LIVE UPDATES SUMMARY: 28th MLK Jr. Classic at De La Salle muscles up with Big 3 flex

It's hard to believe the Martin Luther King Classic, presented by De La Salle High School, is almost three decades old. What a ride.

Many of the top boys basketball teams, players and coaches from the region, state and even Western U.S. has participated in the games, that honor the great Civil Rights leader.

The showcases' Big 3 squads — state No. 6 Riordan, No. 7 St. Joseph and No. 8 Salesian did not dissapoint. At least not themselves. St. Joseph definitely disappointed the home crowd with a 21-point win over host De La Salle. Riordan and Salesian also won by double-digits against very worthy opponents.

We weren't on site unfortuatley with flu bug — but updated throughout the day via the great Pat O'Rourke, Stephen Shea and De La Salle TV streams along with tweets and social media from all the great press at the event.

Check below for live updates for the seven games which went from 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. We've kept in the preview work to add some subtext to all the matchups. Also enjoy the superlative photography work by longtime photo journalist Sam Stringer.

PREGAME OVERVIEW

The 28th edition of the Martin Luther King Jr. Classic presented by De La Salle on Jan. 19 promises to be another memorable day in Northern California.

The seven-game event has been a fixture for more than a quarter century in the Bay Area and featured such memorable NBA players as Aaron Gordon, Jalen Green and Leon Powe.

The Classic has passed the test of time, demonstrated this season with the showcase of Powe’s son by the same name who stars for the state’s No. 8 team Salesian of Richmond.

RANKINGS | California Top 25

The Pride are one of five Top 30 teams in the state, according to the computer rankings of MaxPreps on Jan. 14. The others are No. 4 Riordan, No. 6 St. Joseph of Santa Maria, No. 27 San Joaquin Memorial of Fresno and No. 29 De La Salle, the host school.

High School On SI rankings has Riordan at No. 6, St. Joseph at No. 7 and Salesian No. 8.

Add in five time Northern California champion Modesto Christian, 2015 State Open Division champion Bishop O’Dowd-Oakland, the only NorCal team to win the state’s highest division, Oregon’s No. 4 ranked team Central Catholic of Portland along with Southern California powers St. Pius and Riverside Poly, along with defending Northern California Division 3 champion, The King’s Academy-Sunnyvalle, perennial Bay Area power Moreau Catholic, perennial Sac-Joaquin Section power Sacramento and 11-1 Palma of Salinas, and the 28th field promises to provide a great day of boys basketball matchups.

TICKETS | Session 1 | Session 2

"The MLK Classic has been a Bay Area basketball tradition for 27 years and we are proud to host so many high-caliber programs each year,” said De La Salle fifth-year coach Marcus Schroeder, a former associate head coach at St. Mary’s College and captain of De La Salle’s last state championship team in 2006. “The 28th edition of the MLK Classic brings in some of the best teams and coaches in the state with St. Joseph, St. Pius, Salesian, Riordan, and others all participating in this year's event. One of Oregon's best teams, Central Catholic, will also participate. We are excited to host another great year at the MLK Classic."

High School boys basketball California — Moreau Catholic 6-10 sophomore post Brenden Williams was named Player of the Game after the Mariners defeated Palma 66-48 in the third game of MLK Classic at De La Salle. | Photo by Sam Stringer

All games will be live streamed with longtime play-by-play announcer Pat O'Rourke and color commentator Stephen Shea.

LIVE STREAMS | All games

Here are game-by-game previews with game times, top stars, pertinent faces and side notes as well. All records, rankings and statistics were after games of Jan. 10, 2026.

2025 DLS MLK CLASSIC | Live updates last season

SESSION 1

Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland) 78, Sacramento 69

Kaiden Gibbs and high-flying Naas Griffin each had 20 points and G.J. Hill-Thomas contributed 16 as O'Dowd (12-6) took a 19-point lead into the fourth quarter for the second game in a row and almost watched it disappear.

Sacramento (11-8), which got 18 points from 6-9 junior Moshaw Ward and 14 by freshman King Griffin, outscored O'Dowd 27-17 in the fourth quarter but couldn't get inside six though gave it a gallant effort. William Phillips added 13 points and 10 rebounds for Sacramento which also got 12 points by Adrian Galloway.

Bishop O’Dowd’s Carson Wilson goes coast to coast for layup give his team a 39-31 halftime lead over Sacramento. Kaiden Gibbs leads BOD with 12 points, Naas Griffin 11. Courtesy De La Salle TV and ⁦@BayAreaPreps⁩ pic.twitter.com/Wt3wQ7khPn
— Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) January 19, 2026

O'Dowd took control in the third quarter, outscoring Sacramento 22-11, highlighted by a steal, dribble drive and high-flying dunk by Griffin over a couple of defenders.

