Three area basketball teams will be in action tonight during the semifinal round of the District 11 playoffs.

Both the Palmerton and Weatherly girls will be trying to punch their tickets to their respective championship games, while the same is true for the Marian boys.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

District 11 Class 4A Semifinal

No. 7 Central Cath. (12-12) vs. No. 3 Palmerton (17-7)

Wednesday, Feb. 25 at Pleasant Valley, 7:30 p.m.

LEADING OFF

In a rematch of last year’s district championship game, Palmerton and Central meet in the semifinals this season. The Bombers dropped a 45-33 decision a year ago and will look to change the outcome against the Vikings and reach the title game for the second straight season. Central Catholic has been a mainstay in the District 11 postseason, as the Vikings have qualified for 54 consecutive seasons. The only time they didn’t qualify was when districts started in 1972. Palmerton is happy to get past the quarterfinal round, as it guarantees two more games. “As our seniors prepared for these district playoffs they recognized that the district quarterfinal game was probably the game in which they had the most pressure on them,” head coach Jeremy Coleman said. “In the back of their minds, they knew that if they didn’t perform well, then their season was over. Now, there is a little less pressure in this scenario because there is always that consolation game. But we still have that hunger to get back to the district championship game again this year and aren’t going to be satisfied with just a consolation game. This should be a fun game, and we are preparing to put our best foot forward on Wednesday night at Pleasant Valley.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Allentown Central Catholic - Morgan Seagreaves (Sr., 9.9 ppg), Skylar Taylor (So., 8.1 ppg), Shamiya Roberts (Sr., 7.5 ppg), Annika Spinosa (Sr., 5.4 ppg, 20 three-pointers), Alyssa Hursh (So., 5.3 ppg, 29 three-pointers).

Palmerton - Cate Morgan (Sr., 10.09 ppg.), Hailey Barry (Sr., 8.79 ppg.), Emma Rex (Sr., 7.88 ppg.), Avery Barry (Fr., 5.23 ppg.), Alisyn Green (Sr., 3.79 ppg).

BY THE NUMBERS

0 - The number of Allentown Central Catholic players that average double figures. “They have a well-balanced team of shooters, slashers and an inside presence,” said Coleman. “Morgan Seagreaves is a good all-around player and makes plays in a variety of ways. Skylar Taylor is their solid presence inside.”

2 - The number of wins Palmerton has against Eastern Pennsylvania Conference teams this season in three games. The Bombers scored victories against PM West (Dec. 29, 32-28) and Northampton (Jan. 31, 40-24). Their lone loss was to Nazareth in the championship game of the Stacy Perryman Holiday Classic in December.

3 - The number of upperclassmen – Shamiya Roberts (No. 10), Annika Spinosa (No. 14), and Seagraves (No. 20) - on ACC’s roster. The tri-captains have played in all 22 regular season games this season. The remaining eight Vikettes are underclassmen - four juniors, two sophomores and two freshmen.

5 - The point differential in the Vikettes’ lone contest against a Colonial League team this season, in which they suffered a 41-36 setback to Notre Dame of Green Pond on Dec. 29. Seagreaves was the lone Vikette in double figures with 10 points, while Taylor added nine.

62 - The number of points ACC put up in its regular season visit to Pleasant Valley. The Vikings moved to 2-5 on Dec. 12 with a commanding 62-24 EPC win over the host Bears.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

“This year, we certainly have taken the ‘one-game-at-a-time’ approach. We knew this season that we couldn’t overlook anyone. We need to battle every game and every quarter. This approach will continue when we take on Allentown Central Catholic. We need to play this game one quarter at a time — and even one minute at a time. They are a quality team and have played a difficult schedule this season. ACC has a number of good athletes that could pose some difficulties for us. Last year, when we met them in the district championship game, I thought we played them tough for three quarters but that final quarter we had some difficulties finishing shots and that run proved to be the difference for them. This is a very good (ACC) team, but our girls are up for the challenge and looking forward to this game.” – Palmerton head coach Jeremy Coleman.

