This Week in PDPreps: Montgomery, Newman girls tangle atop NBL-Oak

No one can dispute that Cardinal Newman is the girls basketball team to beat in the North Bay League-Oak Division.

But if anyone has a chance, it’s Montgomery.

Both teams are undefeated in the division, Newman at 5-0 and the Vikings 4-0, and overall Montgomery is 16-2 while the Cardinals are 14-4.

Both have already faced every other team in the division, defeating them all soundly. The closest of the nine games was an 11-point Montgomery win over Analy last week.

Tuesday’s 7:30 p.m. game at Cardinal Newman will leave only one undefeated NBL-Oak team and could very well predict the division champion.

Montgomery has finished second to Newman for the past two years, while Newman hasn’t lost a league game since early 2014. Last January, Montgomery challenged Newman in the Cardinals’ closest league game in several years, ultimately losing by six.

Newman, which has grown into a state powerhouse under coach Monica Mertle, won the state Division 4 title in 2016, advanced to the state Open Division semis the following year and won the D3 title before being eliminated in the first round of state last year.

Montgomery lost to Bishop O’Dowd in last year’s North Coast Section D2, and has advanced to the first round of state playoffs both of the prior two years.

Both teams have stingy defenses, with Newman allowing just 25 points per game. Montgomery was on the same pace before giving up 44 to Analy on Friday.

Offensively, though, the Cardinals are averaging 79 points a game while the Vikings score 46 a game.

Montgomery coach Darryl LaBlue said he has prepared his squad for a pressure-packed game.

“Having some senior leadership is going to help. They’ve been through this before,” he said. “They know what’s expected. It’s a matter of playing sound basketball and not letting them get too far away from us.

“At same time, I told them to embrace it, have fun with it, don’t be afraid of the moment. Whatever the result is, as long as you did whatever you possibly could to, you walk away knowing you did your best.”

Oddly, Montgomery is slotted above Newman in state rankings. Newman is ranked 38 in the state by MaxPreps.com, below Montgomery at 34, although that doesn’t tell the entire story.

Montgomery is 2-2 against other top 100 teams, including losses to No. 71 Vanden and No. 59 Cosumnes Oaks, and wins over No. 84 North and No. 50 Del Norte.

Newman is 2-3 against the top 100 but has played four top 25 teams, including a two-point loss to No. 4 Pinewood, a win over No. 8 Bishop O’Dowd, and a nine-point win over No. 13 Clovis.

Newman will have to shut down Montgomery’s Ashleigh Barr, who leads the Vikings with nearly 10 points and 8 rebounds a game and can provide inside defense.

The Vikings must stop the Cardinals’ quick and sharp-shooting guards, Avery Cargill and Anya Choice. Choice averages almost 22 points and seven rebounds a game, and Cargill adds 17 points and six assists per game.

Cardinal Newman is riding a seven-game winning streak, while Montgomery has won six in a row.

In other high school games to watch this week:

Basketball

NBL-Oak boys leader Montgomery (4-0) defends its top spot against second-place Cardinal Newman (2-0) at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Newman.

In Redwood play, the Healdsburg boys (3-1) host Elsie Allen (2-2) Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.

In girls Redwood action, Rancho Cotate (4-0) tries to remain undefeated as it hosts third-place El Molino (2-1) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

In the Vine Valley Athletic League, the Sonoma Valley boys play at Petaluma on Wednesday at 6 p.m. Both are 2-2, as is Casa Grande, behind 4-0 Napa and 4-1 American Canyon.

In VVAL girls, Casa (4-1) heads to Napa (1-3) Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Soccer

The league leaders meet in several matchups, including the Santa Rosa girls at Piner, both unbeaten at 2-0 in the NBL-Redwood, Tuesday at 6 p.m.

In Redwood boys, 3-0 Maria Carrillo travels to Cardinal Newman (1-0-2) today at 6 p.m., while in Oak, Montgomery (2-0) heads to Santa Rosa (1-0-1) Wednesday at 6 p.m.

Girls Oak newcomer Sonoma Academy (0-2-1) will host Windsor (1-0-1) Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.

VVAL girls leader Petaluma (3-0-1) hosts third-place Sonoma Valley (2-1-1) Wednesday at 6 p.m.

You can reach staff writer Lori A. Carter at 707-521-5470 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @loriacarter.