On Saturday, O'Dowd edged California-San Ramon 60-58 even though it led by 19 heading in to the fourth quarter. The Dragons did the same on Monday with a 61-42 lead heading into the fourth quarter. They were turned over eight times in the fourth quarter but got two free throws each from Xavier McFadden and Erick Thome to win going away.

high school boys basketball — Jamere Garrison swoops in for two for Sacramento in its 78-69 loss to Bishop O'Dowd. | Photo by Sam Stringer

LIVE STREAM

LIVE UPDATES

END OF 1: Bishop O'Dowd leads 20-18, great up-and-down action, especially the first four minutes.

2nd quarter: Beautiful reverse layup by Kaiden Gibbs (now with 12 points) finishes off 16-4 run, gives Bishop O'Dowd a 36-28 lead. ... Beautiful off the glass shot by William Phillips (now with nine points), closes Sacramento to 36-31. .... Rebound, coast-to-coast move and la yup by Carson Wilson gives Bishop O'Dowd a 39-31 halftime lead.

Halftime stats: All according to Pat O'Rourke, Moshae Ward leads Sacramento with 13 points and William Phillips with 9. Gibbs leads O'Dowd with 12 points, NNaas Griffin 11 and Hill-Thomas with eight.

3rd quarter: Sacramento with four quick turnovers and back-to-back 3-pointers from Griffin and Hill-Thomas gives O'Dowd a 45-33 lead, which is its biggest lead of the game. ... Wow, remarkable high-flying dunk by Griffin leads another big run by O'Dowd, which goes up 55-37 late in 3Q. ... Griffin took the ball on the right wing and went over a couple Sacramento play. ... Dunk by Gibbs - O'Dowd's fourth of the quarter - and a sweet reverse layup by Hill-Thomas at the buzzer gives the Dragons (both teams are the Dragons) a 61-42 lead. Outscore Sacramento 22-11 in 3Q.

4th quarter: 3-pointer by Ward (his first points of second half), and after turnover, Phillips (13 points) goes up for layup, cuts O'Dowd lead to 61-47. Quick timeout by O'Dowd which almost gave up a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter in a win over California. ... Sacramento won't go away. Has turned over O'Dowd six times in fourth quarter. Back-to-back 3s from Griffin and Garrison cuts lead to 71-62...This freshman for Sacramento, King Griffin drills second straight 3, cuts lead to 75-69...Two free throw misses gives Sacramento a chance. 19 seconds left....

California high school boys basketball — Bishop O'Dowd senior Kaiden Gibbs was selected Player of the Game after hs scored 20 points and contributed six rebounds in a 78-69 win over Sacramento at the MLK Classic 2026. | Photo by Sam Stringer

FINAL SCORE: Bishop O''Dowd 78, Sacramento 69

PREGAME

Time: 10 a.m.

Head coaches: Sidney Duplessis (Sacramento), Lou Richie (Bishop O’Dowd)

2025-26 records (as of Jan. 10): Sacramento 8-7, Bishop O’Dowd 9-5

Points per game (allowed): Sacramento — 69.6 (56.4), Bishop O’Dowd — 73.1 (63.1).

Terrific trios: Sacramento — PF William Phillips, G King Mastin, SF Adrian Galloway. BOD — F Kaiden Gibbs, F Ajahni Charles, G Naas Griffin.

Briefly: Sacramento opened the season in style with wins over Fairfield (89-34) and Armijo (102-21), but then lost seven of eight. Its up-and-down season continued with five straight wins, including an 87-59 win over Nevada power Bishop Manogue. … Phillips, a 6-8 freshman, is one of the top ninth-graders in Northern California. … O’Dowd also opened impressively with seven straight wins, beating the same Bishop Manogue team 79-60, and another Nevada power Bishop Gorman (84-81) while taking the championship of the Wild West Shootout. …. But a humbling 82-37 setback to the state’s No. 1 team Sierra Canyon sent the Dragons reeling, followed by Damien Classic defeats to Texas power DeSoto (89-86) and defending state Open Division champion Roosevelt (80-65). … The Dragons feature a nice combination of size and quickness.

King’s Academy (Sunnyvale) 60, Riverside Poly 52

LIVE STREAM

Claxton Ladine had 18 points and Xavier Barnett added 16 points as King's Academy raced to a 13-1 lead and breezed to victory in a sloppy affair.

