Boys Basketball Playoffs: St. Paul’s and Hannan to Final Four, many non-select area teams advance

Boys Prep Playoff Basketball Report for Saturday, Feb. 26

It was a good night for several area teams in the opening round of the non-select state basketball playoffs Friday night while a pair of area teams advanced to the Final Four on the select side.

In the best game of the night, No. 15 East St. John edged No. 18 West Jefferson 62-61 in Reserve in Class 5A.

In a contest that was good throughout, West Jefferson took an 18-16 lead after one quarter before East St. John grabbed a 35-34 halftime advantage. The game was tied 44-44 going to the final quarter.

The fourth quarter remained a one-possession game throughout. The Buccaneers had a shot to win it which missed with six seconds remaining.

Kylon Harris finished with 20 points while Warren Snyder scored 18 points and Devin Davis had 11 points.

Daquan Royal had 20 points while Lunden Sample finished with 16 points for West Jefferson.

East St. John (27-8) will travel to No. 2 Alexandria Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. in the regional round. The Trojans downed No. 31 East Jefferson 69-55.

Also in 5A, No. 11 Northshore used a huge performance from sophomore Kohen Rowbatham to down No. 22 Bonnabel 72-61.

Rowbatham pumped in 32 points in a brilliant effort.

Northshore led 12-9 after one quarter and took a 32-23 lead into halftime. It was 51-36 going to the final quarter.

James Bridges scored 14 points and Landon Renz had 12 points for the Panthers. Vandell Smith topped the Bruins (19-12) with 18 points, Shawn Knight had 15 and Jeremiah Lucas finished with 12 points.

Northshore (23-6) advances to travel to Shreveport to face No. 6 Captain Shreve in the regional round. Captain Shreve eliminated No. 27 Live Oak 63-41.

No. 16 Mandeville downed No. 17 Airline 52-40.

The Vikings took the fight to the Skippers early as it was tied 6-6 after one quarter before Airline led 16-13 at halftime.

The second half belonged to Mandeville.

The Skippers took a 25-24 lead after three quarters and dominated the fourth quarter for the victory.

Jaylen Pazon was superb for Mandeville, scoring 26 points while Bryce Weinmunson had eight points. Trey Jackson led Airline with 14 points while Colby Oglee had 13.

Mandeville (21-10) advances to take on defending state champion and top seed Zachary Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The Broncos beat No. 32 Fontainebleau 80-49.

In Class 4A, No. 2 Karr easily handled Northwood 60-21.

The Cougars used a balanced effort to handle the visitors from Shreveport.

Devin Lewis had 12 points, Leland Smith scored nine points and Jonathan Bax had eight points and seven rebounds. Jovan Taylor added six points and 12 rebounds.

Karr (30-4) advances to host No. 15 South Terrebonne Monday at 6 p.m. The Gators advanced with a 51-36 win over No. 18 Opelousas.

Also in 4A, No. 17 Salmen went to Bayou country and whipped No. 16 South Lafourche 85-70.

Jayshawn Williams put on a show for the Spartans, Williams was on fire from start to finish, scoring 43 points in a brilliant performance. Brandon Daniels finished with 26 points for the Tarpons.

Salmen (22-10) advances to take on top seed Carver in the regional round.

In Class 3A, No. 8 Sophie B. Wright used a big second half to defeat No. 25 Albany 54-34.

The Warriors led 13-10 after one quarter and just 18-16 at halftime.

The second half belonged to Sophie B. Wright.

The Warriors outscored Albany 19-7 in the third quarter and 17-11 in the final quarter to pull away for the win.

Jeremiah Simon led the Warriors with 15 points while Treontay Alford scored 13 points. Karyon Reed added eight points. JJ Doherty scored 22 points to lead Albany.

Sophie B. Wright (20-9) advances to host No. 9 Northwest Tuesday night at 6 p.m. Northwest dismissed No. 24 Mentorship Academy 69-56.

No. 14 Booker T. Washington advanced with a 52-45 victory over No. 19 Marksville.

Christian Ferguson led the way with 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists while Lionel Bell finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Lions.

