Alemany expected this day to come. The Warriors were announced Friday as one of the 16 teams to qualify for the CIF Southern Section Boys Open Division playoffs.
As the No. 13 seed, the Warriors will open at No. 4 seed Corona Centennial on Thursday.
"We're honored," Alemany head coach Tray Meeks said prior to the pairings being announced. "A lot of people have mixed emotions about it but we're honored to be considered one of the top 16 teams in Southern California. Southern California basketball is really, really good."
As much as they expected to be selected for the Open Division, it was expected that the Warriors would open on the road. That's fine by them.
The Warriors are road-tested. In the midst of a league championship and the 11 straight wins for the Warriors entering the playoffs is the fact they went undefeated on the road in the tough Mission League.
"That was a bigger accomplishment -- going undefeated on the road," Meeks said. "We knew that if everyone bought in to the team concept that we had a chance to do something special. I still don't know what special is. I don't know what God has in store for us later on."
Added junior Daron Henson: "It's tough to win on the road. Coach always talks about staying together. Every road game we stayed together. Through adversity we always came together and that's how we ended up undefeated."
Alemany made easy work of what is thought to be one of the best leagues around and features some of the most raucous student sections in Southern California.
The Warriors only league loss was in the opener, at home, to Crespi. They finished a perfect 6-0 on the road and, as is the case with many of the teams selected for the Open Division, is playing some of the best basketball of any team in the state right now.
Alemany is one of five teams that will enter the Open Division playoffs with a double digit winning streak.
At least two of those streaks will be snapped in the first round with the Warriors set to face the Huskies and 1-seed Bishop Montgomery hosting 16-seed JW North.
The other team with a double digit win streak is No. 2 Mater Dei. The Monarchs will host No. 15 seed Price.
Rounding out the bracket, No. 9 seed Cathedral visits No. 8 seed Redondo. No. 5 seed Damien hosts No. 12 seed Orange Lutheran. No. 3 seed Sierra Canyon opens at home against No. 14 seed St. John Bosco. No. 11 seed Cantwell-Sacred Heart will travel to No. 6 seed Etiwanda. No. 7 seed Long Beach Poly will have a home game against No. 10 seed Chino Hills.
In the girls bracket, the top four seeds are Mater Dei, Long Beach Poly, Chaminade, and Alemany.
Each team selected to the Open Division is guaranteed at least two playoff games. Losers in the first round move to the consolation bracket.
The boys championship is Saturday, March 7 at Honda Center, while the girls championship is also March 7 at Felix Events Center on the campus of Azusa Pacific University.