Both teams committed turnovers and were a combined 21 of 37 from the free throw line, but the Knights, the defending Northern California Division 3 champions, had enough to improve to 13-3.

Carter Athens led Riverside Poly (8-14) with 14 points and nine rebounds and Jackson Duffy added 10 points.

Both teams were missing their best players, Riverside Poly without St. Mary's College-bound Jrob Croy while King's Academy was without high-flying Boss Mhoon, out with a broken ankle.

LIVE UPDATES

First quarter: King's Academy jumps out to an 11-0 lead as it forces five quick turnovers. .... Riverside Poly is playing without its star player Jrob Croy, the St. Mary's-bound guard who scored 26 points here last season. Not sure what his injury is. .... A sixth turnover leads to a third bucket from Xavier Barnett. ... Knights up to a 13-1 lead. 2:43 1Q. ... Couple buckets from Weston Davis closes gap to 15-7 after one quarter.

Second quarter: More turnover problems for Riverside Poly, which trails 30-20 at halftime. Weston Davis has three buckets for Riverside Poly and Carter Athens has five points and five rebounds. Claxton Ladine hits two more 3s in the second quarter and leads King's Academy with nine points, Xavier Barnett with eight points and Adrian Barnett has six points. Riverside Poly is up to 12 turnovers and just 3-of-8 from FT line. King's Academy is 0 of 3 from line.

Third quarter: A 6-0 run capped by a sweet layup from Hezekiah Sires gave King's Academy a 42-24 lead, its biggest of the year. But a 6-0 run from Poly cosed to 45-31, four coming from Jackson Duffy. A sweet fadeaway by Ladine (14 points) gives King's Academy a 47-33 lead heading to fourth.

Fourth quarter: A 3-pointer by Tysean Turner leads a nice 10-4 run for Riverside Poly, which closes to 53-43 with 4:30 left. ... Ladine fouls out on a charge. Leads all scorers with 18 points. 2:52 left in 4Q. Big call. Ethan Williams with tough inside bucket, closes Riverside Poly to within 58-48 with 1:32 remaining.

FINAL: King's Academy 60, Riverside Poly 52.

PREGAME

Both

Head coaches: Cameron Bradford (King’s Academy), Travis Showalter (RP).

2025-26 records: King’s Academy 10-2, Riverside Poly 7-12

Points per game (allowed): King’s Academy — 76.4 (54.5), Riverside Poly — 48.1 (52.9)

Terrific trios: King’s Academy — SG Boss Mhoon (16.7 ppg), G Xavier Barnett (16.0 ppg), G Claxton Ladine (16.0 ppg). Riverside Poly — PG Jrob Croy (St. Mary’s College signee), F Carter Athens, F Xane Machie

Briefly: Coming off a 24-11 season, Poly is still trying to recover from a six-game losing streak, which was snapped with a 54-51 win over Hillcrest. … Poly defeated Moreau Catholic 66-56 last year at the MLK Classic when Croy erupted for 26 points. … King’s Academy is the defending Northern California Division 3 champion, losing 52-51 in the state finals to San Gabriel Academy. … Mhoon, a 6-5 small forward, is the No. 37 2028 recruit in the nation, according to 247Sports. He already has offers from Stanford, Nevada, USF and San Diego. He fractured his ankle and is not expected to play against Riverside Poly. … The Knights went 27-5 last season with Mhoon as the team’s third, fourth or fifth option. … King Academy’s only losses were to large schools Mitty (62-55) and McClatchy-Sacramento (71-66). … After Christmas, the Knights really got it going offensively, exploding for 93, 97, 94 and 85 points.

Moreau Catholic (Hayward) 66, Palma (Salinas) 48

LIVE STREAM

Brenden Williams, a raw 6-foot-10 sophomore, had 21 points and 11 rebounds, Isaiah Clendinen added 16 and Sebastian Atako contributed all 12 of his points in the second half as the Mariners (14-3) outscored Palma (13-2) in each quarter to win going away.

Williams had four dunks, one on a beautiful feed from Khollin Ware via an ally-oop as Moreau sped up the game in the second, third and fourth quarters. Isaiah Dotson also had nine points for a deep Moreau team that outrebounded the Cheiftains 42-31.

Tai Suich and Jacob Diaz had 10 points apiece for Palma, which had 10 different players score. Leading scorer JJ Saudeco added eight.

