(Another Williamsville South vs. McKinley battle could highlight Buff State week / Photo by James McCoy)

 

The Section VI postseason begins Tuesday night with Akron facing Oracle.  The winner moves on to participate in the pre-quarterfinal round on Wednesday night at 7 pm.  Friday night is when the action really kicks up, as 32 quarterfinal games will decide which teams move on to Buffalo State and JCC for the semifinals.

 

Below I take a look at some of the best matchups we could potentially see in the pre-quarterfinals, quarterfinals, semifinals, and even the championship games, along with sleepers, some winning streaks, and predictions.

 

** Please note that many of the games below are based on my predictions of who will win in prior rounds 

 

Most exciting brackets, top to bottom:

8. A1

7. B1

6. C2

5. A2

4. D

3. C1

2. AA

1. B2

– The Class B2 bracket has league unbeaten I-Prep, who advanced to Glens Falls in Class D last season, as the #1 seed.  Roy-Hart's only league losses were to N-O champ Medina and the Rams have all the pieces to win it.  Gowanda won CCAA I East and finished with a 17-3 record.  Health Sciences has been the highest ranked team from this bracket all season, and boasts a win at Middle College & South Park. Emerson pushed I-Prep in both regular season and gave them their two closest games in Yale Cup I.  Fredonia has been a top 10 small school all season and nearly defeated Olean.  MST Seneca & Wilson are both well coached teams with good players that are capable of pulling off upsets within the bracket.

 

Sleepers from each bracket

AA – Lancaster:  Began the season with a win at Jamestown and did not lose a game until after Christmas.

A1 – South Park:  The Sparks have lots of athletes and finished third in Yale Cup I behind McKinley & Middle College.

A2 – Maryvale:  As the season has gone on, the Flyers have improved significantly. They won't be out-coached or out-worked and just beat Cheektowaga to help land the #4 seed.

B1 – East Aurora:  Can the #3 seed even be a sleeper?  My answer – the team in Olean's bracket with the best shot to beat them is the only team worth calling a sleeper, since no one is beating Olean. (Sorry Class B1, feel free to prove me wrong)

B2 – Fredonia:  It feels weird to call the Hillbillies sleepers, but since they're the #6 seed, they qualify.

C1 – Chautauqua Lake:  One of the best teams in Section VI that no one talks about.  These guys just beat Dunkirk by 12, and Dunkirk owns a win over Cleveland Hill – the top seed in Class C1.

C2 – Barker:  The Raiders may be the most improved team in Section VI after beginning the year 2-7.  They collected recent wins over Newfane and Wilson (the only team to beat Medina in the N-O).

D – Sherman:  The Class D champs in 2013 & 2014 and finalists in 2015, are the #4 seed and coming up on their favorite time of year.

 

Top 10 Pre-Quarterfinal Games (Wednesday, February 17th)

10. Buffalo Arts @ Depew

9. Oracle @ Emerson

8. Clarence @ Niagara Wheatfield

7. Sweet Home @ Grand Island

6. CSAT @ Albion

5. Maple Grove @ Portville

4. Salamanca @ Allegany-Limestone

3. Lackawanna @ MST Seneca

2. Southwestern @ Fredonia

1. Tonawanda @ Newfane 

 

Top 10 Quarterfinal Games (Friday, February 19th)

10. Alden @ Dunkirk

9. Lockport @ Williamsville North

8. Brocton @ Sherman

7. Frewsburg @ Silver Creek

6. Wilson @ I-Prep

5. Barker @ Randolph

4. MST Seneca @ Roy-Hart

3. East @ Chautauqua Lake

2. Kenmore West @ Lancaster

1. Fredonia @ Gowanda

 

Most Exciting Potential Semifinals

8. Middle College vs. Randolph (C2)

7. Tapestry vs. Olmsted (C1)

6. Starpoint vs. Lew-Port (A2)

5. Cleveland Hill vs. East (C1)

4. Roy-Hart vs. Fredonia (B2)

3. Ellicottville vs. Franklinville (D)

2. I-Prep vs. Health Sciences (B2)

1. Williamsville North vs. Jamestown (AA)

 

Most Exciting Championship Games

5. Class D

4. Class C1

3. Class B2

2. Class AA

1. Class A1

 

Winning streaks heading into sectionals

Olean – 20

Panama – 17 (and 18 of last 19)

Amherst – 13 (and 19 of last 20)

I-Prep – 12 (and 16 of last 17)

Williamsville South – 9 (and 11 of last 12)

Gowanda – 8 (and 15 of last 16)

McKinley – 7 (and 19 of last 20)

 * Medina has won 10 of its last 11

 * Jamestown has won 9 of its last 10

 * Ellicottville has won 7 of its last 8

 

Predictions

AA – Jamestown

A1 – Williamsville South

A2 – Amherst

B1 – Olean

B2 – Health Sciences

C1 – East

C2 – Middle College

D – Panama

 

-centercourt