, as it would earn some impressive wins over Frontier of Bakersfield, Roosevelt of Fresno, and Central Valley Christian of Visalia, but also had losses to Lemoore, Centennial of Bakersfield, and multiple losses to Tulare Unions and Tulare Western. Hanford was led by Remy Barnes, currently at Porterville College and one of the top prospects from the 2025 grad class, who led the Bullpups in one of the biggest upsets of last year's playoffs, as it would take down the #2 seed in the opening round of the D2 Playoffs, defeating San Luis Obispo by a score of 59 to 49, before falling to Porterville in the second round, which highlighted the relative inconsistency of last year's team. This season, Hanford will return junior AJ Willaims, as well as three impact players coming in via transfer in juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2273494' first='Zander' last='Jensen'] (previously at Redwood of Visalia), [player_tooltip player_id='2779889' first='AJ' last='Johnson'] (who sat out last season and was previously at CVC of Visalia), and sophomore&nbsp; Joshua Jenkins (previously at Corcoran), as well as a trio of talented freshman that will all earn significant playing time with Jensen and Jenkins both on 30-day sit-outs. Hanford may take some losses in early going, but once the transfers are cleared and the freshman get some varsity play under their belt, the Bullpups are poised to make a run at the West Yosemite League Title, but will have to take it from Tulare Union, who is returning the core of its team, assuming all their football guys play basketball this year. Hanford may get a lower than desired seed in the D2 Playoffs, but will be a team no one wants to face by the time the playoffs arrive.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>15. (10) Mission College Prep Royals (San Luis Obispo) (26-9)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Players: [player_tooltip player_id='3035416' first='Kason' last='Niko'] (6'7 | WF | So.); Colton Mott (6' | PG | Jr.); Duece Kellogg (6' | CG | Sr.); Hunter Drake (6' | CG | Sr.); and Jackson Esparza (5'10 | PG | Jr.)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Royals are coming off back-to-back Division 2 title game appearances, and are the reigning D2 Section Champs, in an entertaining double overtime win over Central (now Central East) of Fresno, 63 to 59. Mission Prep graduated a core of its roster from last year and I expected this season to be a rebuilding year, but the Royals have added to its roster and the rebuild may not be an issue. Despite the new look roster from last year, the addition of sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3035416' first='Kason' last='Niko'] is a big reason that I have the Royals in my preseason Top 15, as Niko had a big Spring and Summer playing with Next Level 805 Basketball club team, and was invited to some prestigious individual events, with the CP3 Rising Stars Camp being one of those back in late August. Mission Prep will compete with San Luis Obispo for second place in league, as the Mountain League has been dominated by St. Joseph, and with their depth of talent and size will look to win its league again, making second place a legitimate goal for the Royals. The Royals have been a top two seed in the D2 Playoffs the last two seasons, one year having a great record and the other having a record below .500, so as long as it does well in League play, it should be a high-seed in the D2 Playoffs this coming season. However, it will depend on how well the new look roster molds together, and having some returning juniors and seniors that have been a part of the last two years, but will now be relied upon to shoulder the workload.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->