LIVE UPDATE

First quarter: Palma has no answer for 6-10 Moreau Catholic sophomore Brenden Williams, who has four quick buckets as Moreau Catholic takes 14-9 lead. Palma doing good job slowing down high-scoring guard Isaiah Clendinen, who has just one bucket. Three straight free throws from Jose Saucedo Jr. helped Palma get back in the game.

Second quarter: Williams with two more dunks is up to 14 points and eight rebounds as Moreau opens up a 27-18 lead. Three straight 3s from JJ Saucedo, Tai Suich and Ashton Marshall helped Palma stay in it. A steal, behind back pass to Donovan Edwards closed the half, makes it 31-23 at halftime.

Moreau Catholic’s Isaiah Clendinen with steal, behind back to Donovan Edwards for layup gives Mariners 31-23 HT lead over Palma. Moreau 6-10 soph. Brenden Williams dominant with 14 points, 8 rebounds. ⁦@dlshsbasketball⁩ MLK Classic courtesy DLSTV and ⁦@BayAreaPreps⁩ pic.twitter.com/xu6DcjL7Yt
— Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) January 19, 2026

Third quarter: Sebastian Atako with three quick buckets and then Khollin Ware after a bucket he goes coast-to-coast before sending ally-oop pass to Williams, who flushes it down. Three 3-pointers from Palma keeps them in it. Chieftains trail 48-38 heading into the fourth quarter.

Pretty!!! Moreau’s Khollin Ware to 6-10 sophomore Brenden Williams SLAM! to give Mariners biggest lead 48-32 over Palma. pic.twitter.com/RJfRhihwjp
— Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) January 19, 2026

Fourth quarter: Isaiah Clendinen taking over as Moreau opens fourth quarter with 13-0 run, opens up 61-38 lead. The Mariners leading scorer has seven in the rally and is up to 16 points.

PREGAME

Time: 12:20 p.m.

Head coaches: Brian Driscoll (Palma), Frank Knight (Moreau Catholic)

2025-26 records: Palma 11-1, Moreau Catholic 11-3

Points per game (allowed): Palma 75.3 (50.9), Moreau Catholic 64.5 (52.5)

Terrific trios: Palma — G Tai Suich, G JJ Saucedo (fourth-year starter), F Ashton Marshall. Morea Catholic — G Isaiah Clendinen (19.4 ppg), C Brenden Williams (13.7 ppg, 10.7 rpg), Kareem Jackson (11.4 ppg).

Briefly: Palma’s lone loss through 12 games was a 70-63 home loss to Dougherty Valley. … The Chieftains scored a season high on Jan. 3 a 104-66 win over Carmel when JT Harreld had 36 points and Jacob Diaz added 23. … It was the first time Palma crossed triple digits since 2019. … Driscoll went 21-8 in his first season last season after Palma went a combined 25-28 the previous two seasons. … Morea Catholic lost 54-53 (Olympian) and 64-62 (Victory Christian Academy) in back-to-back backs out of state starting on Dec. 29. … Knight has led the Mariners to 10 20-win seasons since 2013-14. … Top wins this season have come over Cardinal Newman (49-43 in OT), Oakland (75-50) and Alameda (66-64).

SESSION 2

St. Pius X-Matthias Academy (Downey) 68, Central Catholic (Portland Ore.) 58

LIVE STREAM

It's doubtful Kayleb Kearce has ever shot a basketball in De La Salle's gym, but it's safe to say he felt right at home. The 5-10 senior point guard drilled eight three-pointers and scored 30 points leading the Warriors (13-8) to a wire-to-wire victory over Central Valley (8-5), which was missing a pair of starters Robbie Long along with 6-8 Donovan Miller.

Dominic Gallardo chipped in 10 points for the Southern California standouts, while Dayvion Gates, Fox Narvares and Christian Clayman combined to score 22. Freshman point guard Darrellreon Morris didn't score until the final minute, drilling four straight free throws, but he didn't turn the ball over in quality minutes.

Jalen Nicholson scored from all over the court to lead Central Catholic (8-5) with 20 points while Malcolm Weatherspoon and Isaac Bongen each scored nine points.

LIVE UPDATES

First quarter: After Central Catholic broke out to a 6-0 lead, St. Pius scored 17 of the next 23 to take a 17-12 lead. Kayleb Kearce with a pair of 3s and seven points. Christian Clayman and Dayvion Gates also have 3-pointers for the team from Downey. Central Catholic, missing its best player Robbie Long, got four points from Jalen Nicholson.

Second quarter: Three more 3s from Kearce (17 points) helps St. Pius open up a 31-24 halftime lead. With eight 3-pointers, all but seven of SP's points have come from long range. Central Catholic has commited 11 turnovers which hasn't helped despite nine points from Nicholson.

