The high school basketball postseason is heating up, with most district tournaments at roughly their midway point. Over the next week, trips to the state regionals will be determined.
Here’s a classification-by-classification update on what transpired over the past week and where things stand for local teams:
4A BOYS DISTRICT 1/2 TOURNAMENT
It’s been a wild start to the bi-district tournament, with Wesco 4A’s fourth-place team reaching the semifinals and Wesco 4A’s top two teams falling to the consolation bracket.
Jackson, which went 2-6 in Wesco 4A play and finished fourth in the five-team league, entered as the No. 10 seed in the 10-team bi-district tournament. But the Timberwolves have gotten hot at the right time.
Jackson raced to a stunning 36-5 halftime lead in its opening-round rout of No. 7 seed Eastlake, and then upset No. 2 seed and Wesco 4A champion Mariner 62-57 in the quarterfinals. It was a big turnaround from from the regular season, when the Timberwolves lost to Mariner by double digits in both of their matchups.
With its two playoff victories, Jackson advanced to face No. 3 seed Woodinville in a bi-district semifinal game Tuesday. The winner clinches a state berth, while the loser will still have two more chances to do so. The Timberwolves routed Woodinville in an early-January non-league contest, but the Falcons entered that game having not played in 22 days.
Mariner, which was coming off its first league title since 2003, fell to the consolation bracket with its loss to Jackson. Wesco 4A runner-up Glacier Peak, the bi-district’s No. 5 seed, also fell to the consolation bracket after suffering a 59-50 quarterfinal loss to No. 4 seed Skyline.
Mariner and Glacier Peak both play in loser-out games Tuesday and would need to win two of their next three potential games to reach state. Mariner faces No. 6 seed North Creek, while Glacier Peak faces No. 9 seed Bothell.
No. 8 seed Lake Stevens, which made a late-season run to finish third in Wesco 4A, suffered a season-ending 64-60 loss to Bothell in its bi-district opener.
4A GIRLS DISTRICT 1/2 TOURNAMENT
Wesco 4A champion and bi-district No. 2 seed Lake Stevens escaped an upset in the quarterfinals, prevailing for a 58-57 overtime win over No. 7 seed Mount Si. The Vikings were without 6-foot-4 senior forward and Eastern Washington University signee Camille Jentzsch in the game.
With the victory, Lake Stevens advanced to face No. 3 seed Eastlake in a semifinal showdown between 4A top-10 ranked teams. The winner clinches a state berth, while the loser will still have two more chances to do so.
No. 5 seed Kamiak and No. 8 seed Glacier Peak fell to the consolation bracket after blowout losses in the quarterfinals. The Wesco 4A rivals square off in a loser-out game Tuesday, with the winner then needing to win one of its next two games to reach state. Kamiak beat Glacier Peak in both of their regular-season matchups.
3A BOYS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
The modified 16-team district tournament featured a major early upset in No. 2 seed Shorecrest’s 72-63 opening-round loss to No. 7 seed Ferndale.
The Scots bounced back with a 73-27 thrashing of No. 10 seed Edmonds-Woodway in a loser-out game, which advanced them to the eight-team double-elimination portion of the bracket.
But because of its opening-round loss, Shorecrest had to face top-seeded Arlington in the district quarterfinals. Arlington won the heavyweight showdown 70-57, beating the Scots for the second time this season. The Eagles won the teams’ previous matchup 83-80 in a wild overtime clash back in December.
The rest of the tournament has gone almost entirely the way of the better seeds.
In the other district quarterfinal games, No. 4 seed Mountlake Terrace beat No. 6 seed Everett 71-55, No. 3 seed Stanwood defeated No. 5 seed Mount Vernon 60-48 and Ferndale routed No. 9 seed Cascade 73-51.
The stage is set for Wednesday’s district semifinals, with Arlington facing Mountlake Terrace and Stanwood facing Ferndale. Arlington and Mountlake Terrace met back in December, with the Eagles winning 70-55. The semifinal winners clinch state berths, while the losers get another chance to do so in Saturday’s winner-to-state elimination contests.
