HIGH SCHOOL basketball is underway now (Shutterstock).

High school football season is over – except for a few lucky teams that will advance to regional playoffs – and attention now turns to boys’ and girls’ basketball.

This is the time for non-league games and tournaments. Usually this part of the season is to underline fundamentals, try different lineup combinations and integrate newcomers into the varsity systems.

Coming out of the weekend, most teams in our West Orange County coverage area are off to mostly slow starts. Of the 16 schools that serve our area, only three boys’ teams have posted winning records.

They are Orange (4-1), Orangewood Academy (4-2) and Marina (3-2).

At the other end of the spectrum two boys’ team are winless. Bolsa Grande is 0-3 and Garden Grove is 0-6. In the latter case, the Argonauts won the CIF-SS Division 4AA title last year, but much of that team, as well as coach Brian Girard, are gone.

Andrew Scimeca is the new coach, and it’s very likely that the Argos will improve over their rough start.

On the girls’s side, five local teams have winning records. They are Ocean View (6-1), Santiago (3-1), Marina (3-1) and two 2-0 teams, Orange and Orangewood Academy.

Winless are Loara (0-3), Los Amigos (0-5) and Western (0-2).

Most area leagues will start the “real season” in early January. The Golden West League tips off on Friday, Jan. 6, while the Sunset League will commence on Wednesday, Jan. 11, according to published schedules.