Third quarter: ANOTHER 3-pointer, this one from Fox Narvares opens up a 10-point lead for St. Pius, 43-33. Two more 3-pointers by Kearce increases St. Pius lead to 49-37 heading into the fourth quarter.

Fourth quarter: Central Catholic closes all the way to 57-54 on inside hoop from Nicholson, but who else - Kearce drills a 3-pointer - his eighth of the game. He's up to 28. I'ts 60-54 with 1:24 left. ... Nicholson fouls out with 20 points. Two free throws by Kearce gives him 30 and clinches the win with 45 seconds left.

Final score: St. Pius 68, Central Catholic 58

PREGAME

Time: 3 p.m.

Head coaches: David Blue (Central Catholic), Donte Archie (St. Pius X)

2025-26 records: Central Catholic 6-4, St. Pius 11-6

Points per game (allowed): Central Catholic 64.5 (56.9), St. Pius 66.9 (62.2)

Terrific trios: Central Catholic — G Zamir Paschal, G Robbie Long III, F Donovan Miller. St. Pius — G Kayleb Kearse, G Dominic Gallardo, G Dayvion Gates

Briefly: Central Catholic is one of the top programs in Oregon and as usual put together a challenging early schedule, which included consecutive losses to Davis (76-73), Timpview (69-53) and Southridge (76-72), teams with combined records of 31-8. …The Rams won a combined 50 games the last two seasons, against 12 defeats, including winning the Oregon 6A title in 2024 behind current Oregon freshman standout Isaac Carr. It was Central Catholic’s first state finals appearance since 2013. … The 2025-26 Rams are guard heavy, also featuring juniors Malcolm Weatherspoon and Isaac Bongen. … Despite seven new players from last season’s 18-11 team, the Warriors have many quality wins including a 67-64 double-overtime win over De La Salle at the Holiday Classic in Torrey Pines. … Other impressive wins came over JSerra Catholic (67-62) and Francis Parker (68-63). … The Warriors also feature one of the day’s top freshmen in Darrelreon Morris, a 6-foot point guard.

St. Joseph (Santa Maria) 62, De La Salle (Concord) 43

You may be able to slow one of them down, maybe two but frankly, De La Salle, as rugged and tough-nosed as it comes defensively, could not slow any of St. Joseph's terrific guard trio as Malcolm Price had 20 points, his older brother Julius added 16 and under-appreciated Gunner Morinini added 15 in a complete wire-to-wire victory.

The state's No. 6 team improved to 21-2 with the win and certainly benefitted from De La Salle top player this season, 6-7 Mariano Lopez-Aarden not playing the second half apparently due to a head or jaw injury. He had seven points and six rebounds in the first half, but the Spartans (17-3) needed all hands on deck to battle with the Knights.

The home team got super efforts from senior point guard Ibrahim Monawar (13 points), Davit Pachulia (12 points) and Olanre Owoborde (nine points, nine rebounds), but without the second low block presence, there wasn't enough rim protection to slow down the St. Joseph guards. Plus the Knights' big men of 6-10 senior Abdoul Bare and 6-10 junior Godson Eyita contributed 13 points and 18 rebounds.

LIVE STREAM

LIVE UPDATES

First quarter: Can a top defense slow the top offense in the state? So far, no. Julius Price with three quick buckets, finished off with a pretty fastbreak layup off pass from his brother Malcolm. Five quick points for Lopez Aaarden, but De La Salle is down 12-5. Julius Price up to six quick points, De La Salle getting no easy looks. St. Joseph up 17-9 after one.

Second quarter: De La Salle claws back in, highlighted by an Olanre Owoborode follow dunk. De La Salle is now within 22-18, but Gunner Morinini with another 3, followed by breakaway dunk from Malcolm Price ends the half. St. Joseph leads slugfest, 27-19.

Why the Spartans love Olanre Owoborade- follow dunk! But SJ leads 22-13 midway through 2Q. pic.twitter.com/dIZQQhlTb6
— Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) January 20, 2026

Halftime stats: The three St. Joseph guards have scored 25 of its 27: Malcolm Price (9), Julius Price (8), Gunner Morinini (8). Meanwhile DLS going down low, getting seven from Lopez-Aarden and six by Owoborode.

