NorCal Tip-Off Classic Recaps

Here’s the results and recaps from the 18th Annual NorCal Tip-Off Classic at Dublin High School. Preseason Preseason state No. 8 Riordan downs No. 14 La Mirada, while state No. 19 San Gabriel Academy is upset by Destiny Christian of Sacramento.

RELATED: To see 2025-26 preseason state rankings, CLICK HERE ; To see the list of major tournaments and showcases involving California’s best teams, CLICK HERE; To see a list of all-time preseason No. 1 boys basketball teams (since 1979-80), CLICK HERE ; To see the vast list of transfers that will impact the 2025-26 season, CLICK HERE

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2025 NorCal Tip-Off Classic Results
(Teams listed by CalHiSports.com preseason state ranking)

Game 9: No. 8 Riordan (San Francisco) 82, No. 14 La Mirada 69

Both of these teams have plenty to look forward to during the 2025-26 season and would love nothing more than to erase the memory of the ending of their respective 2024-25 seasons. Riordan, actually, would love to do this season what La Mirada did last season: win its last game of the year.

Andrew Hilman had a big outing for Riordan in its win on Saturday night vs La Mirada. Photo: Gerry Freitas.

Riordan showed it definitely has what it takes to once again represent NorCal on the state’s biggest high school basketball stage, while La Mirada showed it has the talent to compete with the state’s open level teams although it needs to fine tune its defense. After a slow start, the Matadors just didn’t get enough defensive stops to get back in the game after trailing 33-17 at the end of the first period. Riordan’s offensive pace slowed slightly in the fourth period, but only after the contest was basically decided.

The Crusaders led 47-36 at halftime and Riordan (1-0) built a 54-39 lead after a step through basket, spectacular block on a dunk attempt and assist for a 3-pointer by USF-bound Andrew Hilman to senior guard J.C. Chacon. La Mirada (1-2) went down 61-44 with 3:54 remaining in the third period and trailed 68-48 at the end of the quarter. La Mirada fought harder defensively and scrapped for loose balls after the first period, but just couldn’t stop the Crusaders’ offensive onslaught.

In particular, the game within the game focused on the matchup between Hilman and La Mirada’s Gene Roebuck, one of the state’s best scorers and it did not disappoint. Roebuck finished with 26 points, but Hilman was just a bit more spectacular on both ends with 29 points, six rebounds and six assists. He also had a bit more weapons around him to finish his passes and hockey assists in transition.

In particular, big man J.P. Pihtovs was the benefactor of Hilman’s improved decision-making and he is stronger and more confident himself than he was when he came off the bench on last year’s NorCal open title club. Pihtovs made quite the impact on both ends, fishing with 23 points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots.

Cisco Munoz, a junior transfer from Vista Murrieta, added 16 points for La Mirada, which defeated Roosevelt in overtime after opening the season with a 77-60 loss to No. 5 Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks.

La Mirada will play preseason No. 2 Harvard-Westlake (which has taken a loss to No. 7 St. John Bosco) on December 2 at the Ryse Williams Pac Shores Showcase.

Riordan, meanwhile, will take on California of San Ramon of December 4.

Game 8: Destiny Christian (Sacramento) 68,
No. 19 San Gabriel Academy 60

The NorCal Tip Off Classic usually produces an NorCal upset over a SoCal contender and the day’s only upset was one that came unexpectedly, as the assembled crowd and media didn’t see it coming. However, with the way San Gabriel Academy shot from the outside and didn’t take care of the ball, perhaps the final score shouldn’t be surprising at all.

Destiny Christian moves to 2-0 on the young season, while San Gabriel Academy will have to re-group after dropping its second game of the season. The Eagles lost to preseason No. 2 Harvard-Westlake, 55-52, on November 18.

Both teams played sluggishly and sloppy at times in the first half. With Destiny Christian holding a 28-25 lead late in the second period, freshman Zach Arnold nailed a straight away 3-pointer and Mahamadou Diop, last year’s D3 State Player of the Year, came up with a monster alley-oop dunk to give San Gabriel Academy a 30-25 lead and a spark going into halftime.

The mini-surge didn’t matter, as the Lions kept coming at their SoCal opponent in the second half, forcing turnovers and getting better looks at the rim to take a 50-47 lead entering the final period. Destiny Christian led 54-47 with seven minutes remaining and hit its first double digit lead (59-49) with just over five minutes to go.

With Destiny Christian clinging to a 64-60 lead, sophomore guard Cameron Walls went to the line twice, with 39.8 seconds and with 28.1 seconds, and nailed 3-of-4 free throws to give the Lions the cushion it needed to seal the upset. Off the bench, Walls went 10-of-12 from the free throw line and finished with 19 points.

Another sophomore, Djibi Camara, a wide bodied forward, added 12 points and seven rebounds for Destiny Christian.

SGA’s leading scorer also came off the bench. That was Arnold, a 6-foot guard, who finished with 16 points. He also made an impact in the close loss to Harvard-Westlake.

