5A Boys Basketball First Round Preview

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Photo Credit: Will McBride

BOYS BASKETBALL

5A BOYS FIRST ROUND

#10 Bethel Park (13-8) vs. #7 Mars (14-8) – at North Hills – 6 pm – TribLive High School Sports Network

Bethel Park finished the regular season as third place finishers in Section 1-5A. They average 64.1 points per games (5th in 5A) and allow 58.7 points per game (11th in 5A). Bethel Park went 4-2 in their final six games of the regular season. They are led by Ben Guffey who is averaging 15.6 points per game. Guffey finished the regular season 16th in 5A in scoring. Nick Brown is coming off of a 10-point performance in Bethel Park’s 70-56 win over Keystone Oaks in the regular season finale.

Mars finished the regular season tied for second place in Section 4-5A. They average 67.5 points per game (4th in 5A) and allow 60.6 points per game (14th in 5A). Mars went 2-4 in their last six games to finish the regular season. They are led by Tasso Sfanos who is averaging 25.7 points per game. Sfanos finished the regular season 2nd in 5A in scoring. Ryan Ceh had a 16 point performance in Mars’ regular season finale.

This game will be broadcasted live from North Hills on the TribLive High School Sports Network. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule page under Multimedia.

#11 Fox Chapel (13-9) at #6 Thomas Jefferson (15-7) – 7 pm – KDKA

Fox Chapel finished tied for third place in Section 2-5A. They average 54.9 points per game (T-14th in 5A) and allow 49.5 points per game (4th in 5A). Fox Chapel went 2-3 in their last five games dropping the last three. Asher White and Will Siegel are coming off of solid scoring performances in Fox Chapel’s regular season finale against McKeesport. White had 15 points while Siegel had 12 points.

Thomas Jefferson ended the regular season as second place finishers in Section 1-5A. They average 68.1 points per game (3rd in 5A) and allow 59.3 points per game (12th in 5A). Thomas Jefferson is 8-2 in their last 10 games including 4 in a row. They are led by Evan Berger who is averaging 22.5 points per game. Berger finished the regular season 4th in 5A in scoring. Noah Prosser and Sean Sullivan are each coming off 12-point performances in Thomas Jefferson’s regular season finale. Berger had 28 points in that game.

This game will be broadcasted live on KDKA radio. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule page under Multimedia.

#15 Trinity (10-12) at #2 Penn Hills (17-3) – 7 pm – WJPA

Trinity finished the regular season as the fourth-place finisher in Section 1-5A. They average 59.7 points per game (9th in 5A) and allow 57.2 points per game (9th in 5A). Trinity went 3-3 in their final 6 regular season games but won their final two. Drew Collins is coming off of a 21-point performance in Trinity’s regular season finale. Tim Hodges and Dante DeRubbo also had 11 points in that game against Washington.

Penn Hills finished the regular season champions of Section 2-5A. They average 59.5 points per game (10th in 5A) and allow 44.8 points per game (1st in 5A). Penn Hills is 13-1 in their last 14 games. They are led by Daemar Kelly who is averaging 16.1 points per game. Kelly finished the regular season 14th in 5A in scoring. Rob Thomas and Noah Barren are coming off of 15-point and 14-point performances respectively in Penn Hills’ win over West Mifflin.

This game will be broadcasted live on WJPA. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule page under Multimedia.

#9 Shaler (16-6) at #8 South Fayette (13-9) – 7 pm – TribLive High School Sports Network

Shaler finished the regular season as the second-place finisher in Section 2-5A. They are averaging 57.0 points per game (11th in 5A) and they allow 46.9 points per game (2nd in 5A). Shaler is 5-2 in their last 7 games including 2 straight. Keegan Smetanka and Kaden Orga are each coming off 11-point performances in Shaler’s win over Fox Chapel in the regular season finale. Joe DeSabato and Brandon London each had 10 points in that game.

South Fayette finished the regular season fourth place finishers of Section 4-5A. They average 55.9 points per game (12th in 5A) and allow 48.5 points per game (3rd in 5A). South Fayette has won 5 games in a row and needed all of them to get into the postseason. They are led by Elijah Hill who averages 21.6 points per game. Hill finished the regular season 5th in 5A in scoring. Michael Plasko is coming off of a 15-point performance against Seton LaSalle in the final regular season game. Hill had 23 points in that game.

