The WPIAL basketball playoffs will be announced Tuesday night. When revealed, the brackets will include 25 Washington County boys & girls teams plus nine more from Greene County. Bentworth boys & girls, Beth-Center girls and Carmichaels girls have opted out of the open tournament. Preliminary games are expected Saturday, Feb. 27 and Monday, March 1 with the Championships Mar. 12-15. Here’s a thumbnail picture of what we expect to hear and see about teams from the two-county area Tuesday night. Over all records listed as of 2/21.
Girls 6A–15 teams, no preliminary games
Peters Township (6-5) will be a middle-of-the-pack seed while Canon-McMillan (1-11) will be a bottom three seed.
Girls 5A–26 teams, 10 preliminary games
Trinity (15-1) will be the #1 seed, owning wins against Chartiers Valley and North Allegheny, defending WPIAL champions. Ringgold (2-10) will likely play McKeesport in one of the 10 prelim games.
Girls 3A–18 teams, 2 preliminary games
Waynesburg (11-4) will be a top seven seed. Charleroi (7-7) and McGuffey (5-6) should not be listed in the bottom four, keeping them out of the preliminary rounds. Wash High (5-8) will likely be in that bottom four grouping.
Girls 2A–21 teams, 5 preliminary games
Look for Burgettstown (13-2) to be seeded in the top six. Fort Cherry (10-6) and California (7-3) should be into the Sweet 16 without a preliminary assignment. Chartiers-Houston (7-6) could host a preliminary round game, possibly against South Side Beaver.
Girls 1A–13 teams, no preliminary games
West Greene (13-2) will be a top four seed. Avella (9-7) will be in the 8-10 range with Mapletown (4-5) and Jeff-Morgan (3-10) facing teams in the top four.
Boys 6A–17 teams, 1 preliminary game
Peters Township (5-6) will likely be a double-digit seed while Canon-McMillan (0-12) is destined for a match-up with winless Greensburg Salem.
Boys 5A–23 teams, 7 preliminary games
Trinity (8-7) and Ringgold (4-8) will both have to win preliminary games to reach the Sweet 16. The Hillers would likely host their opener while the Rams would play on the road.
Boys 3A–23 teams, 7 preliminary games
Washington (10-4) will be seeded 4th-6th. Charleroi (10-5) appears to be a 10 seed. McGuffey (8-6), Beth-Center (4-8) and Waynesburg (2-13) will all be in preliminary games with the Highlanders likely to host.
Boys 2A–23 teams, 7 preliminary games
California (4-3) missed an opportunity for a share of the section title, losing to Frazier Thursday night. That loss could put the Trojans into the preliminary rounds along with Fort Cherry (10-6), Burgettstown (6-11), Chartiers-Houston (6-11), Carmichaels (8-4) and Jeff-Morgan (5-9). The four Washington County teams could all host along with Carmichaels, though California and Fort Cherry have indicated that Gov. Wolf’s attendance limits make it unlikely that they’ll play at home.
Boys 1A–15 teams, no preliminary games
Avella (6-10), Mapletown (4-6) and West Greene (1-11) are likely to play on the road in the first round.