Recapping the Basketball Regional Quarterfinals!

BOYS BASKETBALL🏀

Click this link or read below for the most recent playoff updates from MCPS, with the regional semifinals kicking off today, March 2!

Basketball playoffs are underway in Maryland, as the first round of the regional playoffs were played over the weekend. Each of Montgomery County’s 25 teams took part in the competition spread across three classifications. Here’s how each team performed in the regional quarterfinals:

MCPS 2A: The Poolesville Falcons are the lone 2A team in MoCo, and they went into the 2A West I regional bracket as the top seed, boasting a 12-8 record. They did not participate in last weekend’s action, but they are set for their first playoff game against the Century Knights from Carroll County in the semifinals.

MCPS 3A: The West II region is run by Montgomery schools, as they take up all six spots. The Magruder Colonels and Damascus Hornets earned byes as the top two seeds. The 3v6 matchup was between the Wootton Patriots and the Northwood Gladiators, which was the biggest upset of the first round with Northwood taking down the three-seed 66-61. Also in this region, the fifth seed Rockville played Watkins Mill, and pulled out another upset, this one 75-61. MCPS also has representation in the South I region, with the Sherwood Warriors entering as the four seed, and defeating Reservoir 85-47. They’ll now face the Oakland Mills Scorpions in the next round.

MCPS 4A: 17 of 25 schools participate in the 4A bracket, split between the West I, West II, North II, and South I regions. The only West I game for Montgomery County teams was the three seed Northwest Jaguars facing Clarksburg at the bottom of the bracket. The Jaguars handled business, winning 75-50, and will now face Seneca Valley on the road in the semifinals. MCPS owns the West II region, with all six teams coming from the state’s biggest district. Whitman and Walter Johnson earned first-round byes. The 4v5 matchup was between Churchill and Quince Orchard, with the Bulldogs punching their ticket in a 56-46 game, setting them up for their third game against the Vikings this year. Bethesda-CC took down Gaithersburg by 28 points in a 67-39 final, setting the Barons up for a road match against WJ in the semifinals.

The county also owns the North II region, with North I being controlled by Baltimore County. Blake and JFK were the two teams that sat the first round out, while there was one blowout game and one tough match. Wheaton went into the playoffs as the four seed, as they faced the Springbrook Blue Devils in round one. This game proved to be a narrow up set, as the five seed came out ahead 59-55. Meanwhile, Richard Montgomery hosted Einstein at the bottom of the bracket, and had no issues overcoming the Titans with a final of 87-56. MCPS sent two teams into the South I region, as the Blair Blazers held a bye with the one seed, while the Paint Branch Panthers also did not play in the second highest spot.

GIRLS BASKETBALL 🏀

Scroll down a bit or click this link for a full update on the regional quarterfinals for MoCo girls basketball teams!

Throhghout the last weekend of the year’s shortest month, Maryland high school playoffs got underway with the first round of the regional bracket being played Friday and Saturday. Most of Montgomery County’s 25 girls basketball teams played across three different classifications. Here’s how each game played out:

MCPS 2A: The Poolesville Falcons are the lone 2A team hailing from the largest district in the state. Their 13-7 regular season record was good enough to earn them to two seed in the region and a quarterfinal bye. They are now set to face the three-seeded Liberty Lions from Carroll County at home, after they defeated Walkersville High from Frederick County 62-38.

MCPS 3A: The West II region is made up entirely of Montgomery County schools. Here, the Wootton Patriots and Damascus Hornets earned first round byes, while Magruder hosted Rockville and Watkins Mill traveled to Rockville. The Colonels’ game ended without much of a struggle, as the blue and silver defeated the Gladiators 50-17. The four-seeded Rams held off the Wolverines of Watkins Mill in a 38-31 game. Rockville will travel to Wootton in the semis while Damascus is set to host Magruder. Additionally, MCPS has representation in the South I bracket, as Sherwood entered as the three-seed. The Warriors beat the Atholton Raiders 66-26, advancing to face Reservoir in the second round.

MCPS 4A: Bigger schools in MCPS make up much of the state’s highest classification, with 17 teams participating at the top. In the West I region, Clarksburg earned a bye as the top seed, while the Northwest Jaguars hosted Seneca Valley’s squad. In an upset, the Screaming Eagles will advance to the semifinals, taking down NW 42-28. SV will travel to Clarksburg on Tuesday. Montgomery’s teams make up the entire West II bracket, with the undefeated Whitman Vikings and 19-2 Churchill Bulldogs having a break in the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, the 4v5 and 3v6 games both ended in upsets. In the first, Quince Orchard hosted the 12-8 Gaithersburg Trojans, but fell 52-50. In the other match, the 13-9 Walter Johnson Wildcats hosted the 11-10 Bethesda-CC Barons, and lost that one 46-38. Gaithersburg is now set to have an incredible challenge as they’ll travel to Whitman while the Barons will face the Bulldogs on the road.

The North II division is also made up entirely of MCPS teams, with the Richard Montgomery Rockets and Einstein Titans earning the byes here. Unlike the West II, this bracket went as expected. The four-seed Blake Bengals hosted the JFK Cavaliers, and earned a narrow 40-34 win. They’ll travel to take on the Rockets in the semifinals. Meanwhile, Springbrook and Wheaton faced off in the 3v6 march, with the Blue Devils earning an 18-point victory, sending them to Einstein in the next round. Finally, Paint Branch and Montgomery Blair play in the South I region, with both of the two winning their first round match. The four-seeded Panthers hosted High Point and won 42-37, while the three-seeded Blazers walloped Prince George’s County’s Northwestern High, winning 61-11. Paint Branch will travel to Eleanor Roosevelt in the semifinals while Laurel High will host Blair.

MCPS ATHLETICS ZONE FEATURE

Montgomery County students produce stories highlighting their county’s athletes, and CSZ is thrilled to continue working to highlight their work. Einstein senior Luke Womack highlighted Whitman’s basketball team’s 20-year reunion of their state championship team from 2006. Click the link below to read the full article!

SPRING SPORTS ⚾🥎🥍

Stay tuned to CSZ for preseason power rankings for spring sports including Baseball, Softball, Lacrosse, and others in the coming weeks!

SHARE YOUR STORIES

Know a coach, teammate, or fan going above and beyond? Nominate them for a feature! Your story idea could be highlighted in next week’s edition.

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