Local teams set for postseason
Published 12:00 am Thursday, February 27, 2014
The Class 4A boys and girls basketball regular season came to a close on Tuesday night, and four Central Oregon teams from those ranks have earned berths in the play-in round for the right to advance to the state playoffs.
Teams that finished first in the Cowapa, Sky-Em, Far West and Greater Oregon leagues and in the Tri-Valley, Oregon West and Skyline conferences earned automatic bids to the first round of the 4A state playoffs — as did the next-highest-rated team in the season’s final OSAA state rankings. Teams that finished runner-up in those seven conferences and an at-large team were awarded home play-in games against third-place teams and another at-large team.
In the 4A girls bracket, Madras, which is 15-9 overall and placed third in the Tri-Valley Conference, travels to Eastern Oregon for a 5:30 p.m. Friday tipoff against 8-18 Ontario, which dropped four of its past six games but finished second in the Greater Oregon League.
Last season, Ridgeview, then in just its first year, went 2-6 against 4A competition and 2-22 overall. This year, the Ravens have posted a 15-8 overall record and a 6-2 mark against 4A opponents. Ridgeview, which won the two-team Special District 1 by taking all three meetings against Crook County, will travel to Turner on Friday for a 7 p.m. contest against Cascade.
The Cougars, who went 14-8 and finished third in the Oregon West Conference, defeated Ridgeview 64-42 at Cascade in January. A date and time have yet to be determined for the play-in contest.
La Pine rebounded from a seven-win 2012-13 season to go 14-10 this year and take third place in the Sky-Em League. The Hawks earned a Sky-Em play-in rematch at second-place Elmira on Saturday at 5:30 p.m. La Pine defeated the Falcons at home in the two teams’ first meeting, but Elmira responded by defeating the visiting Hawks 59-45 in their final regular-season matchup at Elmira.
The lone Central Oregon boys team still alive for the 4A postseason is Ridgeview out of Special District 1. The Ravens are 11-12 overall and are scheduled to play at Sutherlin at 5 p.m. on Saturday. The Bulldogs, who finished second in the Far West League, are sixth in the 4A rankings.