Third quarter: No Mariano Lopez-Aarden to start second half. Not on bench. He got hit hard in the jaw in the first half, but that's all we can surmise. ... Julius Price knocks knees with someone and has to come out of the game, but comes back in. ... Monawar totally heating up with two 3s and a driving jumper, but Malcolm Price and Morinini can't be stopped. Both teams showing lots of offense.... Excellent. St. Joseph sprints out to 43-34 lead. ... Davit Pachulia is getting hot for Spartans with pair of 3s....But Malcolm Price has eight in the corner. Without Lopez-Aarden, Spartans are severely hampered. ...Julius Price hits two tough jumpers, SJ leading 47-34, 1:44 3Q. End of 3: St. Joseph 51, De La Salle 36.

Julius Price with third straight tough jumper. He’s up to 14 points. St. Joseph pulling away, up 49-35. 1:03 3Q. pic.twitter.com/G7AYY3MMLE
— Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) January 20, 2026

Fourth quarter: Without Lopez-Aarden, De La Salle is severely hampered. Williams Sacre with easy putback. St. Joseph leads 53-38 with 6:19 left. He scores again easily down low, its 55-38. Dunk for Julius Price, this has become rout, St. Joseph up 57-38. 5:17 4Q.

Final: St. Joseph 62, De La Salle 43

PREGAME

Head coaches: Tom Mott (St. Joseph), Marcus Schroeder (De La Salle)

2025-26 records: St. Joseph 17-2, De La Salle 15-2

Points per game (allowed): St. Joseph 87.0 (54.4), De La Salle 61.4 (40.5).

Terrific trios: St. Joseph — G Julius Price (23.5 ppg), Malcolm Price (22.0 ppg), G Gunner Morinini (13.7 ppg). De La Salle — G Abrahim Monawar, F Davit Pachulia, Mariano Lopez-Aarden.

Briefly: Those who thought St. Joseph would fall back to mediocrity after the graduation of then state career scoring leader Tounde Yessoufou were seriously mistaken. That’s because Mott had major success before Yessoufou arrived from West Africa in 2021. In fact, the year before the current Baylor Bear star — he’s the team’s second-leading scorer through 15 games at 17.5 points per game — the Knights were 27-3, one of seven 20-plus win seasons for Mott between 2013-2021. … His 2025-26 squad is the highest scoring team in the state, having broken the 100-point barrier four of the team’s first six games. Julius Price, a 6-3 senior and fourth-year starter, has signed to Stanford, and has scored more than 20 points 13 times and at least 30 four times with a season-high of 39 in a 77-74 loss to Oak Cliff (Dallas, Texas). He’s scored more than 2,200 points in his career, including 266 three-point makes. …. Price’s junior brother Malcolm is more of a playmaker and driver to the basket. The two combine for 10 assists per game. … Down low, 6-8 sophomore Williams Sacre (10.1 ppg, 10.2 rpg) is a big presence. … With the graduation of four starters, including the program’s career scoring and rebounding leader Alec Blair, the Spartans have also surprised, even after being surprised in its own Chris Vontoure Classic, losing to Marin Catholic (64-60). The Spartans have won 12 of 13 since, with the only loss to 67-64 in double-OT to St. Pius. … In the first meeting of the two programs, playing styles will be tested, with De La Salle countering the highest scoring team with one of the best defensive squads, having given up less than 40 seven times, including ridiculously low games of 10, 18 and 21. ...Pachulia, the oldest son of former NBA veteran and two time champion Zaza, scored a career-high 29 in the team's most recent game, a 75-66 win over Dougherty Valley. He, and 6-7 forward Lopez-Aarden, leads the team in scoring at 13 points per game. ... The player with arguable the most upside is 6-8 junior Olanre Owoborode, a transfer from Heritage who Tuesday had 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Archbishop Riordan (San Francisco) 66, San Joaquin Memorial (Fresno) 45

LIVE STREAM

The state's No. 4 team was without its top player, four-year starting guard Andrew Hilman, a USF signee who is out with a hip injury.

No problem.

Oh surely San Joaquin Memorial, coming in at 17-4 with a slew of Division I talent and superbly coached by Brad Roznovsk, presented all sorts of problems behind the terrific all around skills of Ty Schalk (13 points), Parker Spees (11 points) and Dominick Olanrewaju (10 in the second half), but the Crusaders (12-1) just have so much. And they play hard. And they play defense.

It added up to a 21-point victory behind 13 points apiece behind 6-9 interior players JP Pihtovs and Emmanuel Ahamefule, who are skilled enough to play on the perimeter as well. They each had 13 points, while freshman guard Judah Van Ewisk, filling in for Hilman, added nine points apiece.