San Gabriel Academy has to re-group to get ready for its upcoming schedule, while Destiny looks like it will be a major factor in the San Joaquin Section D2 playoffs.

Game 7: Vanden (Travis AFB) 67, Moreau Catholic (Hayward) 62

The Mariners were coming off an emotional 49-43 victory over Cardinal Newman of Santa Rosa on Friday at the O’Dowd Thanksgiving Showcase, while Vanden opened the season with two victories.

Vanden rode its hot hand from the outside to hold off the Mariners in an entertaining game that had some suspense in the closing seconds. Vanden made 12 3-pointers and at the end needed all of them to pull out the win.

It was 44-40 to begin the fourth with Vanden (3-0) in the lead and senior Nate Hibbert hit his fifth 3-pointer of the game to give his team a spark. Vanden’s lead got to as big as nine (52-43) and got back up to nine (62-53) after another Hibbert 3-pointer (his sixth) with just over two minutes remaining after Moreau Catholic looked to make it a one possession game, but just couldn’t stop Vanden’s timely jump shooting.

Moreau Catholic (1-1) finally got it to a one possession game (65-62) in the closing seconds on a wild scramble, steal and lay-up by top scorer Isaiah Clendinen (28 points) with just under 10 seconds remaining. The Mariners nearly came up with another backcourt steal, but had to settle for a foul on Vanden’s Caleb Rafan. He then nailed two free throws to seal the game.

Hibbert finished with 22 points while rising junior prospect Templeton Fountaine V netted 13 of 15 points in the second half for Vanden.

Moreau Catholic has a budding star in freshman guard Isaiah Dotson, who provides a major spark off the bench and will be hard to keep off the floor when it matters. After hitting clutch shots down the stretch vs. Cardinal Newman on Friday night, Dotson had 18 points in a losing effort on Saturday evening. Another player college coaches are already on and have offered based on his play the past two days and grades (4.0 GPA with honors classes) is 6-foot-10 Moreau sophomore big man Brendan Williams. He finished with nine points and 14 rebounds.

Game 6: Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.) 66, No. 15 Amador Valley (Pleasanton) 53

Our No. 3 NorCal team in the preseason (not counting CIF Central Section favorite Santa Maria St. Joseph) had a tremendous test against a nationally-ranked foe with an impressive lineup which already suffered a loss to preseason No. 4 Redondo Union of Redondo Beach at the BattleZone last weekend in the Inland Empire.

Amador Valley showed it’s much improved after a third place showing in last year’s NCS D1 playoffs. It remains to be seen just how much of a threat the Dons are to preseason No. 3 Salesian in the NCS until its lineup is at full strength. Amador Valley doesn’t have all its transfers yet eligible, but did show it can be a force in the North Coast Section open playoffs and perhaps beyond against a much taller team.

Sunnyslope, which opened up No. 45 in the Ballislife FAB 50 National Rankings, took a 33-29 halftime lead. Amador Valley (1-1) battled back and finally took the lead on a 3-pointer by San Jose St.-bound guard Cade Krueger to give the Dons a 40-37 lead. From that point on, the two talented teams traded long range bombs and the score was 46-46 entering the fourth quarter.

Colorado-bound wing Rider Portela scored the first bucket of the final period to get Sunnyslope (3-1) on the right track and over the course of the final four minutes the visitors from Arizona took control of the game with superior shot selection and stifling defense. Sunnyslope led 54-48 with 4:55 to go on a lay-up by junior point guard Delton Prescott and with 2:36 to go, Portela nailed a 3-pointer to make it 59-48 with the Vikings in the lead. Portela was slashing well to the hoop and converted one final conventional 3-pointer to put the nail in Amador Valley’s coffin.

Portela, the son of Sunnnyslope head coach Ray Portela, had 10 points in the final period and finished with 23 points, as the Vikings outscored Amador Valley, 20-7, in the final period. The Dons only had two field goals when the game was in the balance in the fourth period and then three concession points. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps-bound Nash Parmley also played well for Sunnyslope with 12 points and seven rebounds. Prescott finished with 10 points.

Top-notch junior point guard Jaylen Smith led the Dons with 16 points, including four 3-pointers, and some big plays. Krueger finished with 16 points, but missed his final four field goal attempts.

Game 5: No. 23 St. Ignatius (San Francisco) 58,
Clayton Valley (Concord) 56

Clayton Valley led 8-0 and 13-3 early, but a big second quarter run for the Wildcats made it a ballgame between two teams with major aspirations to compete in the NorCal open playoffs after section play is complete in late February.

St. Ignatius (1-0) also trailed 31-19 at one point in the second period, but closed the first half on a 15-0 run and took a 34-31 lead at halftime on a 3-pointer by Anthony D’Aquisto. The 6-foot-3 junior had three 3-pointers and 11 points in the second quarter and did not miss a shot from the field in the first half while netting 13 points.

