2025 WPIAL boys basketball postseason outlook

Here’s a look at the WPIAL boys basketball playoffs, which begin Thursday and conclude Feb. 27-March 1 at Pitt’s Petersen Events Center.

CLASS 6A

Defending champion: Upper St. Clair

No. 1 seed: Upper St. Clair

Best first-round game: Butler vs. North Hills

Player to watch: RJ Sledge, Imani Christian. Can Sledge help the Saints hammer down a third consecutive WPIAL title and first in Class 6A? Few players in WPIAL history have won like Sledge, who has won three WPIAL and three PIAA titles in his career. This standout guard is having an excellent senior season, as he is averaging 21 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals per game. Sledge scored 29 points, including the winning 3-pointer with three seconds left in overtime, to lift the Saints to a 76-74 win against Central Catholic last week.

Sleeper: Woodland Hills. Why not Woody High? Woodland Hills, the No. 9 seed, needed to win at North Hills in the section finale to lock down a playoff spot and walked away with a 25-point triumph. Winners of four straight, the Wolverines also own a win at New Castle and beat Class 5A playoff teams Gateway and Penn Hills. Guided by first-year coach Steve Scorpion and fueled by junior guard Scoop Smith (18 ppg), the Wolverines could spring an upset or two.

The lowdown: Not since Pine-Richland in 2016 and 2017 has a team repeated as champion in the WPIAL’s largest class, but Upper St. Clair could do just that a few weeks from now. The Panthers are one of the biggest teams in the WPIAL, with 6-10 Tyler Robbins, 6-7 Ryan Robbins and 6-6 Kaamil Jackson being among their top players. Tyler Robbins is a Miami (Ohio) recruit. The Panthers surrender only 38.9 points per game and their only losses are to Montour and Imani Christian. … No team has won more WPIAL titles than New Castle (tied with Aliquippa with 14 championships), and coach Ralph Blundo’s ‘Canes have the talent in place to possibly add another. Winner of six straight, New Castle is led by freshman guard Kai Cox (17 ppg) and senior guard Ralphie Blundo (15 ppg). … It would be quite the story if Imani Christian three-peats. WPIAL and PIAA Class 1A champs the previous two seasons, the Saints are voluntarily playing up in Class 6A this season. They own the No. 1 scoring offense in the class (65.5 ppg). … Section 1 runner-up Fox Chapel could make a run despite dropping its two final section games. Senior guard Caden Kaiser has had a strong season, averaging 16 points and 7 rebounds a game. … Central Catholic no longer has Bradley Gompers, but the Vikings aren’t void of talent. When junior guard Enzo Khalil gets hot, the Vikings can give anyone fits. He scored a career-high 37 points in last week’s overtime loss to Imani Christian.

Championship picks: Upper St. Clair (Brad Everett), New Castle (Steve Rotstein), New Castle (John Santa).

CLASS 5A

Defending champion: Moon

No. 1 seed: Montour

Best first-round game: Kiski Area vs. Latrobe

Player to watch: Ama Sow, Montour. Sow has a name short on letters, but the Senegal native is long on talent. A 6-10 senior center and UT Martin recruit, Sow has been the driving force for a Montour team that has lost just one game. The big fella has produced a double-double in every game (and one triple-double) and is averaging 21 points, 17 rebounds and 3 blocks per game. He collected 24 points and 20 rebounds in a win against Moon last Friday. Sow’s story is a wonderful one, and him winning a WPIAL championship would only make it better.

Sleeper: Moon. The defending champion is flying a little under the radar after finishing third behind Montour and Chartiers Valley in Section 4. But this is a battle-tested squad that played both of those teams tight and also owns non-section wins against Knoch, Central Catholic, Penn Hills and Allderdice. Michael Santicola (16 ppg) is a 6-4 senior guard and Nova Southeastern recruit who had a double-double in last year’s final, and 6-5 senior guard Carter Tulmulty can be a problem when he gets hot from the outside.

