WPIAL releases brackets for 2024 boys and girls basketball playoffs

By: Chris Harlan
Monday, February 12, 2024 | 2:22 PM

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When the WPIAL basketball committee met Monday morning to seed the playoff brackets, there was little debate about the No. 1 seeds.

Most were obvious choices.

In some brackets, two, three and four were tricky to sort out. But maybe the hardest part of putting together this year’s brackets were the middle seeds, said committee chairman Brian Geyer, the Peters Township athletic director.

“A lot of times, the first couple of schools or the first four are pretty established,” Geyer said. “Our ultimate goal is to get the top four teams to the semifinals. But then we ask: ‘Who are the next four? Who should be in the quarters?’

“We spend a lot of time seeding one through four, but five through 12 was another difficult task in some cases.”

Having so many teams with similar records and similar resumes meant a number of decisions were up for debate, but that balance might also indicate these playoffs could be a little more unpredictable.

“I think it’s the best (balance) in years, which should make for a good tournament,” said WPIAL chief operating officer Vince Sortino, whose job responsibilities include overseeing the postseason.

First-round games are scheduled from Friday to Tuesday based on classification, with one outlier in Class A boys on Thursday. Class 6A teams start the playoffs with quarterfinal games Feb. 22 or 23. The playoffs conclude with 12 championship games Feb. 29-March 2 at Petersen Events Center.

Six reigning WPIAL basketball champions will start their title defenses as favorites to win again.

The boys basketball teams of Imani Christian (Class A), Aliquippa (2A), Deer Lakes (3A) and Lincoln Park (4A) and girls teams from Union (A) and Avonworth (3A) were among the No. 1 seeds in the WPIAL playoff brackets released Monday.

Also earning No. 1 seeds were the Mt. Lebanon (6A) and Moon (5A) boys, along with the Greensburg Central Catholic (2A), Blackhawk (4A), Oakland Catholic (5A) and Norwin (6A) girls.

The WPIAL had only one undefeated team: the Oakland Catholic girls, who finished 22-0.

Only 20 teams finished the season with an undefeated section record, meaning half of the section champions suffered at least one section loss. Eight sections finished with co-champions.

“There was usually a clear choice about the top four teams, but as you got into your six, seven and eight, anybody could beat anyone,” Sortino said. “A number of classifications this year were like that. After your top couple of teams, you say anybody could win because they beat each other up during the year.”

The Class 3A boys bracket was a good example.

In Section 1, Mohawk (11-1) edged Neshannock (10-2) for the title, while Deer Lakes (11-1) won the Section 3 title over Shady Side Academy (10-2). Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and Seton LaSalle shared the Section 2 title with matching 11-1 records, while Yough and Washington tied atop Section 4 at 11-1.

The committee seeded the co-champions fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth, behind defending champion Deer Lakes (first), Mohawk (second), Shady Side Academy (third) and Neshannock (fourth).

The perceived strength of section was key in determining the order, Geyer said. The committee also tried to find quality nonsection games that might boost one team over another.

Avoiding first-round section rematches also was a goal in brackets with more than eight teams.

The Class 5A boys bracket was tricky, as well. The committee viewed Moon as the consensus No. 1 seed and then debated about Franklin Regional at two, Shaler at three and Thomas Jefferson at four. Section strength again largely shaped the order, as did a mid-January nonsection win Franklin Regional earned over Shaler.

But the work didn’t stop there.

“Five through 10,” Geyer said, “there was a lot of talking back and forth.”

Sortino noted that the 14-person basketball committee comes from a variety of schools, both in terms of geography and classification.

“The committee once again came in prepared,” Sortino said. “Everyone had their notes and they’ve watched the games. We have people from Lawrence County and all the way down to (watching) West Greene and Waynesburg. We have people who have experience from Class A through 6A. We’ve got a good committee.”

The Class 5A and 3A boys brackets weren’t the only challenging ones. Geyer said the Class 4A boys bracket was difficult “after the top four” and that the committee “spent a great deal of time” on Class A boys. On the girls side, the most complex brackets were Class A and 3A, which also had two sets of section co-champions.

WPIAL playoff schedule

Boys

Class 6A

Quarterfinals

Feb. 23 schedule

Times TBA

Pine-Richland (7-14) at Mt. Lebanon (18-3)

North Allegheny (10-11) at Baldwin (16-5)

Canon-McMillan (9-12) vs. Central Catholic (13-8) at TBA

Butler (15-5) at Upper St. Clair (16-5)

Class 5A

Preliminary round

Friday’s schedule

Woodland Hills (8-13) at Trinity (9-12), 7 p.m.

First round

Feb. 19 schedule

Woodland Hills/Trinity at Moon (18-3), 7 p.m.

North Hills (11-9) at Fox Chapel (12-10), 8 p.m.

Penn-Trafford (11-11) at Thomas Jefferson (18-3), 8 p.m.

Kiski Area (14-7) at Peters Township (16-5), 7 p.m.

Mars (10-12) at Franklin Regional (19-2), 7 p.m.

Penn Hills (13-7) at Gateway (15-6), 7 p.m.

Chartiers Valley (11-11) at Shaler (20-2), 8 p.m.

Bethel Park (11-10) at South Fayette (13-8), 7 p.m.

Class 4A

First round

Friday’s schedule

Freeport (6-14) at Lincoln Park (19-3), 7 p.m.

Beaver (12-9) at Knoch (14-7), 7 p.m.

Quaker Valley (10-11) at Uniontown (19-3), 7 p.m.

Elizabeth Forward (14-7) at North Catholic (13-7), 7 p.m.

Central Valley (13-8) at Hampton (19-3), 7 p.m.

Belle Vernon (12-7) at South Allegheny (16-6), 7 p.m.

Southmoreland (16-6) at Montour (18-3), 7 p.m.

Highlands (14-7) at Avonworth (15-7), 7 p.m.

Class 3A

First round

Feb. 19 schedule

Sto-Rox (10-12) at Deer Lakes (17-4), 7 p.m.

Ellwood City (15-7) at Washington (15-7), 7 p.m.

Mt. Pleasant (8-13) at Neshannock (17-3), 7 p.m.

Derry (13-6) vs. OLSH (17-4) at Fox Chapel, 6 p.m.

McGuffey (14-8) at Mohawk (15-7), 7 p.m.

South Park (13-8) at Yough (18-4), 8 p.m.

Beaver Falls (7-13) vs. Shady Side Academy (14-7) at Shaler, 6 p.m.

Burrell (13-6) vs. Seton LaSalle (16-5) at Thomas Jefferson, 6 p.m.

Class 2A

First round

Feb. 20 schedule

Nazareth Prep (6-12) at Aliquippa (17-5), 7 p.m.

Chartiers-Houston (16-6) at Serra Catholic (15-7), 7 p.m.

Winchester Thurston (11-8) vs. Fort Cherry (16-5) at Avella, 7 p.m.

Burgettstown (16-6) at Bishop Canevin (12-9), 7 p.m.

Frazier (11-11) at Greensburg Central Catholic (20-2), 7 p.m.

Eden Christian (12-9) at Shenango (12-9), 7 p.m.

Clairton (10-12) at Northgate (16-4), 7 p.m.

Sewickley Academy (12-9) at Jeannette (14-7), 7 p.m.

Class A

First round

Thursday’s schedule

Hillel Academy (7-9) at Union (12-10), 7 p.m.

Friday’s schedule

Imani Christian (11-10) bye

Avella (9-13) at West Greene (14-8), 7 p.m.

Summit Academy (4-12) at Monessen (17-4), 7 p.m.

Neighborhood Academy (16-5) bye

California (7-15) vs. Aquinas Academy (14-7) at Peters Township, 8 p.m.

St. Joseph (3-18) at Rochester (15-5), 7 p.m.

Jefferson-Morgan (13-9) at Carlynton (6-14), 7 p.m.

Girls

Class 6A

Quarterfinals

Feb. 22 schedule

Times TBA

Seneca Valley (12-10) at Norwin (18-3)

Chartiers Valley (14-6) at Mt. Lebanon (12-10)

Pine-Richland (7-13) at Peters Township (20-1)

Upper St. Clair (12-10) at North Allegheny (19-2)

Class 5A

Preliminary round

Friday’s schedule

Penn Hills (10-11) at Thomas Jefferson (9-12), 7 p.m.

First round

Feb. 20 schedule

Penn Hills/Thomas Jefferson winner at Oakland Catholic (22-0), 7 p.m.

Plum (13-8) at North Hills (13-8), 7 p.m.

Penn-Trafford (14-8) at Lincoln Park (19-2), 7 p.m.

Latrobe (11-11) at Armstrong (17-4), 7 p.m.

Hampton (12-10) at McKeesport (18-3), 7 p.m.

Moon (14-8) at Indiana (17-5), 7 p.m.

Woodland Hills (9-10) at Trinity (17-5), 7 p.m.

Mars (12-10) at South Fayette (14-8), 7 p.m.

Class 4A

First round

Feb. 20 schedule

Blackhawk (20-2) bye

Hopewell (10-11) at Greensburg Salem (15-7), 7 p.m.

Highlands (16-6) bye

Quaker Valley (5-15) at Laurel Highlands (18-2), 7 p.m.

North Catholic (14-7) bye

West Mifflin (10-8) at Central Valley (11-10), 7 p.m.

Elizabeth Forward (19-2) bye

Belle Vernon (10-12) at Knoch (12-9), 7 p.m.

Class 3A

First round

Saturday’s schedule

Apollo-Ridge (8-13) at Avonworth (19-1), 2 p.m.

Burrell (16-4) vs. Keystone Oaks (15-6) at South Park, noon

Brownsville (12-9) at Neshannock (15-7), noon

Mt. Pleasant (14-7) at South Park (15-6), 2 p.m.

Mohawk (13-9) vs. Shady Side Academy (19-2) at Avonworth, 4 p.m.

Ellwood City (15-7) vs. OLSH (15-7) at Avonworth, noon

McGuffey (14-7) at Beaver Falls (14-6), noon

Seton LaSalle (12-8) at Waynesburg (19-2), noon

Class 2A

First round

Friday’s schedule

Northgate (6-14) at Greensburg Central Catholic (16-5), 7 p.m.

Rochester (15-7) at Burgettstown (14-9), 7 p.m.

Beth-Center (11-10) vs. Fort Cherry (17-4) at Peters Township, 6 p.m.

South Side (12-9) at Chartiers-Houston (16-5), 7 p.m.

California (10-11) at Aliquippa (19-2), 7 p.m.

Clairton (16-4) at Freedom (12-10), 7 p.m.

Brentwood (10-12) at Serra Catholic (18-4), 7 p.m.

Winchester Thurston (10-12) at Washington (14-8), 7 p.m.

Class A

First round

Feb. 19 schedule

Union (16-5) bye

Jeannette (8-9) at West Greene (9-13), 7 p.m.

Riverview (15-6) bye

Leechburg (8-10) at Monessen (16-5), 7 p.m.

Aquinas Academy (15-6) bye

Eden Christian (8-13) vs. Geibel (15-6) at Yough, 6 p.m.

St. Joseph (19-2) bye

Mapletown (6-14) at Bishop Canevin (6-13), 7 p.m.

WPIAL basketball playoff brackets

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.