The Palmerton boys and Weatherly girls will open PIAA State Basketball Tournament play on Saturday. The Bombers will travel to Bensalem to face Math, Civic & Sciences, while the Wreckers will be in Williamsport to take on St. John Neumann.

PIAA Class 3A First Round

Palmerton vs. Math, Civics & Sciences

Saturday, 6 p.m.

at Bensalem High School

LEADING OFF

Palmerton looks to continue its successful postseason run as it travels to Bensalem to take on perennial state championship contender Math, Civics & Sciences. The Bombers (20-7) are the third-place team out of District 11, while the Mighty Elephants (16-10) are the District 12 runner-ups.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

PALMERTON … Brayden Hosier has been nothing short of fantastic in the postseason for Palmerton. The junior guard is averaging 20.6 points per game, and has hit 10 three-pointers during the Bombers five playoff games. Chase Reph

put together a solid performance against Notre Dame of Green Pond in the 3A consolation game, scoring 14 points

MATH, CIVICS & SCIENCES ... MCS will be without its two leading scorers - Isaiah Griffin (10.2 ppg.) and guard Nayeem Johnson

(9.0 ppg.) - because of the PIAA transfer rule that makes them ineligible for postseason play this season.

BY THE NUMBERS

8

- Palmerton has eight wins in the state playoffs in program history. The Bombers last state playoff victory came in 1982 in the second round against Nazareth when they defeated the Blue Eagles 53-52.

16

- Coming into the postseason, Palmerton had the fewest amount of three-point field goals (66) made of any of the Times News area boys’ teams. The Bombers have picked it up recently from behind the arc, however, connecting on a total of 16 triples during their three District 11 playoff games.

20

- The Bombers’ 20 wins are the most for the program since the 1989-90 Palmerton district championship team.

2019

- The last year that Palmerton qualified for the state playoffs was in 2019 after they won the District 11 3A championship. Before 2019, it was a 20-year drought for Palmerton, with their last state appearance being in 1989.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

“Math, Civic & Sciences is a great program with a great coach, and we are certainly looking forward to the challenge on Saturday. A key for us is that we will need to handle their ability to change defenses throughout the game. We have to be able handle that and move the ball well, find the open man, and most importantly take care of the ball. Defensively, we need to once again play solid. They are a lot like us in that they like to attack the rim, so we have to defend the basket. We have to also definitely score in transition when we get our opportunities, but they like to get the ball and go, so we don’t want to get into a tempo where it’s an up-and-down-type-game. The more we force them to play in the half court, the better that is for us.” – Palmerton head coach Ken Termini.

PIAA Class 1A First Round

Weatherly vs St. John Neumann

Saturday, 7 p.m.

at Neumann High School, Williamsport

LEADING OFF

Weatherly qualified for the State Tournament with a 46-25 victory over Salem Christian in the District11/D2 consolation game. The Wreckers enter the game with an 8-16 record. Their opponent is St. John Neumann Regional Academy of Williamsport. The Golden Knights (16-9) lost the District 4 title game in overtime to Meadowbrook Christian.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

WEATHERLY ... Junior Bethany Houser averages 10.52 points a game, and led the Wreckers with 15 points against Salem. Senior Emma Kane added 14 points in the consi win and averages 8.39 points per contest. Freshman Kelly Reiner

added six points and seven rebounds in Saturday’s victory and has a 7.09 ppg. average.

ST. JOHN NEUMANN ... Sheiana Tutler leads the SJN with a 12-points-per-game average. Giyannah Parlante

averages nine points a game.

BY THE NUMBERS

4

- The number of victories for Weatherly in its last five games.

20

- The highest number of points scored by a Wrecker player in a game this year. Bethany Houser accomplished the feat in a 40-37 win against Mahanoy Area on Jan. 26.

33

- The number of combined rebounds Parlante and Elizabeth Weller had against Meadowbrook.

94

- The margin of victory for the Golden Knights in their 98-4 win over Columbia-Montour Vo Tech earlier this season.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

“We play with similar styles, so I think we match up pretty well. Neither team pushes the ball up the court much. We both like to play a slower game. They have two strong and aggressive rebounding girls who play inside. We’ll have to be very good at boxing out to limit their second- and third-chances shooting the ball. We like to play zone, but considering the long ride to the game, we might begin with some man-to-man to pick up the energy. They play a 2-3 zone, but will switch to man for a different look. It might be difficult to drive to the basket with their two big girls in the paint, so we’ll look to kick it out for some open shots. We expect their gym will be loud and if they get an early lead, we’ll use our timeouts to calm things down and encourage better communication on the court. Neither team is very deep, so foul trouble could have a big effect on the outcome of the game. We’ll have to make our free throws. We’re shooting around 60%. That’s’ not terrible, but every point will make a difference in who wins and who loses.” – Jason Kane, Weatherly coach.