The lowdown: Sow is the biggest reason why Montour is the championship favorite, but he’s also got some talented wingmen in senior guards Colton Straight (17.7 ppg) and Kaleb Platz (12.7 ppg). Platz is a Mercyhurst football recruit. Montour’s last title came in 2013. … A year after reaching the Class 6A final, Baldwin, section champ for the first time since 1986, will once again shoot for its first title. Like Montour, Baldwin has lost just once, that coming at South Fayette by five points on Jan. 3. The Highlanders have since won 11 straight. Senior guard Nate Wesling is averaging 18 points a game for the Highlanders, whose coach, Jeff Ackermann, has won five WPIAL titles. … It has been 23 years since Uniontown last won a title, but the Section 1 champion could end that drought behind its veteran backcourt of senior guards Calvin Winfrey (20.7 ppg) and Notorious Grooms (17.7 ppg), both 1,000-point career scorers. Winners of 11 straight, the Red Raiders also feature junior guard Isaac Ellsworth, who has made 71 3-pointers and is shooting 46% from behind the arc. … Jayden Davis could carry Chartiers Valley a long way. Davis, a senior guard and the fourth Colts player to reach 2,000 career points, ranks among the WPIAL scoring leaders with 23.5 points a game. Montour (twice) is the only WPIAL team to defeat the Colts. … Few teams have been hotter than Kiski Area, which has won 11 straight games and captured its first section title since 2013.

Championship picks: Montour (Brad Everett), Montour (Steve Rotstein), Chartiers Valley (John Santa).

CLASS 4A

Defending champion: Lincoln Park

No. 1 seed: Belle Vernon

Best first-round game: Deer Lakes vs. Quaker Valley

Player to watch: Rowan Carmichael, Avonworth. No player in the area has lit up the nets this season like Carmichael, the WPIAL’s scoring leader who averages 32 points per game. Carmichael, a senior guard, has collected more than 2,000 career points, is Avonworth’s all-time leading scorer, and has scored 40+ a few times this winter. He’s the type of player who can put a team on his back and help them go quite a long way the postseason. 

Sleeper: Deer Lakes. Up until a few years ago, Deer Lakes had never won a WPIAL title. Now, all of the sudden, the Lancers are aiming for a three-peat. Class 3A champs the previous two seasons, the Lancers may have finished third in Section 1 behind North Catholic and Knoch, but this is a team that can make a run. The Lancers beat Belle Vernon, 71-59, two days after Christmas and defeated Knoch, 45-38, on Jan. 7. North Catholic (twice) and Knoch are the only teams to beat the Lancers this calendar year. Nate Moore is a 6-4 senior forward who has Division II offers in basketball and football.

The lowdown: North Catholic has been hot. The Trojans have won seven consecutive games since their lone loss to a WPIAL team, a 61-56 setback at Knoch on Jan. 10. The Trojans, though, got some payback when they slipped by the Knights, 54-53, last week, helping them claim the Section 1 title. Led by junior guards Jason Fredericks and Jude Rottmann, the Trojans will try to reach the final for the fourth time in six seasons. They won their last title in 2020. … No team in the class has been hotter than Belle Vernon, which has won 12 in a row since its loss to Deer Lakes. Senior guard Zion Moore is a 2,000-point scorer who is averaging 27 points per game. This will be the final playoff run for longtime coach Joe Salvino, the second-winningest coach in WPIAL history who has decided to retire following the season. … Avonworth’s only WPIAL title came all the way back in 1959, but with Carmichael and senior forward Noah Goetz leading the way, the ‘Lopes could add another in a few weeks. Avonworth averages a Class 4A-best 74.1 points per game. … Carmichael might have been profiled as the “player to watch,” but that title could have also gone to Beaver’s Brady Mayo, the WPIAL’s third-leading scorer at 27.2 points a game. Mayo went off for 45 points in last Friday’s overtime win against Avonworth which earned Beaver a share of the Section 2 title. … Knoch is very talented and has one of the bigger teams in the district with 7-0 Zane Pacek and 6-7 Derek Lang. Guards Jackson Bauman and Teegan Finucan have each scored more than 1,000 career points.

Championship picks: Beaver (Brad Everett), Avonworth (Steve Rotstein), Belle Vernon (John Santa).

CLASS 3A

Defending champion: Deer Lakes

No. 1 seed: Aliquippa

Best first-round game: Bishop Canevin vs. Seton LaSalle

Player to watch: Josh Pratt, Aliquippa. Following his terrific 36-point performance in last year’s PIAA Class 2A final, Pratt picked up right where he left off this season and has yet to slow down. A junior guard with Division I offers, Pratt is averaging 22.6 points per game, which includes a 27-point outing in a one-point loss to Class 6A New Castle on Saturday. Pratt led the Quips to WPIAL and PIAA titles last season, and it’s not hard to imagine him doing it again.

Sleeper: Southmoreland. It’s very hard to pick a sleeper in this class, as the talent is top heavy. So, the pick here is a deep, deep sleeper. That would be No. 6 Southmoreland (17-4), which didn’t drop a game in winning the Section 4 title and has won 14 of its last 16 overall. Sure, the Scotties have not won a playoff game since 2017 and have advanced past the first round just once since 1987, but crazier things have happened, right? The Scotties will ride the talents of junior guard Noah Felentzer (22.5 ppg), who last week scored his 1,000th career point.

The lowdown: It has long felt like Aliquippa and South Allegheny have been on a collision course to meet in the championship game. Aliquippa has won 14 titles all time, but the Quips have never won three in a row, something they can do this season after claiming Class 2A titles the previous two seasons. Aliquippa owns the No. 1 scoring offense (70.4 ppg) and No. 1 scoring defense (39.3 ppg) in the class, and the Quips own strong wins against Class 5A Uniontown and Penn Hills and Class 2A Northgate. Junior Qa’lil Goode teams with Pratt to give the Quips an excellent 1-2 punch at the guard position. … While no team has won more titles than Aliquippa, South Allegheny is trying to win its first. The Gladiators have had some strong teams in recent seasons, and this could be their best yet. Junior Drew Cook (20 ppg) and senior Cameron Epps (19 ppg) are both 1,000-point scorers who form one of the WPIAL’s top backcourts. The Section 3 champs earned terrific non-section wins against Class 4A title hopefuls Avonworth and Belle Vernon, and their only losses were to Class 6A New Castle, Class 5A Baldwin and Class 4A Knoch. … If any team is to take down either of the championship favorites, it could be Section 2 champ Bishop Canevin, which has won 11 of its last 12 games, the only loss coming to Avonworth. Junior guard Drew Allen (16 ppg) leads the Crusaders in the scoring. … Keep an eye on Mohawk, another team that could make some noise. Junior guard Bobby Fadden (21.6 ppg) can be a handful to slow down, and Aliquippa (twice) is the only Class 3A team to have defeated the Warriors.

Championship picks: South Allegheny (Brad Everett), Aliquippa (Steve Rotstein), Aliquippa (John Santa).

CLASS 2A

Defending champion: Aliquippa

No. 1 seed: Greensburg Central Catholic

Best first-round game: Union vs. Fort Cherry

Player to watch: Lucas Stanley, Union. No one in the classification fills the bucket like Stanley, a senior guard averaging 24.8 points, 6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.1 steals a game. An excellent shooter, Stanley, son of coach Mark Stanley, has made 54 3-pointers and is shooting 48% from the field and 84% from the free-throw line. Union (16-6) is the No. 8 seed, but don’t be surprised if the Scotties make a run. They were the WPIAL Class 1A runner-up in 2022 and 2023 and reached the quarterfinals last season.

Sleeper: Sure, No. 5 Northgate (13-8) has dropped quite a few games, but don’t let that record fool you. Only two of those losses were to Class 2A teams, both to Sewickley Academy. The Flames often performed well against strong teams from larger classes and even claimed an early win against Class 5A Penn Hills. Kadenne Kemp (18 ppg), a 6-5 senior forward, and Tylan Daniels (18 ppg), a 6-6 senior forward, give the Flames one of the top scoring duos in the class.

