OAKLAND — Bishop O’Dowd coach Malik McCord couldn’t help but be impressed as his Dragons tried to keep up with the nation’s No. 1 girls basketball team, Archbishop Mitty, at O’Dowd’s Martin Luther King Jr. showcase.
Blitzed by an onslaught of pinpoint Morgan Cheli passes, quick McKenna Woliczko layups and relentless defensive pressure from all sides, O’Dowd joined an ever-growing list of programs to be crushed this season by the San Jose private school.
“We played like we were intimidated, and Mitty played a hell of a game,” McCord, the longtime O’Dowd coach, said after Mitty scored the first 17 points and rolled to a 66-18 victory. “There’s a reason Mitty is No. 1 in the nation right now.”
At this point, the question is no longer if Mitty is the best team in the country. That seems indisputable. Rather, it’s time to start pondering:
“Are the Monarchs the best girls basketball team in Bay Area history?”
Mitty’s Hall of Fame coach isn’t ruling out the possibility.
“There’s potential, there’s potential to be an incredible team,” said Sue Phillips, who recently earned her 800th career victory as Mitty coach. “We have potential to be pretty darn good, but we’re not quite there yet.”
OAKLAND – Mitty guard Morgan Cheli drives the ball up the court. Archbishop Mitty defeated Bishop O’Dowd 66-18 at the MLK showcase at Bishop O’Dowd high school in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
McCord knows what it’s like to be at the top, as his 2013 team won the inaugural Open Division state championship.
Even after Monday’s blowout, he wasn’t quite ready to crown the Monarchs.
“I’m not gonna go there,” McCord said when asked about Mitty’s potential as an all-time great team. “I’ve had one, and I’ve seen other teams, so I’m not gonna go there.”
“But they are damn good.”
Teams across the country can agree with McCord on that.
Of Mitty’s 14 victories, 13 are by double-digits. The one single-point win? Just a nationally-televised upset of then-MaxPreps No. 1 Long Island Lutheran in a game shown on ESPNU.
OAKLAND – Mitty forward McKenna Woliczko (20) drives in for a layup. Archbishop Mitty defeated Bishop O’Dowd 66-18 at the MLK showcase at Bishop O’Dowd high school in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
The Monarchs have rolled through elite teams from one coast to the other and even Canada in national showcases and tournaments.
As the regular season reaches its midpoint and the Mitty juggernaut looks to be a step — or 100 steps — ahead of its NorCal competition, an undefeated run to the state Open Division championship game appears likely.
Like any dominant team, the Monarchs have superstars leading the way.
Cheli, who will play at UConn next season, averages 17 points and 10 assists per game and is a candidate to participate in the prestigious McDonald’s All-American game in April. She had 11 points on Monday.
Sophomore forward Woliczko, who scored 16 points on Monday, averages 23 points per game and has scholarship offers from dozens of elite college programs.
“Our standard has a legacy (of success), because we have people who are in college and the WNBA,” Woliczko said. “We don’t lower that standard for anyone.”
OAKLAND – Mitty coach Sue Phillips yells instructions from the sideline. Archbishop Mitty defeated Bishop O’Dowd 66-18 at the MLK showcase at Bishop O’Dowd high school in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, Jan. 15, 2024 (Joseph Dycus/Bay Area News Group)
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Of course, this is far from the first great team Phillips has led at Mitty. Her Monarchs won Division I — then considered the top classification — in 1999 and have won several state titles in other divisions.
The 2017-18 iteration appeared to be headed toward immortality after reaching the NorCal Open final with a 29-0 record. However, the Haley Jones-led Monarchs lost a triple-overtime classic to Pinewood, denying Mitty its chance at state Open hardware, something the program is still seeking.
Aside from Mitty, schools such as Sacred Heart Prep in the 1990s and Berkeley over numerous decades are other NorCal teams with storied histories. More recently, Salesian, Sabrina Ionescu-led Miramonte and Pinewood have trotted out elite teams.
But if Mitty continues to pile up the wins in ultra-dominating fashion, regular season and then playoffs, the case against 2023-24 Mitty will become increasingly difficult to make.
But the Monarchs, from coaches on down to players, know that the only the program’s first Open state title will make it inarguable.
“What matters is March,” Phillips said.
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