Breaking down the 2023 WPIAL boys basketball playoff brackets

By: Chris Harlan
Monday, February 13, 2023 | 8:25 PM

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A closer look at the WPIAL boys basketball playoffs, which begin Thursday night:

Class 6A

Favorite: New Castle was bumped up to the WPIAL’s largest classification this winter, but that move hasn’t slowed the Red Hurricanes. They’re led by a pair of 17-point scorers in seniors Jonathan Anderson and Isaiah Boice, who bounced back from a midseason broken foot. New Castle owns a league-record 14 WPIAL titles, including seven since 2012 under coach Ralph Blundo.

Challengers: Upper St. Clair has a five-game winning streak that included a 37-36 win over rival Mt. Lebanon, earning USC the Section 2 title. The Panthers are led by Nick Sukernek (13 ppg) and Matthew Gaither (12 ppg). The team seeks its second WPIAL title in three years. … Central Catholic has a top guard, Dante DePante (16 ppg), but the Vikings also are the biggest team in WPIAL 6A. They out-rebound opponents with 6-foot-7 senior Debaba Tshiebwe and 6-4 junior Cole Sullivan in the front court. … Mt. Lebanon owns the top defense in WPIAL 6A, allowing only 48.9 points per game. Butler is the classification’s top-scoring team at 65.7 ppg.

Don’t overlook: Seneca Valley finished fourth in Section 1, but the Raiders were often a tough matchup. They defeated Central Catholic in early January and had two close losses to New Castle by seven and five points.

Prediction: New Castle over Central Catholic

Class 5A

Favorites: Peters Township didn’t start the season as WPIAL title favorites, but the Indians earned the No. 1 seed with an 11-game winning streak down the stretch. The team seeks its second WPIAL title and first since 2009. The Indians lead all Class 5A teams in scoring at 73.6 ppg and reached the 100-point mark once this season. Jack Dunbar averages 17 ppg and Brendan McCullough 15.

Challengers: Penn Hills was headed for the No. 1 seed before a 15-point loss to rival Woodland Hills in the section finale. Daemar Kelly, a 6-5 senior, is a Quinnipiac recruit and a 16-point scorer. Noah Barren averages 12 points. The Indians also have the stingiest defense in WPIAL 5A, allowing only 44.5 ppg. … North Hills, the preseason WPIAL favorite with 6-8 junior Royce Parham (29.8 ppg), emerged battle-tested as the Section 4 champion. That section had four teams earn top-eight seeds: North Hills (3) Moon (5), Mars (7) and South Fayette (8). North Hills was the WPIAL 6A runner-up last season. … Section 3 champion Gateway reached the WPIAL and PIAA semifinals last season. Mars’ Tasso Sfanos averages 25 ppg.

Don’t overlook: South Fayette finished fourth in Section 4, but the Lions split with North Hills and has Shaler among its nonsection wins.

Prediction: Penn Hills over Peters Township

Class 4A

Favorite: Lincoln Park will try to win its sixth WPIAL title, all since 2012. This year’s Leopards have a pair of Division I talents in junior Brandin Cummings (25.1 ppg) and sophomore Meleek Thomas (23.3). Cummings is committed to Pitt. Thomas ranks as one of the top 10 prospects nationally in his recruiting class. The team averages 76.5 ppg, best in WPIAL 4A. The team’s only loss was the 6A contender Central Catholic.

Challengers: Laurel Highlands won the WPIAL 5A title last winter. The Mustangs have two senior stars in Rodney Gallagher (21.1 ppg) and Keondre Deshields (22.8 ppg). Both are Division I football recruits, with Gallagher headed to West Virginia and Deshields to St. Francis. … Uniontown is young with two sophomore starters, but the Red Raiders split with rival Laurel Highlands, and both games reached double overtime. … Hampton must play without star junior Peter Kramer, who’s ineligible for the playoffs under PIAA transfer rules. … Highlands’ only losses were to Hampton (twice) and Penn Hills by one point. … North Catholic’s Max Hurray averages 22 ppg. Highlands (75.9 ppg), Uniontown (75.7) and North Catholic (72.6) trail only Lincoln Park in Class 4A scoring. Highlands’ Bradyn Foster is a 20-point scorer.

