BROOKVILLE, Pa. (D9Sports) – Three local teams will compete in the District 9 basketball playoffs starting this week with Brookville competing in Class AA, Punxsutawney in Class AAA and DuBois Central Catholic in Class A.
(See brackets on D9sports.com)
Here is a quick breakdown on each of the teams. To see the full District 9 girls’ playoff breakdown, head over to D9Sports.com.
BROOKVILLE (12-10)
Seed: 5th (Class AA)
First Opponent: vs. Kane (7 p.m. Feb. 17 at North Clarion High School)
Notable – Brookville enters the playoffs going in the wrong direction. After an 11-5 start, the Lady Raiders lost 5 of 6 entering the postseason, although all the losses were close games. They really need Elaina Powell to rediscover her shooting touch. The senior sharpshooter scored just 25 points in her final three games but is capable of exploding for 20-plus at any give time. The first-round matchup with Kane could be favorable considering the Lady Raiders got a 10-point win over the Lady Wolves in January.
Top players – Hali Olson (11.1 ppg), Elaina Powell (10.5 ppg)
What it will take for the Lady Raiders to win it all – Powell sending her career out with a bang. If they senior can hit her shots, Brookville can be dangerous with the one-two punch of Powell and Olson. They will also have to limit their turnovers, especially if they get into the semifinals against Karns City.
PUNXSUTAWNEY (18-4)
Seed: 1st (Class AAA)
First Opponent: hosts Clearfield at 7 p.m. Feb. 16 in semifinals
Notable – The Lady Chucks are the defending champions and are looking for back-to-back titles for the first time since winning five in a row from 2002-2006. All four of Punxsutawney’s losses came to non-District 9 teams. Punxsy is loaded inside with 6-0 foot sophomore Leah Miller, 6-1 senior Hope Bridge 5-10 Ali Lunger. With that kind of inside size, the Lady Chucks will go as far as their guards take them. Punxsy beat it’s semifinal opponent, Clearfield, 55-43.
Top players – Leah Miller (11.1 ppg), Hope Bridge (10.5 ppg)
What it will take for the Lady Chucks to win it all – If the guards play up to their potential, then Punxsutawney will stand on the podium again and have a shot at the PIAA playoffs.
DUBOIS CENTRAL CATHOLIC (16-8)
Seed: 5th (Class A)
First Opponent: Keystone (TBA)
Notable – The AML Champions are looking for their first District 9 title since 1999 and haven’t been to the title game since 2000. The Lady Cardinals seem to wear teams down in games and have won numerous times after trailing going to the fourth quarter. They have also played their fair share of close games having nine games decided by five or fewer point. Unfortunately for DCC, it’s just 3-6 in those contests.
Top players – Riley Assalone (12.4 ppg), Jordy Frank (8.4 ppg), Gabby Caruso (6.4 ppg)
What it will take for the Lady Cardinals to win it all: – The ability to wear teams down that aren’t as deep as mentioned above can come in handy at playoff time. In addition, the Lady Cardinals showed they could play with the top teams losing by just two to top-seeded a couple of weeks ago. But there isn’t a whole lot of scoring depth with only Assalone reaching double digits. Also, as good as DCC has been in coming back in games, that’s a dangerous life to live, especially in the playoffs when with one misstep your season in over.
Copyright © 2024 EYT Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. Any copying, redistribution or retransmission of the contents of this service without the express written consent of EYT Media Group, Inc. is expressly prohibited.