The lowdown: Will this be the season that Greensburg Central Catholic captures its first WPIAL title? It has been a case of oh-so-close in recent seasons, with the Centurions finishing as the Class 2A runner-up in 2021 and 2024 with a pair of semifinal appearances wedged in between. The Centurions don’t have one big scorer and instead have a balanced lineup featuring senior guard Liam Gallagher. … Neshannock has won one WPIAL title, but it came 38 years ago. A group led by junior guard David Kwiat hopes to help the Lancers make some noise. Kwiat is averaging 18 points a game and scored a career-high 48 in a recent win against Western Beaver. … Sewickley Academy went just 3-18 two seasons ago, but the Panthers are in the championship hunt this season. Junior forward Lucas Grimsley leads the team in scoring and the Panthers have a pair of super-sized big men in 6-8 sophomore Adam Ikamba and 6-8 freshman Mamadou Kane. … Jeannette owns the No. 1 scoring offense in the class (68 ppg) and its only two losses were to Greensburg Central Catholic by a combined 16 points. … Will Chartiers-Houston make a run? The Section 3 champs have won 12 games in a row, and one of their only two losses came courtesy of West Greene’s Lane Allison’s incredible buzzer-beating shot. … Our Lady of the Sacred Heart will be a tough out. The Chargers are the only team to beat Neshannock and also handed Union a pair of defeats.

Championship picks: Greensburg Central Catholic (Brad Everett), Greensburg Central Catholic (Steve Rotstein), Sewickley Academy (John Santa).

CLASS 1A

Defending champion: Imani Christian

No. 1 seed: Neighborhood Academy

Best first-round game: Nazareth Prep vs. Monessen

Player to watch: Courtney Wallace, Neighborhood Academy. Wallace has been so good this season that it’s only eye opening when he doesn’t finish with a triple-double. A 6-3 senior guard and Yale recruit, Wallace has been a triple-double machine and is averaging 22.7 points, 12.7 rebounds and 10.6 assists per game. He will now try to bring the Bulldogs their first WPIAL title after falling in last year’s final, a game in which Wallace pumped in a game-high 28 points.

Sleeper: Monessen. The top four seeds will be heavy favorites in their first round games. But if a team seeded No. 5 or lower is to break through, it could be No. 6 Monessen. The Greyhounds’ only losses to Class 1A competition had come against section foes Neighborhood Academy and Serra Catholic before dropping a double-overtime game at Geibel Catholic last Friday. Junior forward Rodney Johnson and senior guard Devontae Robinson are key players for a team that could throw a curveball into the bracket.

The lowdown: No matter the neighborhood they’re playing in, Neighborhood Academy (21-1) has been fantastic. Led by Wallace, fellow senior guard Shamar Simpson and sophomore guard Kedron Gilmore, the Bulldogs own strong non-section wins against Class 6A Fox Chapel, Class 3A Bishop Canevin, Class 2A Northgate and City League power Allderdice, and are a Saturday morning loss to a strong Class 4A Beaver team away from being unbeaten. … Imani Christian is no longer in Class 1A, but a team nicknamed the Saints could still win the title. Nazareth Prep is tall and talented, and didn’t drop a game in winning the Section 1 title. Will Evans is a 6-8 senior center averaging 16.5 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.4 blocks per game. Tanya Garner can become only the second female coach to lead a boys team to a WPIAL title. … Don’t sleep on Aquinas Academy, which boasts the No. 1 scoring offense (78 points per game) in the WPIAL and features a coach (George Yokitis) who has won two WPIAL titles. Senior guard Jake Guillen (24) and junior guard Sam Duer (21.2) each average more than 20 points per game. … Serra Catholic finished second to Neighborhood Academy in Section 2 and beat Nazareth Prep, 61-58, in overtime in a non-section game. Senior guard Owen Dumbroski averages 20 points per game and on Saturday became Serra’s all-time leading scorer.

Championship picks: Neighborhood Academy (Brad Everett), Neighborhood Academy (Steve Rotstein), Serra Catholic (John Santa).