Don’t overlook: Quaker Valley and South Allegheny finished as co-champions in Section 4 but drew only the seventh and eighth seeds. QV is the defending WPIAL champion. SA played one of the toughest nonsection schedules.

Prediction: Lincoln Park over Laurel Highlands

Class 3A

Favorites: Steel Valley’s transition from football to basketball season wasn’t easy. After reaching the state football semifinals, the Ironmen lost seven of their first eight basketball games. Yet, they found their stride and are 11-2 since Christmas. Senior Makhai Valentine, a 36-point scorer, ranks second among WPIAL leaders. Steel Valley won its only WPIAL title in 2002.

Challengers: Steel Valley was the only outright section champion in WPIAL 3A. Neshannock and Mohawk tied atop Section 1, Shady Side Academy and Deer Lakes tied in Section 3, and Yough and Washington tied in Section 4. … Mohawk had a 10-game winning streak end Friday with a 10-point loss at Neshannock. … Deer Lakes is the highest-scoring offense in 3A at 69.4 ppg, followed by Mohawk (67.6) and Steel Valley (63.5). … Our Lady of the Sacred Heart won four consecutive WPIAL 2A titles before moving to 3A this season. … Yough’s Terek Crosby and Shady Side’s Eli Teslovich are each 22-point scorers.

Don’t overlook: Ellwood City finished fourth in Section 1, but the Wolverines have playoff experience. They were WPIAL champions just two years ago. Junior Joseph Roth averages 29 ppg.

Prediction: Steel Valley over Shady Side Academy

Class 2A

Favorite: Aliquippa is trying to win a WPIAL basketball title with the same group that won in football in the fall. The Quips’ starting five are all football players, including Ohio safety recruit D.J. Walker (11.8 ppg). Junior linebacker Cameron Lindsey, a two-sport star, averages 11.4 ppg. The Quips have 12 WPIAL titles, the most recent in 2016. The team is holding opponents to 43.7 ppg, which ranks third-best in WPIAL 2A.

Challengers: Bishop Canevin is trying to win a WPIAL title for the third year in a row, this time with new coach Tim McConnell, who already has a collection of WPIAL titles. Canevin won Class A titles the past two seasons. … Fort Cherry won the Section 4 title behind 24-point scorer Owen Norman. The Rangers are chasing their first WPIAL title since 1961. Fort Cherry averages 72.6 ppg, most in WPIAL 2A, and also allows the fewest defensively (40.9). … Greensburg Central Catholic won the Section 3 title behind 21-point scorer Tyree Turner. … Serra Catholic has a pair of double-digit scorers in Isaiah Petty (19 ppg) and Joey DeMoss (16). … Eden Christian, coached by former Steelers defensive lineman Aaron Smith, split its two-game series with Canevin.

Don’t overlook: Northgate (16-6) celebrated its first winning season since 2012. The Flames were the second-highest scoring team in WPIAL 2A (68.5 ppg) and tied for second in Section 1.

Prediction: Aliquippa over Bishop Canevin

Class A

Favorite: Imani Christian is one of the WPIAL’s smallest schools, but the basketball team has big aspiration this winter. The Saints, who have four double-digit scorers, are trying to win their first WPIAL title. Three of their top scorers are sophomores: Dame Givner (15.9 ppg), Alier Maluk (15.1) and Robert Sledge (11.8). Maluk, a 6-10 forward, recently added an Ohio State offer. Virgil Hall, a 6-8 junior, averages 12.7 points. The Saints reached the WPIAL semifinals last year. They average 68.9 ppg, which ranks second-best in WPIAL Class A.

Challengers: It was Union that knocked Imani Christian out of the 2022 playoffs. The Scotties are trying to make another run behind Matt Stanley (15 ppg) and Peyton Lombardo (10 ppg). Union won a WPIAL football title in the fall with many overlapping athletes. … Carlynton finished second behind Union in Section 1 but was close with two- and three-point losses. … Geibel Catholic and Monessen finished as co-champions in Section 2. Geibel won the most recent matchup and earned the higher seed. Monessen has won 20 of its last 21 games.

Don’t overlook: Aquinas Academy has the newly crowned all-time leading scorer in WPIAL history in senior Vinnie Cugini, a Pitt-Johnstown recruit.

Prediction: Imani Christian over Union

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.