2013: Tonight’s the Night

San Diego Section basketball gets its most severe test.

Tonight’s Southern California regional semifinals could provide the most definitive view of how local teams stack up against some of the strongest Los Angeles-area teams.

The most intriguing matchups take place about 10 miles from each other in L.A.’s  Westside beach communities.

Division II No. 3 seed Hoover (31-5) visits  2 seed Redondo Beach Redondo Union  and 4 seed Mission Hills is at 1 seed Santa Monica.

Redondo is ranked 27^th in the state by CalPreps and Hoover 31^st.  Santa Monica is 19^th and Mission Hills 21^st.

The game of the year in San Diego is at Rancho Bernardo High, where 1 seed St. Augustine, eighth in CalPreps, and 5 seed Cathedral Catholic,  22^nd, meet for the fifth time in the season.

D-IV 2 seed Army-Navy,  24^th-ranked,  has a home game at Oceanside High against 6 seed Bishop Montgomery, fifth in CalPreps.

Mission Hills and Hoover are the road, making for very difficult  challenges.

We’ll strain what’s left of my credibility once more by attempting to select  winners and scores.

PREDICTIONS
St. Augustine 60, Cathedral Catholic 55.

Redondo Union  64, Hoover 62.

Santa Monica 65, Mission Hills 56.

Torrance Bishop Montgomery 68, Army-Navy 59.

L.A. View Park 60, Horizon 49.