St. Ignatius kept up the offensive onslaught in the third quarter and led 49-42 entering the fourth period. Clayton Valley kept it interesting and with 2:46 remaining in the game, SI’s bench was called for a technical foul while holding a 54-46 lead. Clayton Valley’s possession resulted in two points and the Ugly Eagles missed some free throws down the stretch that hurt their cause.

Trailing 55-53 with 21.4 seconds remaining, the Ugly Eagles looked to force a turnover, but ended up fouling Simon Werbach, who nailed two free throws for S.I. to give the CIF Central Coast Section open contender a 57-53 lead. Clayton Valley then made two free throws of its own. S.I.’s Alex Moore then made one of two free throws to give St. Ignatius a three-point cushion. With 6.5 seconds remaining, Clayton Valley’s Vince Ellis made only one of two free throws to account for the final mark, as the Wildcats were able to play keep-away on their final possession with both teams in the foul bonus.

D’Aquisto finished with 17 points and did not miss a shot from the field for S.I. Moore, a talented sophomore big man who can handle on the perimeter and catch the ball in traffic, had four blocked shots and impacted the game in ways that don’t show up on the box sheet. Senior guard Raymond Whitley added 10 points, five rebounds, and four assists.

Clayton Valley (1-1), which lost to preseason state No. 3 Salesian in a foundation game last Tuesday and defeated preseason state No. 40 Clovis North of Clovis 50-46 at the O’Dowd Thanksgiving Showcase on Friday evening, was led by Ellis with 19 points, who made 1-of-4 free throws. Talented junior Zion Grissom added 18 points.

Game 4: No. 16 Folsom 69, Cornerstone Christian (Antioch) 55

Junior wing James Perry had a terrific start for the upset-minded Cougars, but Folsom played a workman like game to record its first victory of the season. Perry, a talented left-hand wing who can handle and score, netted nine points and seven rebounds for Cornerstone Christian (2-1) in the first quarter alone and finished the first half with 19 points and nine rebounds. Despite Perry’s outburst, Folsom (1-0) led 37-29 at halftime and went on to record a decisive victory.

Perry slowed down in the second half while Folsom continued its good ball movement and picked up its defense. Idaho State-bound Joven Dulay had 17 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks for Folsom, while Southern Oregon commit Jack Shull had 19 points.

Perry, who did not play as a sophomore, finished 25 points, 11 points and three blocks.

Game 3: No. 29 Modesto Christian 56, Dublin 49

The host Gaels led 3-0 but would never lead again against a talented team with a few transfer sit-outs still in street clothes. The Crusaders led 24-17 at halftime and held off a pesky Dublin team that is in rebuilding mode and started four underclassmen. Dublin (1-1) only made one field goal in the fourth quarter, but kept in range by getting to the free throw line.

Modesto Christian (1-0) was led by 6-foot-7 freshman Somto Patrick, a talented young player who recently migrated to the Sac Joaquin Valley and has FIBA experience playing for the Bahrain 16U team, with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Junior Trevor Dickson also needed 13 points for the Crusaders.

Dublin was led by senior Aiden Li and junior Odin Chadiha with 12 points each.

Game 2: Bellarmine (San Jose) 63, Lincoln (Stockton) 55

The Bells led 35-19 at halftime after hitting eight 3-pointers as a team, with Chico State-bound Will Corbett and senior Sofian Stringfellow combining for 27 points. Bellarmine (1-0) kept its foot on the gas and rolled to a decisive victory over the Trojans (0-2), the defending NorCal D1 champ.

Corbett, a talented lefty scorer, led all players with 28 points, including four 3-pointers, and eight rebounds.

Lincoln, which played without talented sophomore wing Tre Simmons, was led by senior Jagger Merolla with 18 points and seven rebounds.

Game 1: King’s Academy (Sunnyvale) 63, No. 39 Branson (Ross) 59

Branson, which lost to traditional NorCal power Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland), 76-55, on Friday night at the Bishop O’Dowd Thanksgiving Showcase, came back less than 12 hours later to give a valiant effort versus King’s Academy (1-0). The Bulls, who are reeling a bit since the preseason after the departure of top senior Heath French, led 31-28 at halftime and 41-40 entering the fourth period, but tired down the stretch.

Freshman Scotty Beamish Jr. also sparked the Knights, who got 11 points from the first-year player in the fourth period and 14 points for the game. Sophomore Boss Mhoon, who was instrumental in helping King’s Academy reach last season’s CIF D3 title game where it fell to San Gabriel Academy, came up with a key block down the stretch as Branson trailed by three and looked to score inside. Mhoon finish 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals.

Junior point guard N.J. Gray, who was spectacular at times on Friday evening vs. O’Dowd, led the Bulls with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

RELATED: To see 2025-26 preseason state rankings, CLICK HERE ; To see the list of major tournaments and showcases involving California’s best teams, CLICK HERE; To see a list of all-time preseason No. 1 boys basketball teams (since 1979-80), CLICK HERE ; To see the vast list of transfers that will impact the 2025-26 season, CLICK HERE

Ronnie Flores is the managing editor of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at ronlocc1977@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores