A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff preview capsules for Saturday’s games

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, February 23, 2018 | 11:42 PM

Saturday’s quarterfinal games

Boys

Class 6A

No. 3 Fox Chapel (17-5) vs. No. 6 Pine-Richland (18-5)

Noon at North Hills

On the air: <a href=’http://TribHSSN.triblive.comTribHSSN.triblive.com<span class=”bold”>

Winner plays: No. 2 Woodland Hills (19-3) or No. 7 Canon-McMillan (21-2)

Layup lines: After a 12-day layoff, Fox Chapel returns to the court with a WPIAL semifinal bid in the wide-open 6A bracket on the line. The Foxes last played Feb. 12, falling to Central Catholic, 52-45. The WPIAL awarded a first-round bye to Fox Chapel, which had previously won nine games in a row. Tufts recruit Carson Cohen leads the way for the Foxes; the point guard averages 20 points and 6 assists per game. Dom McGriff averages 15.3 points and 7 rebounds, and shooting guard Ben Kelly averages 15 points. … Two-time defending WPIAL champion Pine-Richland rallied to beat Bethel Park, 66-62, in the first round. Phil Jurkovec had 23 points and 10 assists and Dan Petcash added 18 points. With the 6-foot-5 Jurkovec, a Notre Dame quarterback recruit, and 6-6 Andrew Kristofic, the Rams will have the size advantage against Fox Chapel. Pine-Richland finished second in Section 1 behind Central Catholic but led the classification at 72.1 ppg.

Class 4A

No. 8 Valley (14-4) vs. No. 1 Quaker Valley (21-0)

3:30 p.m. at Geneva College

On the air: TribHSSN.triblive.com

Winner plays: No. 4 Indiana (17-5) or No. 12 Uniontown (14-9)

Layup lines: Valley is coming off a 76-69 first-round win over South Park, the Vikings’ first postseason victory since 2009. They led by 15 in the second half and held off a late South Park comeback. Winners of 12 of their past 14 games, the Vikings tied for second in Section 1-4A. The team overcame preseason injuries to key juniors Deonte Ross and Alex Ward, both of whom have returned. Point guard Dru Stokes and Ross each scored 22 points against South Park, and those two, plus senior Darius Johnson, pulled down double-digit rebounds. … Quaker Valley won WPIAL and PIAA titles in football and a state title in boys soccer and is looking to add to that collection with basketball. The Quakers outscore teams by more than 21 points per game, with their closest victory coming by five points. Coletrane Washington, a Drexel recruit, averages 23 points, followed by Ryan Stowers (16) and Danny Conlan (15).

Girls

Class 3A

No. 11 Apollo-Ridge (11-12) vs. No. 3 Neshannock (19-3)

Noon at West Allegheny

On the air: TribHSSN.triblive.com

Winner plays: No. 2 East Allegheny (22-0) or No. 10 Seton LaSalle (10-13)

Layup lines: Apollo-Ridge is coming off a first-round upset of No. 6 Charleroi, outscoring the Cougars, 18-6, down the stretch of a 47-35 victory. The victory snapped a five-game losing streak for the Vikings. Their zone defense stifled Charleroi, holding the Cougars more than 20 points below their season average. Carlow recruit Megan Ost leads Apollo-Ridge, averaging 16.5 points and 10.8 rebounds. Maddy Moore (11.9 points per game) adds a consistent outside threat, shooting 38 percent from 3-point range. … Section 3 champion Neshannock was the WPIAL runner-up last season and held teams to 36.8 points per game. Bella Burrelli averages 17.9 ppg.

— Doug Gulasy

Tags: Apollo-Ridge, Fox Chapel, Neshannock, Pine-Richland, Quaker Valley, Valley