Louisiana High School Girls Basketball Playoff Bracketology

The road to crown 10 state champions in Hammond begins this week.

Lafayette Christian head coach Errol Rogers / Scott Clause / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

For the third year, High School on SI examines the LHSAA girls high school basketball playoff brackets with an eye on legitimate contenders, upset specials and the best games to watch in Louisiana. Brackets can be found here: LHSAA.

Division I nonselect

Top 10 seeds (first four receive bye)

1. Zachary (27-3)

2. Slidell (27-1)

3. Prairieville (24-4)

4. Neville (21-5)

5. Sulphur (19-6)

6. Salmen (24-3)

7. Denham Springs (20-9)

8. Destrehan (19-7)

9. Natchitoches-Central (19-8)

10. South Lafourche (21-4)

District rivals reunite: Four bi-district games involve teams from the same district: No. 9 Natchitoches Central/No. 24 Airline, No. 8 Destrehan/No. 25 Hahnville, No. 5 Sulphur/No. 28 Barbe and No. 14 Ruston/No. 19 Ouachita Parish.

Upset special: No. 11 Parkway over No. 6 Salmen in the second round. The Panthers (19-8) make the long trip from Bossier City and defeat Salmen, which is coming of a 23-point loss to city rival Slidell. We'll leave it to the LBR Basketball crystal ball to predict a potential quarterfinal winner of No. 3 Prairieville and Parkway. The Hurricanes had a long winning streak snapped by Denham
Springs and should be dialed in. Parkway, on the other hand, has championship experience that can't be duplicated.

Upset special Part II: No. 23 Southside over No. 10 South Lafourche. The Sharks nearly pulled off an upset of 29-win Acadiana in their final home game last Friday. They'll need to ride the shooting of Urijah Carmouche, who scored 36 points with 10 3-pointers in the four-point loss to the Rams.

Game to watch: No. 13 Haughton vs. No. 20 Sam Houston. Haughton ended Parkway's lengthy district winning streak but lost its last two games to Huntington and Captain Shreve. Which Sam Houston team will show up? The one that beat Sulphur, or the one that lost to Southside. The Broncos are streaky. They got out to a 22-2 lead on Acadiana before falling 38-36.

Best projected quarterfinal matchup: No. 7 Denham Springs at No. 2 Slidell. The Yellow Jackets flexed their muscles in a 70-52 win over No. 3 Prairieville for their seventh straight victory. Slidell's only loss is to Southern Lab.

Division I select

Top eight seeds (all get byes)

1. John Curtis (21-1)

2. Riverdale (21-1)

3. St. Jospeh's Academy (21-5)

4. Huntington (17-7)

5. Acadiana (29-4)

6. Scotlandville (24-6)

7. Teurlings Catholic (23-8)

8. Captain Shreve (19-10)

No. 12 Alexandria at No. 5 Acadiana is an interesting game, in light of the fact that one of the Rams' only losses is a forfeit to ASH during the holidays. Acadiana has a young team under veteran coach Korey Arnold, who could travel to Shreveport to face defending champion Huntington in the quarterfinals. Coach Brian Shyne's Raiders have won five straight games after losing 5-of-7. Acadiana trailed through the first three quarters before pulling off a road win at Southside last week in the final game of the regular season. ASH will have to take business first vs. No. 21 Mount Carmel (15-13).

Upset Special: No. 18 Liberty over No. 15 Dominican and No. 2 Riverdale. The Patriots (17-13) have lost five of their last eight games, but their opponents include Zachary, Scotlandville, Southern Lab and Parkview Baptist. Liberty also has a recent win over Woodlawn-BR, a dangerous No. 13 seed that hosts first-year coach Chris Price and No. 20 Edna Karr. Woodlawn and Karr both made the state tournament last season. Riverdale came down to earth in a 19-point loss to Lakeshore.

Scotlandville vs. St. Joseph's Academy is a potential quarterfinal game pitting district rivals. Scotlandville won 38-37 in the final game of the regular season. Our predictions for the semifinals are No. 7 Teurlings Catholic vs. No. 6 Scotlandville. and No. 4 Huntington vs. No. 1 John Curtis. That would be a huge feat for the Rebels, a Class 4A school which will move down to Division II next year. Teurlings Catholic will need to stay out of foul trouble to make such a run. Scotlandville will have to get past No. 11 Ponchatoula, which has lost seven of its last 10 but won three of four to end the regular season.

Division II nonselect

Top eight seeds (first four get bye)

1. Sterlington (24-4)

2. LaGrange (26-4)

3. North Vermilion (25-3)

4. Wossman (17-8)

5. Iowa (23-5)

6. South Beauregard (20-8)

7. Albany (21-9)

8. West Feliciana (21-6)

The bracket gods didn't do Iowa any favors. The Yellow Jackets should get No. 12 Lakeshore (12-10) (which handed Division I select No. 2 Riverdale its only loss) in the second round and then they'll have to travel to Monroe to face defending champ Wossman, which has won 14 of its last 15 games. No. 1 Sterlington vs. Wossman in the semifinals would likely bring a large crowd from Northeast Louisiana to Hammond. Sterlington was upset by Albany in last season's semifinals.

Quarterfinal game to watch: No. 6 South Beauregard at No. 3 North Vermilion. South Beauregard won its fifth straight district title, which it clinched over a highly touted Westlake team. North Vermilion's only loss in a tough District 4-4A was without center Stevie Brasseaux. The Patriots defeated 23-win Teurlings Catholic later. South Beau lost by 20 points to Pitkin in the next to last game of the regular season. We'll take the Patriots, who lost to Albany in last year's quarterfinals, to make the state tournament.

