Sixteen Rio Grande Valley high school boys basketball teams earned bi-district victories in Round 1 of the state playoffs to punch their tickets to this weekend’s area round. Most are in action tonight as teams vie for a spot in next week’s regional quarterfinals.
CLASS 6A
The RGV’s four Class 6A area round qualifiers are set to go head-to-head with four San Antonio programs tonight.
Brownsville Hanna, coming off a 60-50 win over La Joya in the bi-district round, meets San Antonio O’Connor in Round 2. It’s Hanna’s second straight year advancing to the area round as the Eagles (25-13) and Panthers (23-12) start at 7 p.m. tonight at Corpus Christi King High School.
District 31-6A co-champion Edinburg North (30-9) is making its third area round appearance in four seasons after earning a hard-fought victory over Los Fresnos in Round 1. The Cougars battle San Antonio Jay (23-8) at 7 p.m. tonight at Tuloso-Midway High School in Corpus Christi.
Harlingen High tied for the Valley’s longest winning streak of the season by winning 22 consecutive games earlier this season and went on to capture a share of the District 32-6A crown. Now, the Cardinals (32-6) are locked in for their area round matchup against San Antonio Harlan (22-11) at 7 p.m. tonight at Laredo United High School.
The Weslaco High Panthers stayed hot by picking up a 49-37 bi-district playoff win over Edinburg High on Tuesday. The District 32-6A tri-champ Panthers (18-17) have now won eight of their last nine contests. They’ll have their work cut out for them in the area round against San Antonio Brennan (29-4), which starts at 7 p.m. tonight at Texas A&M International in Laredo.
CLASS 5A
District 31-5A’s bi-district playoff sweep over District 32-5A was capped off by a No. 4-seed vs. No. 1-seed upset as Sharyland Pioneer took down Weslaco East 42-40 at Sharyland Pioneer High School on Tuesday. The Diamondbacks (21-14) now find themselves in the area round for the fifth time in six seasons with a matchup against Gregory-Portland (30-5) on deck.
Edinburg Vela is slated to face Laredo Nixon, a team the SaberCats defeated during the regular season 81-60 on Dec. 1. Both teams have won district titles since then. Tip-off between the SaberCats (33-5) and Mustangs (25-11) is at 7 p.m. tonight at Zapata High School.
McAllen High is making its fourth consecutive area round playoff appearance and draws the same second round opponent from a season ago in Corpus Christi Veterans. The Bulldogs lost last year’s matchup against the Eagles, but they were a young squad who is now a year older and a year better. McHi (27-10) meets Corpus Christi Veterans (25-8) at 8 p.m. tonight at Alice High School.
McAllen Memorial (28-7) delivered a complete performance in Round 1 against Brownsville Pace to earn its spot in the area round for the third year in a row. The experienced Mustangs are now set to take on Corpus Christi Miller (18-17) at 3 p.m. Saturday at Falfurrias High School.
CLASS 4A
La Feria ran past Calallen 57-40 in Round 1 to punch its ticket to Round 2 in back-to-back seasons. Now, the Lions (23-8) will lock horns with Somerset (24-11) in the area round at 7 p.m. tonight at San Diego HIgh School.
Port Isabel demolished Alice 90-58 in the bi-district round, getting some payback for last year’s first round defeat against the Coyotes. Now, the Tarpons (28-6) will put their 22-game winning streak on the line in the area round against Floresville (25-8) at 6:30 p.m. tonight at Corpus Christi Moody High School.
CLASS 3A
Brownsville IDEA Sports Park punched its ticket to the area round in its first postseason appearance in program history by stunning District 31-3A champion Edinburg IDEA Quest 60-49 on Tuesday. The Stingrays (20-5) draw an area round date with Santa Gertrudis Academy (20-12) at 6:30 p.m. tonight at Lasara High School.
Edinburg IDEA College Prep (22-8) won its first playoff game in program history in the bi-district round with a 77-61 victory over Lyford on Tuesday. The Eagles’ historic season came to an end in the area round against Corpus Christi London 74-55 on Thursday at Lasara High School.
Rio Hondo (22-9) was in the third round just two seasons ago, and to get back to the regional quarterfinals, the Bobcats will have to get through Goliad (29-5) at 6 p.m. tonight at Alice High School. The District 32-3A champion Bobcats have won 14 straight entering the area round.
Santa Rosa (20-13) has put together some of the Valley’s deepest playoff runs over the last decade, but the area round has tripped the Warriors up the last two seasons. Standing in between Santa Rosa and the regional quarterfinals is Falfurrias (28-6) at 7 p.m. tonight at Edinburg High School.
CLASS 2A
District 32-2A champion Santa Maria was the Valley’s only team to win in the area round a season ago, and now the Cougars are one win away from getting back to Round 3. Santa Maria (17-12) hasn’t lost a game since the turn of the calendar, but they’ll be put to the test against Johnson City (20-8) at 7 p.m. tonight Corpus Christi Miller High School.
CLASS 1A
San Perlita’s playoff run ended in the area round last year, but the Trojans have improved with another season of experience and a District 32-1A title under their belt. The Trojans (20-9) took down D’Hanis 60-51 on Tuesday to set up a second-round matchup against Richards (21-8) at 6 p.m. tonight at Goliad High School.
