Southern Section Votes to Compete in State Playoffs

The Southern Section of the California Interscholastic Federation ended its one-year boycott of the state high school basketball tournament Thursday when the Executive Council approved a proposal to return to the playoffs next season.

The council, made up of 58 Southern Section league representatives, voted 46-12 to return to the state tournament. Thursday’s vote applies to both boys’ and girls’ teams.

There were three main reasons for the council’s reversal of last year’s decision to leave the state tournament:

--The CIF made concessions to accommodate the Southern Section, which, with its 478 member schools, is the largest of the state’s 10 sections. The state basketball tournament will be conducted one week later than previously scheduled, thereby easing some of the scheduling strains that led to the Southern Section’s departure.

--There were financial considerations. Even though it didn’t participate this year, and thus did not receive any revenue, the Southern Section was billed $8,000 as its share of the tournament’s expenses.

--There was the influence of the Southern Section’s Executive Committee, which had proposed the return to the state tournament.