Quarterfinal game to watch part II: No. 7 Albany at No. 2 LaGrange. Albany made the state tournament last year by winning on the road at North Vermilion as a No. 7 seed. The Hornets have a win over Madison Prep, the only loss for the Division II select No. 1 Chargers in 16 games.

Division II select

Top eight seeds (all get byes)

1. Madison Prep (25-7)

2. University Lab (26-5)

3. Parkview Baptist (24-4)

4. George Washington Carver (23-4)

5. Buckeye (22-6)

6. Vandebilt Catholic (15-7)

7. E.D. White (20-10)

8. Northside (17-7)

The top three teams in the power ratings have been the same all season and are from the same Baton Rouge district. Madison Prep swept Parkview Baptist and University Lab and stands as the definitive favorite, although their expected quarterfinal opponent, No. 8 Northside, is better than its seed and has a talented group under first year coach Erin Rogers.

Parkview Baptist is projected to meet defending champion Vandebilt Catholic in the quarterfinals and U-High in the semis. The Eagles beat the Cubs by 23 points in the regular season.

Division III nonselect

Top eight seeds (first four get byes)

1. French Settlement (27-3)

2. Oak Grove (24-3)

3. Westlake (19-4)

4. Springfield (22-7)

5. Ville Platte (21-7)

6.Jena (20-8)

7. Mansfield (15-11)

8. Richwood (15-12)

No. 4 Springfield at No. 1 French Settlement is the game we're anticipating. Springfield lost by one point at home early in the season to the Lions, and the Bulldogs have won 14 of their last 15 games.

No. 2 Oak Grove vs. No. 3 Westlake would be a rematch of last year's semifinal won by Oak Grove 56-37. The Tigers, who were seeded second last season as well, finished as runner-up to Oakdale, which is a No. 13 seed (and faces No. 20 Avoyelles).

Division III select

Top eight seeds (all get byes)

1 Lafayette Christian (20-8)

2. Rosepine (23-7)

3. Sacred Heart-NO (19-5)

4. De La Salle (20-9)

5. Holy Savior Menard (20-4)

6. Dunham (13-8)

7. GEO Next Generation (19-13)

8. Newman (15-13)

Will Lafayette Christian win its sixth straight title? The Knights have dealt with injuries, losing senior Kaliyah Samuels (ACL) and Logan Boutte, who has since returned. Case James and Rosepine have won 16 of their last 17 games (lost to Pitkin). The Eagles would have to take out last season's runner-up, Sacred Heart, in the semifinals if the seedings pan out. LCA could get a tough Menard team led by Carly Meynard in the semifinals.

Division IV nonselect

Top four seeds (all get byes)

1. Midland (25-7)

2. Merryville (23-8)

3. Arcadia (22-6)

4. West St. John (20-4)

Jeanerette coach Zeb Simon, who guided the Tigers (No. 12 seed) to their first district title in over 20 years, feels that the top four in this bracket stand out, and we agree. Defending champ Lakeview nailed down the final playoff spot as a No. 28 seed (will face No. 5 East Feliciana). Arcadia, the runner-up last season, would face Merryville in the semifinals. Merryville has won 14 of 15 with a loss to JS Clark. Arcadia has also won 14 of 15 (lost to Natchitoches-Central). The Hornets beat Cedar Creek by 23 points.

Midland beat Lafayette Christian twice, the second time in Lafayette without post Tara Savoy. Don't look past No. 6 Lake Arthur at No. 3 Arcadia in the quarterfinals. The Tigers (17-9) can score a lot of points (62 or more in nine games) and they come out of Districr 6-2A (LCA, MIdland).

Division IV select

Top four seeds (all get byes)

1. Southern Lab (24-5)

2. J.S. Clark Leadership Academy (24-5)

3. Ouachita Christian (26-1)

4. Cedar Creek (20-8)

The top four seeds are the same schools that made the tournament last year. Southern Lab beat OCS 68-16 and Cedar Creek 67-57 to win the title. We like J.S. Clark to make the finals vs. the Kittens. The Bulldogs are experienced and talented. Last season, Cedar Creek defeated JS Clark in the semifinals.

Class B

Top four seeds (all get byes)

1. Bell City (23-2)

2. Pitkin (31-5)

3. Fairview (25-9)

4. Negreet (19-9)

Upset special: No. 11 Florien (18-12) over No. 6 Quitman (21-7).

Upset special part II: No. 9 Anacoco (17-14) over No. 8 Choudrant (21-7). The Indians, who enter the playoffs with a win under their belt over Fairview, face a Choudrant team that dropped two of its last four games (to Florien and Quitman).

Sabiine Parish Showdown: No. 5 Zwolle (26-8) could travel to Negreet in the quarterfinals. They split two games in the regular season.

Fairview vs. Pitkin Part III: The district rivals could meet in the semifinals. Fairview, which brought back three starters from last year's championship team (beat Bell City), swept the regular season series.

Class C

Top four seeds (all get byes)

1. Simpson (36-4)

2. Calvin (26-2)

3. Pleasant Hill (25-9)

4. Evans (26-7)

Upset special: No. 5 Phoenix (15-12) over No. 4 Evans. Phoenix defeated Class 5A Acadiana (29-4) and lost by three to Division II select No. 4 George Washington Carver last week. Can anything stop the Simpson train from repeating as champs?

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