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Breaking down the district hoops brackets: Part 3


Sorry for the delay in getting this final analysis out folks, it's been a bit of a hectic week here. In any event, here's the third and final part of our series, in which we break down the boys' Class AAA and AA tournaments.

BOYS' CLASS AAA (full bracket here)

York-Adams teams grabbed three of the top four seeds in this bracket: No. 1 Eastern York, No. 3 York Suburban, and No 4. West York.

Obviously, Eastern York will be attracting the most attention going into this whole shebang. And rightfully so, after its impressive YAIAA title game victory over William Penn on Saturday. The Golden Knights are 23-0 and rolling heading into their first-round meeting with Wyomissing on Tuesday. And while you would expect Eastern to take care of business in that contest, coach Larry Fisher scouted Wyomissing's play-in victory over Donegal last week and came away impressed by the victors. The Spartans feature plenty of size in their front court, Fisher said, and enter Tuesday's matchup at Central York on a six-game win streak.

These two teams also have something of a history: Wyomissing stunned Eastern in the district semifinals last year. In all honesty, I think the memories of that victory could be a good thing for the Golden Knights -- something to keep them grounded after Saturday's emotional victory.

Win that game and a matchup with either No. 8 Boiling Springs or No. 9 Susquehanna Township will follow. Boiling Springs was 17-5 this year, while Township is a traditionally strong program that is certainly far from a pushover -- you'd have a hard time finding a tougher No. 9 seed. So certainly not a cakewalk for Eastern York, but the way they've been playing, you would expect them to take care of business.

If Eastern makes the district semis, there's a good chance it could run up against a familiar foe. West York will begin its district slate Tuesday at South Western against Big Spring -- a game that, on the surface at least, one has to like the Bulldogs chances in. After that, a meeting with No. 5 seed East Pennsboro would likely follow. The Panthers have a great record (18-5), but not a lot of eye-popping victories. I like West York here, too.

That would leave us with a West York-Eastern York semifinal March 1 at the Giant Center, and a rematch of Thursday's YAIAA semifinal (which the Golden Knights won, 87-46). Can West York make this one closer? Will the Bulldogs use that lopsided loss as motivation? We shall see.

Sitting on the other side of the bracket, No. 3 York Suburban isn't looking at an easy road, either. The defending District champion's first-round matchup with Muhlenburg is a more-than-winnable game, but after that a date with No. 6 Steel High would likely follow. Talk about perennially strong programs -- the Rollers are always up there. Win that, and the Trojans will likely face No. 2 Hershey in the semifinals. Hershey is 20-4, just beat quad-A No. 5 seed Red Land in the Mid-Penn Championship, and features 6-foot-9 forward Scott Eatherton, a St. Francis (Pa.) recruit.

Topping Hershey would be quite a task. But if York Suburban needed any extra motivation, a win in that game could very well earn them a third shot at rivals Eastern York -- this time with a district title on the line.

BOYS' CLASS AA (full bracket here)

Three YAIAA teams here, led by No. 3 seed Hanover. The Nighthawks have put together a sterling season, their best in nearly 15 years. They have a nice group of experienced guards, led by Pete Yingst and Ben Connor. And perhaps more importantly for this setting, they've only lost one game to a Class AA opponent (that coming against York Catholic on Jan. 29).

Part of me, however, feels Hanover might have peaked a bit too soon. Their two best wins -- both against Delone Catholic -- came in December. And while the Squires have gotten markedly better since then, I'm not sure Hanover has improved quite as much.

Still, the Nighthawks should be able to handle the winner of No. 11 Columbia and No. 6 Annville-Cleona. After that, a likely meeting with No. 2 Trinity looms. The Shamrocks are 14-7, but don't let that record fool you. This team plays in a division with some of the Mid-Penn's best, including quad-A No. 5 seed Red Land and triple-A No. 2 seed Hershey. Trinity also boasts wins over Penn Manor and Susquehanna Township this year. The Shamrocks are a tough matchup for any team, and will face No. 7 York Catholic in quarterfinals should the Irish win their play-in matchup with No. 10 Tulpehocken.

Across the bracket we have fourth-seeded Delone Catholic. I've made no bones about the fact that I like this team a lot. Coach Jim Dooley has put together a cohesive unit that makes up for a lack of size (all of its starters are 6-feet or less) by simply playing good, fundamental basketball. Freshman point guard Brett Smith is going to be a stud, and is already a pretty darn good player. Austin Bradey and Ryan Tompkins are good floor and everybody, it seems, chips in to score points.

As I said, I feel this team is peaking at the right time. They were in a position to beat York Suburban in both their meetings this season, and already have a win over No. 5 Bishop McDevitt -- the team Delone (14-8) figures to see in its quarterfinal matchup next Saturday. The Squires scored an away win against McDevitt, 50-39, on Dec. 30.

Should Delone win that, a meeting with top-seeded Lancaster Mennonite will likely follow. Mennonite (17-6) is a good team -- I saw them play in York Suburban's tip-off tournament earlier this season. They played the Trojans close and narrowly beat Dallastown. But they're also beatable, as evidenced by their record. They're in some ways similar to Delone -- they rely on good coaching and fundamentals to be successful. To me, this game is a toss up. I like the Squires chances.

Also included in this bracket is No. 7 York Catholic, which opens up district tournament play Wednesday at Spring Grove against No. 10 Tulpehocken.