Girls
Class 5A
First round
10-Latrobe (11-8) at 7-Fox Chapel (14-8)
7:30 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 15-Penn Hills (11-11)/2-Thomas Jefferson (20-2) Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Maggie Maiers, Latrobe; Nina Kulikowski, Fox Chapel
Layup lines: Latrobe finished third in Section 2, three games behind co-champions Indiana and Penn-Trafford. The Wildcats have not won more than two games in a row all season. Maiers is known for her propensity to produce double-doubles in points and rebounds. Latrobe has given up more points that it has scored. It lost in the first round last year to Thomas Jefferson. … Fox Chapel was second in Section 1 behind Plum, which earned the No. 5 seed. The Foxes are one of three teams in the section that allow less than 40 points a game, joining Plum and Penn Hills. The Foxes have won six straight games. Fox Chapel also was ousted in the first round last season when it fell to Peters Township.
11-Franklin Regional (12-10) at 6-Penn-Trafford (17-5)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 14-Mars (10-12)/3-Indiana (19-3) Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Alyssa Bridges, Franklin Regional; Raya Johnson, Penn-Trafford
Layup lines: Franklin Regional used a buzzer-beating win over Shaler to clinch a playoff spot out of Section 1. Chloe Pucka made a runner in the lane for the victory. Bridges (6-foot) and Isabella Roberson (5-10) make for a long frontcourt, although Roberson did not play against Shaler. The Panthers lost to Bethel Park in the first round last year. … Penn-Trafford was an undefeated No. 3 seed last year but was upset by Thomas Jefferson in the quarterfinals. This year, the Warriors, who average 58 points — third best in 5A — shared the Section 1 title with Indiana. They have won 15 of their last 17 games, including a 62-50 win over Class 6A Upper St. Clair in which they made 12 3-pointers. Johnson made five of them. Torrie DeStefano is a Seton Hill commit.
Class 3A
First round
14-Mohawk (8-13) vs. 3-Greensburg Central Catholic (16-6)
6 p.m. Friday at Fox Chapel
Winner plays: Winner of 11-McGuffey (12-10)/6-OLSH (17-5) Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Addy Maskal, Mohawk; Erica Gribble, GCC
Layup lines: Mohawk tied Sto-Rox for fifth in Section 1. The Warriors are 2-8 in their last 10 games. Mohawk averages just 29.7 points and allowed 39.8. They made the playoffs two years ago and lost to Shady Side Academy in the first round. … GCC has won two consecutive WPIAL titles, in 2A and then 3A last year. The Centurions are once again a strong title contender led by Gribble, a senior point guard headed to Richmond. Gribble has more than 2,100 career points. Jayla Peterson, a Wheeling commit, is a 1,000-point scorer.
Boys
Class 4A
First round
13-Deer Lakes (10-12) at 4-Derry (16-6)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 12-Greensburg Salem (10-11)/5-Hopewell (14-8) 7 p.m. Wednesday in quarterfinals (site TBD)
Players to watch: Colin Rodgers, Deer Lakes; Stanley Rajkovich, Derry
Layup lines: Deer Lakes has become a regular in the WPIAL postseason. The Lancers won back-to-back championships in 2023 and ‘24. This year, the Lancers tied Highlands for fourth in Section 1. They have dropped three straight going into the postseason. Evan Moore averages 20 points for the Lancers, who made the quarterfinals last year and lost to No. 2 North Catholic. … Derry celebrated its first section title since 1957. The Trojans won their final nine section games. They had one loss during a 10-game stretch and it was to Deer Lakes, 53-49. The 6-foot-7 Rajkovich (20 ppg) is a career 1,000-point scorer who can take over a game. An underrated backcourt features Brayden Robinson, Logan Irvin and newcomer Gary Tarbuk. Derry was the No. 11 seed last year when it lost to Central Valley in the first round, 80-55. The Trojans have only two playoff wins ever.
9-Burrell (10-12) vs. 8-Belle Vernon (13-9)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: 1-Quaker Valley (18-3) Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Ryan Wass, Burrell; Luca Ghilani, Bele Vernon
Layup lines: Burrell finished third in Section 1 behind Knoch and North Catholic. The Buccaneers average 45.7 points and give up 49.7. Burrell will be without head coach Mike Fantuzzo, who is facing theft charges over allegations he took more than $246,000 from a nonprofit group. Geoff Cambal is now the interim head coach. … Belle Vernon is the defending WPIAL champion. The Leopards won their first title since 1978. Assistant Ricky Tyburski took over for legendary head coach Joe Salvino. The Leopards led Section 3 in scoring at 67.2 points. Luca Ghilani, Dane Daugherty and Elijak Major are key scorers, although Cam Jenko can be a tough matchup in the post.
Greensburg Salem (10-11) at Hopewell (14-8)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 13-Deer Lakes (10-12)/4-Derry (16-6) 7 p.m. Wednesday in quarterfinals (site TBD)
Players to watch: Solomon Cain, Greensburg Salem; Brody Rock, Hopewell
Layup lines: Greensburg Salem qualified for the WPIAL postseason for the first time since 2017-18. The Golden Lions have not won a playoff game since 2008-09 when they made a run to the PIAA finals. That team finished 23-6. Cain is a budding point guard. The team has been without a post presence since it lost Jackson Stevey to an injury in early January. The Golden Lions have allowed 12 more points than they have scored. … Hopewell tied Central Valley for second in Section 2, which was won by Quaker Valley. The Vikings can score: They average 64.7 points, the most in their section. They scored 80 or more three times, including 93 against Ambridge. James “Booboo” Armstrong, the Division I quarterback prospect, averages 20 a game.