Booker T. Washington (15-17) advances to the regional round to play at No. 3 Wossman Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. Wossman beat No. 30 Sterlington 63-46.

Also advancing in 3A were No. 16 M.L. King Charter, who downed No. 17 Brusly 74-61, No. 12 Lutcher, who defeated No. 21 Lake Charles College Prep 70-49, No. 13 Douglass, who downed No. 20 Mansfield 60-58 and No. 4 Donaldsonville, who handled No. 29 Mamou 94-53.

In the select playoffs, top seed St. Paul’s advanced to the Final Four in easy fashion with a 69-28 home win over No. 9 Byrd.

The Wolves dominated play from the start.

St. Paul’s used balanced scoring to win it.

Jeremy Autin had 18 points, Zach Fenn and Reece Seicshnaydre had 14 points each and Andrew Zibilich finished with 10 points. Jackson Dufrene topped the Yellow Jackets with seven points.

St. Paul’s (26-4) is on to the Final Four for the second straight season. The Wolves will meet the winner of this afternoon’s game between No. 4 John Curtis Christian and No. 5 Brother Martin, who square off at 2 p.m. in River Ridge. You can watch that game live on CrescentCitySports.com.

In Division II, No. 3 Archbishop Hannan has advanced to the Final Four for the first time in school history.

The Hawks defeated No. 6 Evangel Christian 62-34 at home.

Hannan led 11-10 after one quarter but broke it open in the second quarter to take a 34-16 lead by halftime.

Freshman Drew Timmons led the Hawks with 16 points, Semajai McClendon scored 14, Grant Kemp had 12 and Luke Timmons finished with 10 points for Hannan.

Archbishop Hannan (22-7) will meet No. 7 St. Michael on Wednesday at 8 p.m. in Lafayette at the Cajundome. The Warriors shocked No. 2 University Lab 61-51.

In Division IV, No. 3 Country Day ousted District 9-1A rival and No. 6 St. Martin’s Episcopal 65-36.

Jordan Trahan scored 21 points while Connor Trahan scored 18 points. Maddox Moss scored eight points and Jake Ibietta finished with seven points. Matt Mannino and Matt Weaver each had seven points for the Saints.

The Cajuns (19-10) advance to the Final Four in Lafayette to take on the winner of today’s game pitting No. 7 Ascension Catholic at No. 2 Calvary Baptist.

Area Boys Prep Playoff Basketball Results from Friday, Feb. 25

Class 5A
#16 Mandeville 52, #17 Airline 40
#9 Destrehan 74, #24 St. Amant 61
#12 Southside 55, #21 Ponchatoula 51
#14 East Ascension 61, #19 Hahnville 52
#11 Northshore 72, #22 Bonnabel 61
#15 East St. John 62, #18 West Jefferson 61
#2 Alexandria 69, #31 East Jefferson 55

Class 4A
#17 Salmen 85, #16 South Lafourche 70
#7 Peabody 86, #26 John F. Kennedy 41
#2 Karr 60, #31 Northwood 21

Class 3A
#16 M.L. King Charter 74, #17 Brusly 61
#8 Sophie B. Wright 54, #25 Albany 34
#12 Lutcher 70, #21 Lake Charles College Prep 49
#13 Douglass 60, #20 Mansfield 58
#4 Donaldsonville 94, #29 Mamou 53
#14 Booker T. Washington (NO) 52, #19 Marksville 45

Class 2A
#5 Amite 78, #28 Jeanerette 48
#12 St. Helena 68, #21 General Trass 64
#13 Many 76, #20 Pine 58
#6 French Settlement 87, #27 Sarah Reed 59

Class 1A
#14 Ringgold 86, #19 West St. John 44

Class C
#6 Phoenix 70, #11 Summerfield 52

Division I
#1 St. Paul’s 69, #9 Byrd 28

Division II
#3 Archbishop Hannan 62, #6 Evangel Christian 34

Division III
#4 St. Thomas Aquinas 75 #5 Northlake Christian 57

Division IV
#3 Country Day 65, #6 St. Martin’s Episcopal 36