Scholastic Notebook – WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoff Preview

By: Bruce Markey
Thursday, February 17, 2011 | 12:00 AM

The 2011 boys' hoops district postseason tips off Friday, February 18th and Saturday, February 19th with Preliminary Round and First Round action in all four classifications. Mount Lebanon in AAAA and Sewickley Academy in A are set to try to successfully defend their titles while there will be new champs in AAA Chartiers Valley moving up to AAAA and in AA with North Catholic moving down to A. Here is a preview of the WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs.

CLASS AAAA

TOP SEEDS:

Shaler first, Mount Lebanon second, North Allegheny third and Gateway fourth.

FOUR TO SCORE:

Matt Palo, Norwin (30.1)
Nolan Cressler, Plum (25.5)
Anthony Dallier, North Allegheny (25.1)
Aaron Johnson, Moon (24.3).

WHAT TO LOOK FOR:

* The consensus among coaches and others is that this is the deepest field in Class AAAA (in terms of quality teams) in a long time.

* Shaler has never won a WPIAL title, and the Titans are strong at the guards with senior J.T. Schwartz and sophomore Geno Thorpe. But do they have enough inside if they go against a big team like Gateway or Mount Lebanon.

* Mount Lebanon is the defending champ. Paul Lang and Luke Hagy were starters last year and Evan Eaton has come on this season.

* Watch for North Allegheny and junior Anthony Dallier, who has an offer from Duquesne.

* Every coach will tell you Gateway has the most talent, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Gators will win. Tyler Scott will return after sitting out the past few weeks because of academic ineligibility. He has been practicing, though.

* Matt Noszka will be back for Chartiers Valley after a three-game suspension for breaking team and school rules.

BEST FIRST-ROUND GAMES:

Chartiers Valley vs. Norwin and Moon vs. Butler.

DID YOU KNOW?

The only school to win back-to-back WPIAL Class AAAA titles is New Castle, which won three in a row from 1997-99.

DO YOU REMEMBER?

Eleven years ago, Penn Hills' Drew Schfinio went on a playoff tear, scoring 147 points in four games in leading Penn Hills to the WPIAL title. The 147 points is still the record for most in a tournament.

CLASS AAA

TOP SEEDS:

South Fayette first, West Mifflin second, Blackhawk third and New Castle fourth.

FOUR TO SCORE:

Micah Mason, Highlands (34.1)
Josh Valentic, Trinity (30.0)
Geoff Fuquay,, Valley (24.9)
Christian Locher, Mars (21.8).

WHAT TO LOOK FOR:

* South Fayette won the PIAA Class AA title last year before moving up in class. Pat Zedreck and Mike Lamberti are a nice one-two punch who have been on the varsity since their freshman years. How well South Fayette shoots will be the key to their success.

* Highlands' Mason was a starter two years ago as a freshman on a team that made the title game. If he gets hot, he could carry Highlands a long way, but the Rams' defense isn't always the best.

* Uniontown and Greensburg-Salem tied for the Section 3 championship, but many wonder about the competition in that section. Still it might not matter this year because this isn't a strong Class AAA field.

BEST FIRST-ROUND GAMES:

Montour vs. Thomas Jefferson and Uniontown vs. Mars.

DID YOU KNOW?

Mars has only two playoff wins in school history