District 11 Class 1A Semifinal

No. 3 Weatherly (7-15) vs. No. 2 Notre Dame-ES (7-15)

Wednesday, Feb. 25 at Pleasant Valley, 6 p.m.

LEADING OFF

Both teams come into this game with a 7-15 record and with a chance to make the 1A title game. Weatherly has struggled a bit to end the regular season, losing 5-of-7, while Notre Dame is coming in having won five of its last six contests.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Weatherly - Kelly Reiner (Sr., 8.9 ppg, 22 three-pointers), Maci Kane (Fr., 6 ppg, 10 three-pointers)

Notre Dame - Olivia Protheroe (Sr., 18.9 ppg).

BY THE NUMBERS

3 - Weatherly has won three district championships, including back-to-back titles in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Notre Dame has won one, which came last season in an upset win in the final over Bethlehem Christian.

22 - Reiner scored a season-high 22 points in the Wreckers’ opener against MMI in a winning effort.

44 - Protheroe has 44 three-pointers made on the season for Notre Dame. As a team, Weatherly has just 40 this season.

47 - The Wreckers scored a season-high 47 points in their season finale in a 47-21 win over Columbia Montour Vo-Tech

CLOSING THOUGHTS

“To get the win, we have to take care of the ball. Turnovers have been an issue for us this season, so we had to cut down on them. From what we’ve seen in film it looks like they’re a pretty good rebounding team, so we need to be able to win the battle on the boards. They like to play a 2-3 zone, so we will need to move the ball well and knock down open shots when we have them. We’re at our best when we can pressure teams and create offense with our defense. That’s something we will need to try and do as well when we have the opportunity.” - Weatherly head coach Jason Kane.

BOYS BASKETBALL

District 11 Class 2A Semifinal

No. 2 Schuylkill Haven (15-8) vs. No. 3 Marian (10-12)

Wednesday Feb. 25 at Blue Mountain, 6 p.m.

LEADING OFF

Both teams have struggled down the stretch during the regular season. Marian and Schuylkill Haven both went 4-6 over their last 10 games. Haven narrowly edged the Colts twice during the regular season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Marian - Greg Tirpak (So., 10.6 ppg, 48 three-pointers, 6.2 rebounds per game), Jacob De La Cruz (Sr., 10 ppg, 24 three-pointers), Jake Tom (Sr., 7.6 ppg), Justin De La Cruz (Sr., 7.33 ppg, 21 three-pointers).

Schuylkill Haven - Alan Evans (Jr., 17.9 ppg, 43 three-pointers), Justin Watcher (Jr., 16.0 ppg), Max Heim (Sr., 12.3 ppg), Brady Kelly (So., 9.4 ppg).

BY THE NUMBERS

5 - Five points was the average margin of victory for Schuylkill Haven over Marian this season. Both games came down to the wire.

10 - Marian led 41-34 going into the fourth quarter in the second game of the series back on Jan. 20. But Haven outscored the Colts by 10 in the fourth to get the come-from-behind win.

13 - Jacob De La Cruz has led the Colts in scoring against the Hurricanes this season. He’s averaging 13 points per game in the two games against Haven.

106 - As a team, Marian has hit 106 three-pointers, for an average of almost five per game. Haven has hit 113 total trifectas in 23 games.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

“The story has been with us all year is that we have lost a bunch of close games. We just need to be more consistent on both ends of the floor for the entirety of the game. We always seem at some point in a game to get in a little bit of a funk. A lot of our games have really come down to a possession here or a possession there. We just need to really focus on competing on every single possession. Against Schuylkill Haven, I think we have done a pretty good job for the most part in defending their top scorers. But they’re tough to deal with. They’re not just a one- or two-man show. Brady Kelly has 17 against in the last game and that hurt us. We definitely need to rotate better with our help defense this time around. Because they work hard on offense.” – Marian head coach Paul Brutto.