CONCORD, Calif. – The inaugural Sabrina Ionescu SI20 Showcase would have to be considered a success. Despite organizers having to make some last minute changes due to COVID protocols affecting the original schedule, 18 of Northern California’s top teams played nine mostly competitive games on Saturday at Carondelet.

While the Showcase was about the girls and the games, the spotlight was on Ionescu when she entered the gym. When the WNBA star was introduced the crowd roared, and not only the MVPs of each game, but other players and entire teams wanted to pose with a woman many analysts consider the best player to ever come out of the Bay Area.

“It’s pretty surreal to have someone you coached from such a young age to come back and have the fans know had appreciate what Sabrina has done for the Bay Area but now also giving back to the game,” said Carondelet head coach Kelly Sopak, who began coaching the current WNBA star in third grade and then with the Cal Stars and in high school at Miramonte. “Hopefully she does more giving back and help prepare more female athletes (to give back) because that’s what we need. We need people like Sabrina to help us grow our game.”

Archbishop Mitty 68, Folsom 39

When the final score hit social media, there was some surprise at the margin of the Monarchs’ victory.

Mitty came into the game ranked No. 5 in the most recent Cal-Hi Sports rankings and Folsom was No. 12, but some computer rankings had Folsom ranked ahead of Mitty.

The game that unfolded saw Mitty dominate every aspect of the game on both ends of the court. Not only was it a 29-point victory, the Monarchs won the battle of the boards with a convincing 45-22 margin.

“Was not expecting that kind of dominance,” wrote Mitch Stephens, senior writer-columnist-editor for CBS/MaxPreps.com and content provider for the San Francisco Chronicle. “Very Impressive victory for Coach (Sue) Phillips and the Monarchs.”

Mitty (15-1) had turnovers on its first three possessions but trailed only once at 2-0, when back-to-back three-pointers by Texas-San Antonio-bound senior guard Siena Guttadauro got the Monarchs rolling.

The lead was only 19-13 after one quarter, but at that point Morgan Cheli took over. The 6-2 sophomore sensation, who can play almost any position on the court, keyed a 16-0 Mitty run. By halftime she had outscored Folsom 15-9 herself in the second quarter. At that point the score was 42-19 and the game was pretty much decided.

Cheli, who was named the MVP of the game and received her T-shirt in a post-game presentation by Ionescu, also had five rebounds, two steals and one of her two three-pointers in the second quarter. Cheli finished with 19 points, 12 rebounds and five steals.

“Morgan is a very special player that impacts the game on both ends of the floor,” said Mitty head coach Sue Phillips. “With her size and skill set she can get to her spots on the floor and score in a variety of ways.”

Two other Monarchs were in double figures. Guttadauro had three three-pointers to finish with 14 points with four rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Maya Hernandez fought through foul trouble to finish with 10 points and 12 rebounds with two steals and an assist.

“We brought great energy and intensity, a stellar scouting report on defense, and a relentless attack mindset,” summed up Phillips.

Folsom (18-1) was led by senior guard Makayla Jackson with 14 points and senior guard Chelsea Ching. Junior standout Charlotte Climenhage, who recently had several solid performances, was held scoreless by the Mitty defense

Folsom was coming off a tough Friday night 42-37 win over Sierra Foothill League rival Oak Ridge, and they were without 6-2 sophomore center Kamryn Mafua. Missing her may have contributed to Mitty’s dominance in the paint, but the Monarchs were missing one of their inside players, 6-0 Seattle University-bound Makayla Moore.

Folsom head coach Lynn Wolking took it in stride and even had a smile when he summed things up.

“All I can say is Mitty is pretty darn good,” Wolking remarked.

Folsom returns to Sierra Foothill action on Friday in Loomis at Del Oro.

Mitty is in San Francisco on Tuesday in a key West Catholic Athletic League matchup at St. Ignatius.

Carondelet 79, Heritage 60

The game was a back-and-forth affair for the first five minutes of the first quarter, but with the score tied 10-10 host Carondelet (14-1) went on a 10-1 run take a 20-11 lead after one period. The Cougars stretched to 44-26 at the half before coasting home.

The bottom line in this game was Heritage had no answer for the senior duo of Stanford-bound point guard Talana Lepolo, and UC Davis-bound combo guard Nya Epps. No teams really have, with the possible exception of national No. 2 DeSoto (Texas), which handed the Cougars their lone defeat, 56-50 in the West Coast Jamboree Platinum Division title game,

Epps nailed five three-pointers and finished with a team high 26 points. In a close decision Lepolo edged Epps with her all-around performance and got the MVP T-shirt presented by Ionescu. Lepolo finished with a near triple-double 11 points, 11 assists, seven steals and four rebounds.

“I do get just as much excitement out of a good pass as a basket,” Lepolo said. “I feel we’re the most efficient if we’re moving the ball – and fortunately I have teammates that can shoot and finish. Why not let them have the ball too?”

Besides Epps, two other Cougars were big beneficiaries of passes by Lepolo. Junior Jamie Kent had 14 points and 12 rebounds with four steals and three assists, and senior post Megan Dickert added 12 points and four rebounds with two steals.

Heritage (11-4) got a great effort from junior Amanda Muse. The 6-3 ESPN four-star recruit finished with 25 points (two three-pointers), 17 rebounds and four blocks.

Three other Patriots were in double figures as senior Julia Wright and sophomores Kendall McClure and Ashley McNabb each had 10 points

Sopak was just happy to have a tough opponent. Since the Jamboree the Cougars are 3-0, beating opponents by a 217-73 combined score.

“It was really good to get out and play some competition,” Sopak remarked. “It had been since December 30 when we played DeSoto that we played a meaningful game.”

“We were a little choppy and fouled a lot, but it was good to just get out and run,” Sopak continued.

The run to the playoffs for Carondelet continues on Tuesday with East Bay Athletic League foe Amador Valley coming to Concord.

Heritage will need to shake off the loss and get ready for the start of Bay Valley Athletic League play where they will be the favorites and open on Wednesday with visiting Pittsburg.