South Fayette and Shaler met on December 8 with South Fayette coming away with a 51-39 victory at home. Hill had 20 points and 10 rebounds for South Fayette in the game. Noah Knox and Plasko each added 10 points. Smetanka led Shaler with nine points.

This game will be broadcasted live on the TribLive High School Sports Network. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule under Multimedia.

#16 Penn-Trafford (7-15) at #1 Peters Township (19-3) – 8 pm

Penn-Trafford finished in fourth place in Section 3-5A. They got into the playoffs on the final day of section play. They average 53.0 points per game (16th in 5A) and allow 61.6 points per game (15th in 5A). Penn-Trafford is 4-1 in their last 5 games including winning 3 straight. Penn-Trafford is led by Tyler Freas who averages 17.2 points per game. Freas finished the regular season 13th in 5A in scoring. Jason Sabol and Zach Feldman were big for Penn-Trafford in their win-and-in game to end the regular season. Sabol had 18 points while Feldman had 17.

Peters Township finished the regular season as Section 1-5A Champions. They average 74.1 points per game (1st in 5A) and allow 56.0 points per game (8th in 5A). Peters Township finished the regular season on a 12-game winning streak. They are led by Jack Dunbar who averages 20.0 points per game. Dunbar finished the regular season 7th in 5A in scoring. Jake Ziegler and Nate Miller are each coming off of 14-point performances against Baldwin in the last regular season game. Dunbar had 41 points in that contest.

Penn-Trafford and Peters Township met on December 16 with Peters Township picking up the 74-45 road victory.

#13 Woodland Hills (14-8) at #4 Gateway (15-5) – 8 pm – Gateway Gator Productions

Woodland Hills finished the regular season tied for third place in Section 2-5A. They average 55.5 points per game (13th in 5A) and allow 50.3 points per game (5th in 5A). Woodland Hills is 4-3 in their last 7 games but have won the last 3. They are led by Chaz Cobbs who is averaging 15.0 points per game. Cobbs finished the regular season 18th in 5A in scoring. He had 32 points in their final regular season game against Penn Hills.

Gateway finished the season as Section 3-5A Champions. They 61.3 points per game (6th in 5A) and allow 53.3 points per game (6th in 5A). Gateway is 12-2 in their last 14 games including winning 4 in a row to end the regular season. Jaydon Carr is coming off of a 26-point performance in Gateway’s final game against Latrobe. Kaleb Pryor had 17 points in that game and MJ Stevenson had 10.

Gateway and Woodland Hills met on December 14 with Gateway coming away with the 57-51 home victory. The Gators came back after trailing early in the game. Taili Thompson had 21 points for Gateway.

This game will be broadcasted live by Gateway Gator Productions. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule under Multimedia.

#14 Kiski Area (11-11) at #3 North Hills (17-5) – 8 pm – TribLive High School Sports Network

Kiski Area was the third-place finisher in Section 3-5A. They average 60.3 points per game (8th in 5A) and allow 58.5 points per game (10th in 5A). Kiski Area is 3-3 in their last 6 contests alternating wins and losses. They are led by Isaiah Gonzalez who averages 17.7 points per game. Gonzalez finished the regular season 10th in 5A in scoring. He had 25 points in their final regular season game against Penn-Trafford.

North Hills finished the regular season as champions of Section 4-5A. They average 70.8 points per game (2nd in 5A) and allow 60.5 points per game (13th in 5A). North Hills is 5-3 in their last 8 games. They are led by Royce Parham who averages 29.2 points per game. Parham finished the regular season as the 5A Boys Scoring Champion. Jayden Thomas is coming off of a 14-point performance while Michael Hoskey is coming off an 11-point performance in North Hills’ win over Chartiers Valley in the season finale. Parham had 35 points in that game.

This game will be broadcasted live on the TribLive High School Sports Network. You can find the broadcast link on the broadcast schedule page under Multimedia.