Riordan coach Joey Curtin just keeps bringing in waves of players off the bench. Without their main facilitoator in Hilman, it took a half to get things going offensively as the Crusaders outscored San Joaquin Memorial 38-26 in the second half.

LIVE UPDATES

First quarter: Riordan playing without its top player, fourth-year starter Andrew Hilman, out with an hip injury. He should be back this week or next. Two buckets each by Saxson Silverstrom and Parker Spees gives San Joaquin Memorial the lead early, but a follow shot by 6-9 transfer Emmanuel Ahamefure and three-point play by Cole White gives Riordan 5-point lead. Ty Schalk is super impressive and scores three straight to tie it at 10-10. A 3-pointer by DJ Armstrong gives Riordan 15-12 lead.

Second quarter: Three interior buckets by 6-8 Riordan post JP Pihtovs leads the Crusaders to a 28-19 halftime lead. Riordan's defense keys the 28-19 halftime lead for Crusaders.

Third quarter: Emmanue Ahamefule with seven more points in the third, gives him 11, and Gabrielius Kerys adds seven himself as Riordan increases the lead to 47-34 heading into the fourth quarter. Both Riordan players were ruled eligible at Jan. 1 after transferring from overseas. They are both major Division I prospects.

Fourth quarter: Ty Schalk is a very impressive player. He just drilled a three (he has game high 13 at this point), followed by a 3-pointer by Dominick Olanrewaju cuts Riordan's lead to 47-40 early 4Q. Timeout Riordan. A beautiful cut by DJ Armstong and pass from Pihtovs opens up lead, 53-40 with 4:00 left in the game. ... Amazing that Juday Van Ewisk is only a freshman. He dribble drives to bucket and completes old-fashion three-point play. Puts Riordan up 60-42 lead with 2:00 left.

Final score: Riordan 66, San Joaquin Memorial 45

PREGAME

Time: 5:40 p.m.

Head coaches: Brad Roznovsky (SJM), Joey Curtin (AR)

2025-26 records: San Joaquin Memorial 14-3, Riordan 9-1

Points per game (allowed): San Joaquin Memorial 67.5 (54.0), Riordan 74.0 (59.1)

Terrific trios: SJM — F Parker Spees (6-9), G-F Sajjin Sidhu (6-4), G Ty Schalk (6-2); AR — PG Andrew Hilman (USF commit), C JP Pihtovs, G DJ Armstrong

Briefly: Possible preview of a Northern California Open Division game, the two teams have never met. … Roxnovsky is in his 14th season as head coach for the Panthers, who have won 238 games since 2015-26 while losing just 87. … It started out humbling for Roznovsky, going 15-12, 6-21 and 10-13 his first three seasons. He has won at least 20 straight since with an average win total of 23.8. … The Panthers opened the season with nine straight wins, finishing off with victories of 65-64 (overtime) and 72-71 over Clovis West and Westminster Academy, respectively. … Other key players for SJM are Jaxson Silverstrom (6-2) and Dominick Olanrewaju, a 6-6 sophomore. … Riordan is the defending Northern California Open Division champion and in Hilman and Pihtovs, they may have the best G-C tandem in Northern nCalifornia. … Riordan is coming off perhaps the greatest season in storied history of the West Catholic Athletic League by winning 14 straight games by an average of nearly 40 points per game. … The Crusaders got two major pieces on Jan. 1 in foreign exchange students Emmanuel Ahamefule, a physical 6-9 wing, and 6-4 super shooter Gabriellus Kerys. They combined for 30 points off the bench, in their first games of the season, during a 67-47 win over Monte Vista-Danville at the Bay Area Classic on Jan. 3.

Salesian (Richmond) 74, Modesto Christian 62

High school boys basketball: Salesian high school — Salesian's Carlton Perrilliat (21) has been a four-year starter for the Pride and is also one of the Bay Area's top football players. | Photo: Greg Jungferman

The numbers are pretty staggering and impressive when documenting Salesian basketball. Since 2014-15 the team records are 28-5, 27-5, 30-2, 31-1, 25-7, 26-11 (combined COVID seasons), 26-9, 31-2, 27-4, 17-2 (currently).

That's a lot of winning and the last four years, two gents, Elias Obenyah and Carlton Perrilliat have had so much to do with it, just like Monday's wire-to-wire win over Modesto Christian. Obenyah scored 26 points on 11 of 14 shooting. Perrilliat had 21 on 7 of 11 shooting. There's so many more numbers to break down, but there's one no one could even count because it was turnovers: 0. None in the second half.

