The N.C. High School Athletic Association boys basketball playoffs begin Tuesday.
In this 1A playoff preview we hand out bracket superlatives, give four favorites and one dark horse for each bracket half, and even make championship predictions (that we're sure nobody will have any problem with and will be shocked if any of them don't pan out, right?).
We also listed the top 10 players in each bracket half. Many of these players are candidates for our all-state teams that are released a few weeks after the regular season. There's a first, second, and third team of 15 players each, plus an honorable mention team of 30.
Before reading, don't miss out on these links to our boys basketball coverage from this year.
1A East breakdown
Bracket superlatives
Best first-round matchup — (19) Chatham Charter visits (14) Southeast Halifax in a game that could go either way.
Best chance at a first-round upset — Upsets are rare in the 1A East but (20) Weldon and (13) Northampton County are familiar enough with one another that the Chargers would pull out a win.
The hardest road — (4) Southern Wake is poised to get some of the tougher second- and third-round matchups with potentially (13) Northampton County, (20) Weldon, and (5) Chatham Central.
The easiest road — (1) Wilson Prep won't be tested until they hit the fourth round.
Four favorites and a dark horse
Favorite #1 — (1) Wilson Prep
Favorite #2 — (2) Washington County
Favorite #3 — (4) Southern Wake
Favorite #4 — (3) Voyager Academy
Dark horse — (11) Bertie
Our top 10 players in the bracket
- Leslie Minter, Wilson Prep
- Zymiere Dempsey, Bertie
- Jiyoun Williams, Northampton County
- David Ellis, Wilson Prep
- Ben Ferguson, Wilson Prep
- Reid Albright, Chatham Central
- Chris Crudup, Southern Wake
- Brandon Carter Jr., Washington County
- Unique Kelly, West Columbus
- Jayden Sawyer, Columbia
1A West breakdown
Bracket superlatives
Best first-round matchup — (24) Mountain Heritage at arch-rival (9) Mitchell for the third time this year!
Best chance at a first-round upset — (23) Mountain Island Charter visiting (10) Hiwasee Dam is an odd matchup where both teams have sub-.500 records.
The hardest road — It's not the toughest, but (1) South Stokes getting last year's state runner-up (8) Eastern Randolph in the third round would be something.
The easiest road — If (2) Corvian Community makes a run, it'll be the result of hard word. However, it's also a pretty sweet draw until round 4.
Four favorites and a dark horse
Favorite #1 — (1) South Stokes
Favorite #2 — (3) Bishop McGuinness
Favorite #3 — (5) Thomasville
Favorite #4 — (2) Corvian Community
Dark horse — (13) Andrews
Top 10 players in the bracket
- Bary Hariston Jr., South Stokes
- John Campbell, Bishop McGuinness
- Isiah Lash, South Stokes
- Cal Barrett, Bishop McGuinness
- Bryce McCoy, Thomasville
- Gunnar Alm, Polk County
- Timothy Brower, Eastern Randolph
- Jack Teesateskie, Cherokee
- Will Greer, North Stokes
- Elijah Sherrill, Highland Tech
Championship and regional final picks
1A East: (1) Wilson Prep over (11) Bertie
1A West: (1) South Stokes over (3) Bishop McGuinness
1A championship: South Stokes over Wilson Prep
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