Welcome to the final day of the opening round of the WPIAL basketball playoffs with teams in boys Class 5A and 3A and girls Class 2A taking center stage.
In the fall, Moon made the long trip east through Pittsburgh to battle Penn-Trafford in a Class 5A football quarterfinal.
The game was one of the closer playoff games that night as the visiting Tigers defeated the Warriors, 20-13.
Fast forward three months and the roles are reversed as No. 13 Penn-Trafford hits the road to take on No. 4 Moon in a battle of third-place finishers at 7 p.m. on Trib HSSN.
Hoping to play the role of the Road Warriors, P-T is 11-11 coming into the game, having lost two of its last three games on the heels of a five-game winning streak.
Meanwhile, the Tigers are on a big-time roll at 18-3 with six consecutive victories and wins in 14 of their last 15 games.
Both teams reached the quarterfinals a year ago with Moon losing to eventual champion Chartiers Valley and Penn-Trafford falling to Mars.
They faced each other in the 2025 Class 5A seventh-place game where the Tigers rolled past the Warriors, 75-59.
Here are the seven other opening-round 5A contests set for Tuesday:
• Top seed and defending champion Chartiers Valley (19-2) begins the postseason at home against a familiar foe in section rival No. 16 Montour (9-14) at 7 p.m. The Colts won the Section 4-5A crown while the Spartans finished tied for fourth place and needed to beat McKeesport in the preliminary round to earn the No. 16 seed. CV beat Montour twice during the regular season, 76-47, and 68-43.
• No. 9 Shaler (13-9) visits No. 8 Franklin Regional (13-8) at 7 p.m. Both teams finished as runners-up in their sections, the Titans in Section 2 behind Penn Hills and the Panthers in Section 1 trailing only Gateway.
• Two of the top district players square off when No. 5 Gateway (15-7) hosts No. 12 Indiana (13-8) at 7 p.m. Senior Mykel Bruce-McCrommon helped lead the Gators to the Section 1 title while junior Aaron Webb helped the Little Indians finish in a tie for third place in Section 2.
• No. 2 Lincoln Park (16-5) hosts No. 15 Ringgold (14-9) at 7 p.m. The Leopards finished in second place in Section 4-5A title while the Rams were fourth in Section 3-5A and are coming off a preliminary round victory over Laurel Highlands, 64-39.
• No. 10 Hampton (13-7) visits No. 7 Peters Township (16-6) at 7 p.m. The Talbots were the third-place finisher in Section 2-5A and the Indians were runner-up to Thomas Jefferson in Section 3-5A.
• No. 3 Thomas Jefferson (20-2) has home cooking as it welcomes No. 14 Latrobe (10-12) at 7 p.m. The Jaguars won the Section 3-5A crown while the Wildcats finished tied for fourth place in Section 1-5A before knocking off Mars in a preliminary round game, 57-46.
• No. 11 South Fayette (10-12) travels to No. 6 Penn Hills (16-6) at 7 p.m. on Trib HSSN. The Lions ended up as the third-place team in Section 3-5A while the Indians won the Section 2-5A championship by three games over Shaler.
No shot clock needed
At a time of year when coaches preach about defense and championships, two teams that can be quite offensive in their approach to the game square off in a boys Class 3A opener.
It may surprise some that the highest-scoring team in all of Class 3A is Charleroi.
Behind the Cougars at No. 3 in the class in scoring is Seton LaSalle.
Offense is expected to prevail when No. 10 Charleroi battles No. 7 Seton LaSalle at 6 p.m. at Peters Township.
Veteran coach Joe Dunn has his Cougars averaging 67.3 points per game, just slightly ahead of top-seeded Mohawk (66.8).
Following a 4-7 start, Charleroi has won nine of its last 11 games to finish 13-9 overall and in second place in Section 4-3A.
Seton LaSalle also finished in second place in Section 3-3A, one game behind South Park. The Rebels also are playing good basketball with seven victories in their last eight games.
Forty years ago, Dunn wrapped up his three-year stint as coach at Seton LaSalle. He has also coached at Mt. Pleasant and Trinity and is in his second year as coach of the Cougars.
With a full 16-team bracket, here are the other seven Class 3A first-round games Tuesday:
• Top-seeded Mohawk (20-1) is a heavy favorite at home against No. 16 Waynesburg (7-15) at 7 p.m. The Warriors won the Section 1-3A crown and have won 20 straight since an season-opening loss to Central Catholic while the Raiders were the fourth-place team out of Section 4-3A.
• No. 8 seed and defending district champion South Allegheny (13-8) welcomes No. 9 Ellwood City (12-10) at 7 p.m. The Gladiators finished in third place in Section 3-3A while the Wolverines tied for third place in Section 1-3A. Five years ago, these teams met in the 2021 Class 3A finals where Ellwood City edged South Allegheny, 53-50.
*A district semifinalist from a year ago, No. 4 Bishop Canevin (13-8) enjoys home-court advantage against No. 13 Shady Side Academy (8-14) at 7 p.m. The Crusaders were champions of Section 2-3A and the Bulldogs were the fourth-place team in Section 3-3A.
