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Mission, St. Ignatius in playoff spotlight
St. Ignatius boys basketball coach Rob Marcaletti poured over the stat sheet late Saturday night and found it familiar.
Brandon Beckman, a 6-foot-3 All-West Catholic Athletic League junior guard, had drilled eight three-pointers in a 65-55 Northern California Division 3 quarterfinal win over visiting Placer-Auburn.
Someone asked if it was a school record.
The second-year coach was positive because he was there that night at Kezar Pavilion.
Marcaletti was a senior reserve guard for the eighth-seeded Wildcats, who upset the nation’s highest-scoring team, top-seeded Balboa, 80-74 in overtime in a first-round Northern California game.
Beckman’s three-point barrage brought Marcaletti back to that game and Tuesday’s opponent, Mission, kept him planted there ahead of what might be the most-anticipated game between a San Francisco public school and a private school since then.
The Wildcats are the top seed in the bracket.
The seeds have to do largely with the reputations of the leagues in which the schools play.
The WCAL — with D2 top-seed St. Francis and Open Division’s Mitty still playing — is regarded as one of the state’s top leagues.
The Academic Athletic Association, in which Mission resides, invariably fights for respect.
Mission coach Arnold Zelaya, a 1987 Sacred Heart Cathedral graduate, has earned more than that with three straight San Francisco Section crowns, five in six years and an 86-15 record over the past three seasons.
“I think Mission has built something special for city basketball that people can be proud of,” he said.
When Marcaletti took over the S.I. program two years ago, he made a point to include Mission in a summer open league.
“Arnold is one of my favorite people,” Marcaletti said.
There’s no elitist energy with Rob.
Mission counters with senior guards: 6-2 Niamey Harris (15.2 points per game), 5-9 Jayden Foston (13.3) and 5-11 Jamion Wright (12.6).
“This is really a meaningful game not just because of where we are in the playoffs, but also because it’s two big-time city teams playing for high stakes,” Marcaletti said.
Said Zelaya: This is really exciting.
The kids are really looking forward to it.
MaxPreps senior writer Mitch Stephens covers high school sports for The San Francisco Chronicle.
All games start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, except where noted:
No. 13 Del Oro-Loomis (18-14) at No. 1 St. Francis-Mountain View (20-9); No. 15 Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa (27-4) at No. 3 Moreau Catholic-Hayward (23-9)
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St. Ignatius boys basketball coach Rob Marcaletti poured over the stat sheet late Saturday night and found it familiar.
Brandon Beckman, a 6-foot-3 All-West Catholic Athletic League junior guard, had drilled eight three-pointers in a 65-55 Northern California Division 3 quarterfinal win over visiting Placer-Auburn.
Someone asked if it was a school record.
The second-year coach was positive because he was there that night at Kezar Pavilion.
Marcaletti was a senior reserve guard for the eighth-seeded Wildcats, who upset the nation’s highest-scoring team, top-seeded Balboa, 80-74 in overtime in a first-round Northern California game.
Beckman’s three-point barrage brought Marcaletti back to that game and Tuesday’s opponent, Mission, kept him planted there ahead of what might be the most-anticipated game between a San Francisco public school and a private school since then.
The Wildcats are the top seed in the bracket.
The seeds have to do largely with the reputations of the leagues in which the schools play.
The WCAL — with D2 top-seed St. Francis and Open Division’s Mitty still playing — is regarded as one of the state’s top leagues.
The Academic Athletic Association, in which Mission resides, invariably fights for respect.
Mission coach Arnold Zelaya, a 1987 Sacred Heart Cathedral graduate, has earned more than that with three straight San Francisco Section crowns, five in six years and an 86-15 record over the past three seasons.
“I think Mission has built something special for city basketball that people can be proud of,” he said.
When Marcaletti took over the S.I. program two years ago, he made a point to include Mission in a summer open league.
“Arnold is one of my favorite people,” Marcaletti said.
There’s no elitist energy with Rob.
Mission counters with senior guards: 6-2 Niamey Harris (15.2 points per game), 5-9 Jayden Foston (13.3) and 5-11 Jamion Wright (12.6).
“This is really a meaningful game not just because of where we are in the playoffs, but also because it’s two big-time city teams playing for high stakes,” Marcaletti said.
Said Zelaya: This is really exciting.
The kids are really looking forward to it.
MaxPreps senior writer Mitch Stephens covers high school sports for The San Francisco Chronicle.
All games start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, except where noted:
No. 13 Del Oro-Loomis (18-14) at No. 1 St. Francis-Mountain View (20-9); No. 15 Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa (27-4) at No. 3 Moreau Catholic-Hayward (23-9)
More...