That's hard to catch up, even for a prolific team such as Modesto Christian, which trailed only by 37-31 at halftime. They got 19 points from Trevor Dickson, 12 by Seve Archuleta and a combined 16 by Sincere Hudson and Cole Martin, but frankly, the Crusaders (13-5) could never catch up because the Pride couldn't be turned over.

The teams could meet up again in the Northern California Open Division playoffs. Arguably the two most successful programs in Northern California the last two decades have faced off now 13 times with Salesian winning 10 of those times. The entire time they've had the same coach Bill Mellis, who has now won 685 games in his 26-year career according to Cal-Hi Sports. He just passed a couple heavy hitters in Milpitas' Steve Cain (684) and Newark Memorial's Craig Ashmore (683) to No. 8 All-Time in Bay Area history. He's No. 1 among active coaches.

Clearly the Pride, with all that history and all that experience, know what to do during winning time and they did it once more in the seventh and last game of the 28th MLK Classic at De La Salle.

LIVE STREAM

LIVE UPDATE

First quarter: The two Northern California powers slugged it out like ususal, finishing tied at 16. Elijah Payne drilled two 3-pointers and Salesian's top two scorers, Elias Obenyah and Carlton Perrilliat Jr. have all had six points.

Second quarter: Six quick points by Obenyah leads a 10-0 run and Salesian 26-16 lead but leading scorer Trevor Dickson drills back-to-back 3-pointers and an old-fashion 3-poin play from Sincere Hudson closes the gap to 28-25. But a 3-point long-range bucket by Davis and a Braylon Franklin stole the ball and went in for an uncontested layup to give a Salesian a 33-25 lead. Modesto Christian scores six of the half's last nine points, finished off with a putback by Seve Archuleta. Halftime score: Salesian 37, Modesto Christian 31.

Leading scorers: For Salesian, Obenyah has 14, Perrilliat 8, Powe 5. For Modesto Christian, Dickson has 8, Hudson 7, Martin 5.

Third quarter: Wow. Elias Obenyah doing what he wants, from coast-to-coast. He has six quick points, up to 20. He also sent a perfect pass to a streaking Carlton Perrilliat for a three point play. Like they have all night, Modesto Christian fighting back getting five quick points from Dickson who has 13 after three quarters. Score at the end of 3: Salesain 54, Modesto Christian 46.

Fourth quarter: As usual, everyone is getting involved for the Pride down the stretch. Five different players have two points in the quarter: Perrilliat, Obenyah, Powe, Johnson and Davids. 4:42 remaining, Salesian leads 64-53.

Final: Salesian 74, Modesto Christian 62

PREGAME

Time: 7 p.m.

Head coaches: Bill Mellis (Salesian), Chris Teevan (Modesto Christian)

2025-26 records: Salesian 13-2, Modesto Christian 11-4

Points per game (allowed): Salesian 70.6 (54.5), Modesto Christian 65.1 (54-1)

Terrific trios: Modesto Christian — G Trevor Dickson (21.1 ppg), F Somto Patrick (12.1 ppg, 11.3 rpg), G Siincere Hudson. Salesian — F Elias Obenya (Stanford signee), F Carlton Perrilliat Jr., G Asante Johnson

Briefly: Two of the more storied programs in Northern California, Salesian holds a 9-3 series lead since 2004. The Pride has won the last four meetings, including 71-53 earlier this season at the Gridley Invitational and 66-53 in the Northern California Open Division first round. … After losing to Southern California power Crespi, the Crusaders won four straight, including a decisive 69-47 win over Amador Valley, which was ranked No. 15 in the state to start the season. … Hudson, a 6-3 junior, played his first game against Crespi and in two games is averaging 23.0 points, 4.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game. … Salesian is a winning machine, starting in 2015-16, going 28-5, 27-5, 30-2, 31-1, 25-7, 26-11 (2 pandemic-shortened season), 26-9, 31-2 and 27-4. … According to CalHiSports, Mellis has won 681 games over his 26-year career and is closing in on Newark Memorial’s Craig Ashmore (683) and Milpitas’ Steve Cain (684) on the Bay Area all-time list. Mellis ranks 10th on the all-time Bay Area list and No. 1 among active coaches. … In the Gridley title win over Modesto Christian, Perrilliat Jr. had 20 points, Leon Powe 15 and Isaiah Davis 12. Perrilliat and Obenyah were selected to the All-Tournament team. … The Pride’s biggest win of the year might have been 61-58 over St. John Bosco at the Damien Classic, where Obenyah went for 21 and Johnson 14. Obenyah became the 13th player in Salesian history to break 1,000 points in a career.