Playoff brackets set to be announced as part of 3 things to watch Tuesday in Western Pa. athletics

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, February 12, 2018 | 10:42 PM

Let the debates begin as we throw ourselves full force into WPIAL basketball bracketology 2018.

The debate over when and where gives way to how and why as the WPIAL unveils playoff brackets for the boys and girls basketball postseason Tuesday evening.

One of the big questions going into the releasing of the brackets is what will the district hoops steering committee do with Class 6A boys? There are eight or nine teams that could end up winning gold and there is no clear cut favorite. Section champions Central Catholic, Mt. Lebanon and Woodland Hills all could make a case to be the top seed.

On the girls' side of the brackets, while defending champion North Allegheny is a sure deal as the top-seed in 6A, things are a little murkier in 5A and 3A. Five strong section champions make seeding West Allegheny, Thomas Jefferson, Trinity, Mars and Hampton tough. And in 3A, does defending champion Bishop Canevin earn the top seed, or should that go to undefeated East Allegheny?

Tune in for all the answers on the WPIAL basketball playoff pairings show at 7 p.m. only on the TribLive High School Sports Network .

City League boys hoops semifinals

Allderdice (20-2) is a heavy favorite to make it “one for the thumb” as the Dragons begin their quest for a fifth straight City League championship Tuesday when they face Obama Academy (8-14) in a semifinal game at Brashear.

The game is a rematch of the epic City League title game a year ago when the Dragons survived with a 71-70 triple-overtime win over the Eagles. Allderdice beat Obama Academy in their two regular-season meetings this season by 13 points each.

The other semifinal contest will take place at Allderdice where Carrick (18-4) takes on Westinghouse (15-5). The two teams split their regular-season meetings with each winning by double digits. The Bulldogs won 56-45 in early January while the Raiders returned the favor three weeks later with a 80-68 victory.

City League girls basketball Final Four

The Allderdice boys team isn't the only City League basketball squad with an impressive championship streak heading into the 2018 playoffs. The Obama Academy girls team also is looking for a fifth straight crown.

The Eagles (16-5) open the postseason Tuesday in a semifinal game against Westinghouse (12-6) at Allderdice. Obama swept two low-scoring meetings against the Bulldogs, 32-23 and 35-32.

Obama may not be favored though this season after finishing in second place in the City League behind Allderdice (13-9). The Dragons face Carrick at Brashear at 6 p.m., having crushed the Raiders by a combined 86 points in two one-sided wins.

Don Rebel is a TribLIVE High School Sports Network broadcaster and staff writer. Reach him at drebel@tribweb.com.