Boys
Class 4A
First round
9-Burrell (10-12) vs. 8-Belle Vernon (13-9)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: 1-Quaker Valley (18-3) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Ryan Wass, Burrell; Luca Ghilani, Belle 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 coach Mike Fantuzzo, who is facing theft charges over allegations he took more than $246,000 from a nonprofit group. Geoff Cambal is the interim coach. The Bucs are a dangerous 3-point shooting team. In a 55-41 playoff-clinching win over Valley on Feb. 3, Ryan Wass made nine treys and Adam Wass finished with 13 points. … 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. Ghilani, Dane Daugherty and Elijak Major are key scorers, although Cam Jenko can be a tough matchup in the post.
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) at 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.
14-East Allegheny (10-9) at 3-Knoch (18-4)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 6-Central Valley (15-7)/11-Highlands (11-11) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Cedrick Mack, East Allegheny; Teegan Finucan, Knoch
Layup lines: East Allegheny tied Greensburg Salem for fourth place in Section 3 at 5-7 and earned a playoff berth. The Wildcats snapped a three-game losing skid in their section finale, a 62-31 win over Yough. Mack had 22 points, and Jayden Patterson added 12. Both average nearly 15 points. East Allegheny averages and allows around 52 points per game. … Knoch shared the Section 1 title with North Catholic at 11-1. The Knights reached the WPIAL quarterfinals as the No. 5 seed last season before falling to Avonworth. Knoch has held teams to 41.6 points per game this season, tops in Class 4A. The Knights won 14 straight games midseason before losing two of their final five down the stretch. Senior guard Finucan averages 15.9 points and set the Knights’ record for career 3-pointers earlier this season.
11-Highlands (11-11) at 6-Central Valley (15-7)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 14-East Allegheny (10-9)/3-Knoch (18-4) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD)
Players to watch: Troy Bielak, Highlands; Angelo Conti, Central Valley
Layup lines: Highlands tied Deer Lakes for fourth place in Section 1 at 5-7. The Golden Rams won their final three games over Freeport, Deer Lakes and Valley to earn a spot in the playoff field. Troy Bielak averages 17.4 points to lead Highlands. Bielak and Carmine Lacava had 13 points, and Ty Hall scored 15 in Friday’s victory over Valley. … Central Valley finished as the runner-up to Quaker Valley in Section 2 at 6-4. The Warriors average 62.7 points and allow less than 50. They started 8-0, and their losses in section play were twice to both Quaker Valley and Hopewell. In Monday’s nonsection win over South Fayette, Conti scored 21 points, Wyatt Clark had 13 and Adam Shroads added 12.
Girls
Class 5A
First round
16-Kiski Area (11-10) at 1-South Fayette (21-1)
7:30 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 8-West Allegheny (18-4)/9-Trinity (16-6) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (site/time TBD)
Players to watch: Gianna DeVito, Kiski Area; Juliette Leroux, South Fayette
Layup lines: Kiski Area clinched a playoff spot with a 55-39 victory over McKeesport on Feb. 5 behind 19 points from junior Jada Blanciak, 13 from senior Ali Pencak and 12 more from DeVito, a senior. The win avenged an earlier 18-point loss to the Tigers. The Cavaliers are back in the postseason after a two-year hiatus. Kiski is averaging 47.6 points and giving up 44.6. The Cavaliers alternated wins and losses over their final 10 games of the regular season. … South Fayette seeks its fourth WPIAL title in the past five seasons. South Fayette’s lone loss this season came by two points to Miami Country Day, Fla., at the season-opening Tampa Bay Invitational. The Lions have won every game since then by an average of 37 points. South Fayette’s lineup features five Division I players. Leroux (Florida Atlantic), a senior guard/forward, averages 16.2 points. Senior guard Ryan Oldaker is a Marist recruit, and senior Haylie Lamonde is committed to USC Upstate. Junior Laiah Wright and sophomore Ella Vierra also are garnering high-level college interest.
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) on 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 than 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 fewer 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.
12-Peters Township (13-9) at 5-Plum (18-4)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 4-Baldwin (18-4)/13-Chartiers Valley (8-14) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (site/time TBD)
Players to watch: Riley Stephans, Plum; Bri Morreale, Peters Township
Layup lines: Friday’s game is a rematch of a home-and-home series between the schools in 2023 (Plum, 53-50) and 2024 (Peters Township, 59-50). … Plum enters the game seeking its fourth all-time playoff victory. The Mustangs captured their first section title with a 10-2 record. They won 12 games in a row before a loss to rival Fox Chapel in the section finale Friday. Stephans, a senior, leads the team at 20.6 points per game, and junior Tamia West averages 15.0 points. … Peters Township is the defending WPIAL champion. The Indians landed in fourth place in Section 4 behind Thomas Jefferson, Baldwin and Trinity and one game ahead of Bethel Park in the section standings. They enter the playoffs on a six-game win streak. That included a four-point victory over Trinity on Jan. 28 behind 30 points from sophomore Taylor McCullough and 13 more from senior Morreale, who reached 1,000 career points in that game.
Class 3A
First Round
10-Deer Lakes (11-10) at 7-Waynesburg (20-2)
7 p.m. Friday
Winner plays: Winner of 2-Beaver Falls (20-1)/15-South Allegheny (7-15) on Wednesday in quarterfinals (site/time TBD)
Players to watch: Josie Farster, Deer Lakes; Tess Pauley, Waynesburg
Layup lines: Deer Lakes (11-9), fourth in Section 2-3A, is in the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 11 years. The Lancers clinched their second straight WPIAL playoff berth with a 50-42 victory over Ligonier Valley on Jan. 31 behind 20 points from sophomore Delaney DeRose and 15 more from Farster, a junior. Deer Lakes averaged 36.5 points in the regular season. … Waynesburg opens the playoffs at home after finishing second (12-2) to Seton LaSalle (11-1) in the Section 3 standings. The Raiders have won 10 games in a row, and that streak included a five-point win over Seton to forge a split in the season series. Pauley, a freshman, leads Waynesburg in scoring at 15.5 points a game.