In Wednesday’s loser-out consolation games, Shorecrest faces Everett and Cascade faces Mount Vernon. The winners advance to Saturday’s winner-to-state elimination contests.
3A GIRLS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
The modified 16-team district tournament has gone almost entirely as expected. The top eight seeds all reached the quarterfinals and the top four seeds each advanced to the semifinals.
In the quarterfinal round, top-seeded Arlington cruised past No. 7 seed Ferndale 65-16, No. 2 seed Snohomish beat No. 8 seed Meadowdale 69-55, No. 3 seed Stanwood defeated No. 5 seed Lynnwood 57-39 and No. 4 seed Everett routed No. 6 seed Mountlake Terrace 66-37.
The action heats up in Tuesday’s semifinals, with Arlington facing Everett and Snohomish facing Stanwood. Both will be first-time matchups this season, due to their regular-season matchups being canceled. The winners clinch state berths, while the losers get another chance to do so in Saturday’s winner-to-state elimination contests.
In Tuesday’s loser-out consolation games, Mountlake Terrace faces Ferndale and Lynnwood faces Meadowdale. The winners advance to Saturday’s winner-to-state elimination contests.
2A BOYS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
No. 4 seed Lakewood opened its postseason with a 61-50 district quarterfinal win over No. 5 seed Anacortes, but fell to top-seeded perennial state powerhouse Lynden 57-41 in the semifinals.
No. 6 seed Archbishop Murphy suffered a 79-69 district quarterfinal loss to No. 3 seed Burlington-Edison, but rebounded with a 69-59 win over No. 7 seed Cedarcrest in the consolation bracket.
Lakewood and Archbishop Murphy will square off in a loser-out game Wednesday. The winner advances to a winner-to-state elimination game Friday.
2A GIRLS DISTRICT 1 TOURNAMENT
No. 2 seed Archbishop Murphy opened its postseason with a 65-28 district quarterfinal rout of No. 7 seed Cedarcrest. With the victory, the Wildcats advanced to face No. 3 seed Lynden in Tuesday’s semifinals. The winner clinches a state berth, while the loser falls to the consolation bracket and would need to win two consecutive elimination games to reach state.
Cedarcrest dropped to the consolation bracket with its quarterfinal loss and would need to win three consecutive elimination games to reach state, beginning with its matchup against No. 6 seed Squalicum on Tuesday.
1A BOYS DISTRICT 2 TOURNAMENT
No. 9 seed Sultan lost its opening-round game to No. 8 seed University Prep, but rebounded with a pair of elimination-game victories over No. 6 seed Northwest and No. 12 seed South Whidbey.
Sultan faces No. 5 seed Bear Creek in another loser-out game Wednesday. With a victory, the Turks would advance to face District 1 champion and perennial state powerhouse Lynden Christian in a winner-to-state crossover matchup Saturday.
1A GIRLS DISTRICT 2 TOURNAMENT
No. 7 seed Sultan is still alive, but faces a tough path to its first-ever state berth after losing to No. 2 seed King’s 34-30 in the district quarterfinals. The loss was a rematch of Sultan’s non-league win over King’s just 11 days prior, which served as a milestone victory in the Turks’ program turnaround.
Sultan rebounded from the quarterfinal loss by routing No. 12 seed Northwest. The Turks need to win two more elimination games — beginning with a matchup against No. 6 seed University Prep on Tuesday — to set up a winner-to-state crossover game against District 1 champion and perennial state powerhouse Lynden Christian on Saturday.
1B BOYS DISTRICT 1/2/3 TOURNAMENT
No. 8 seed Grace Academy has advanced to the eight-team double-elimination portion of the tri-district tournament. The top six finishers advance to state.
1B GIRLS DISTRICT 1/2/3 TOURNAMENT
No. 5 seed Grace Academy has advanced to the eight-team double-elimination portion of the tri-district tournament. The top five finishers advance to state.
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