• No. 12 Washington (12-10) visits No. 5 Southmoreland (14-8) at 7 p.m. The Little Prexies were the third-place finisher in Section 2-3A and the Scotties were champions in Section 4-3A, winning by three games.
• No. 2 Aliquippa (14-5) hosts No. 15 Sto-Rox (7-14) at 7 p.m. The 2025 runner-up Quips ended up in second place in Section 1-3A while the Vikings were fourth in Section 2-3A. From 1991-2004, the two combined for 11 WPIAL championships with Sto-Rox winning six and Aliquippa five.
• No. 3 South Park (18-3) welcomes No. 14 Riverside (15-7) at 7 p.m. The Eagles earned the Section 3-3A crown, their first since 1998, while the Panthers ended in a tie for third place with Ellwood City in Section 1-3A.
• For a second straight year in the opening round, it will be No. 11 Ligonier Valley (12-10) making the long trek west to battle No. 6 Keystone Oaks (17-4) at 7:30 p.m. The Rams are the third-place team out of Section 4-3A and the Golden Eagles are the second-place team out of Section 2-3A. In the first round last season, Keystone Oaks eliminated Ligonier Valley, 72-57.
What a difference a year makes
Turn back the clock a year and things were a lot different for two teams preparing to square off in a girls Class 2A first-round contest.
Burgettstown finished in fourth place in its section with a total of eight wins before its playoff experience was short and unkind as it lost big to No. 3 Winchester Thurston, 62-28.
There was zero talk of playoffs at Jeannette after the Jayhawks suffered through another last-place season with a total of four wins.
Things changed a lot for both team this winter as No. 10 Jeannette visits No. 7 Burgettstown at 7 p.m.
The Blue Devils could double their win total from a year ago with a victory Tuesday as they enter the game with a record of 15-6. They won seven of their last nine regular season games and ended up as the second-place team out of Section 2-2A.
The Jayhawks’ turnaround has been even more impressive. They also finished in second place in Section 4-2A with an overall record of 15-6 and wins in four of their last five games.
There are no byes, so here are the other seven first-round Class 2A contests Tuesday:
• No. 1 Neshannock (18-3), the 2022 WPIAL Class 2A champion and runner-up from a year ago, will be home to play No. 16 Brentwood (6-15) at 7 p.m. The Lancers captured the Section 1-2A title by three games while the Spartans were the fourth-place team in Section 2-2A.
• No. 8 California (11-10) is home to No. 9 Laurel (12-10) at 7 p.m. The Trojans finished second in Section 3-2A and the Spartans were fourth in a tough Section 1-2A.
• No. 4 Fort Cherry (15-5) entertains No. 13 Riverview (10-8) at 7 p.m. The Rangers finished in first place by three games in Section 2-2A while the Raiders ended up tied for second place in Section 4-2A.
• No. 12 Apollo-Ridge (12-10) visits No. 5 Rochester (12-9) at 7 p.m. The Vikings finished tied for second place in Section 4-2A and the Rams were the outright runner-up in Section 1-2A.
• No. 2 Winchester Thurston (18-3) will battle No. 15 Bentworth (9-13) at Keystone Oaks at 6 p.m. The Bears ran away with the Section 4-2A crown by four games and the Bearcats were the fourth-place team out of Section 3-2A.
• No. 14 South Side (9-12) makes the trip to Washington County to take on No. 3 Chartiers-Houston (18-3) at 7 p.m. The Rams finished third in Section 2-2A and the Buccaneers were the champions of Section 3-2A.
• No. 6 and defending champion Aliquippa (14-7) hosts No. 11 Beth-Center (10-11) at 6 p.m. The Quips ended up in third place behind Neshannock and Rochester in Section 1-2A and the Bulldogs were in third place in Section 3-2A.
Tuesday on Trib HSSN
There are 11 broadcasts you can listen to or watch at TribHSSN.TribLive.com on the 17th day of February.
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 5A First Round: Penn-Trafford at Moon at 7 p.m. on Trib HSSN at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 5A First Round: South Fayette at Penn Hills at 7 p.m. on Trib HSSN at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Video Stream – Class 5A First Round: Shaler at Franklin Regional at 7 p.m. on Westmoreland Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 3A First Round: Waynesburg Central at Mohawk at 7 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 3A First Round: Ellwood City at South Allegheny at 7 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 3A First Round: Washington at Southmoreland at 7 p.m. on Westmoreland Sports Network and WJPA-FM 95.3 at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Girls Basketball Playoffs Video Stream – Class 2A First Round: Brentwood at Neshannock at 7 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Girls Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 2A First Round: Laurel at California at 7 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Girls Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 2A First Round: South Side at Chartiers-Houston at 7 p.m. on WJPA-AM 1450 at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Girls Basketball Playoffs Audio Stream – Class 2A First Round: Riverview at Fort Cherry at 7 p.m. on WJPA at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
High School Unified Bocce Video Stream – Lawrence and Butler County Championships at 3:30 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com