Class 3A Sweet 16 Preview & Predictions

Tonight (February 22nd) is the round of 16 in Oregon's class 3A level where teams vie for a trip to the state tournament next week in Coos Bay. We take a look at the match ups and try our best to predict who will win & who will be going home. #1 Delasalle (21-4) vs Brookings Harbor (15-8) None of the eight road teams will travel further than Brookings who makes the state playoffs in their first year at the 3A level. Standing in their way is a deep & talented Delsalle squad who is looking to repeat as state champions. The Knights haven't lost to a 3A team all year and are lead by 6'3 wing Kadeem Nelson, a lanky third year starter. Junior guard George Sadi is an explosive scorer as well with a 44 point game earlier in the year against class 6A Westview. Prediction: Delasalle has the depth & athleticism rarely seen at the 3A level and we look for them to use their full court pressure defense to pull away early from the visiting Bruins.   #8 Sutherlin (20-5) vs #9 Umatilla (19-7) An interesting early match up, Sutherlin gets the home game based on the OSAA rule giving league champs a home playoff game. Although they do possess a couple of nice preseason win over bigger schools, they are 0-2 against other teams playing in the final 16. Count on the Bulldogs being well coached under the tutelage of long time head man Willis New. Umatilla enters as the 2nd placed team from the Eastern Oregon League featuring a physical style of play with a balanced scoring attack. Umatilla was in a similar position last year, having to go on the road and losing a narrow decision at Horizon Christian. Prediction: We see these as two evenly matched teams, so we will side with the team playing at home to win a close game.   #5 Nysaa (17-8) vs #12 Rainier (14-8) The Bulldogs reside in the mountain time zone and are usually a bit of an unknown to teams and media on the west side of the state. This year is no different as the bulk of their non league games have come against teams from Idaho. On paper, it appears that they have played a challenging schedule of teams from the potato state. Rainier on the other hand got a bit of a late start to the season as they waited for their football team to win the 3A state title. Their physical style of play secured them the 2nd seed out of the Coastal Range League. The Columbians are lead by senior point guard Joey Tripp and junior wing Connor Rea. Prediction: On paper, we see nothing to suggest that Rainier will overcome a 7 hour road trip to earn the victory. We expect a physical match up with the home team pulling away late to advance to Coos Bay.   #4 Pleasant Hill (20-5) vs #13 Catlin Gabel (12-16) On paper, this may appear to be an easy one to call. In reality though, this should be the most competitive match up of two teams both talented enough to get to the title game. Catlin Gabel's record is extremely misleading, as they played the bulk of the season with injuries to two key starters in sophomore wing Ubedei McGuatha & senior post Sasha Agapiev. Now healthy, they are playing up to the preseason predictions of many who pegged them as a top 5 team in the state. Junior point guard Jett Seng & 6'8 sophomore post Jonah Zeller round out a talented starting group for the Eagles. Pleasant Hill surprised many this year when they beat Santiam Christian twice in three tries to claim the league title. The Billies, winners of 10 straight, are lead by the senior duo of Logan Pruitt and Stephen Parmenter. Prediction: This one really feels like it should be played next week in Coos Bay and we expect a back & forth battle that comes down to the end. We believe that the home court & senior leadership should be enough for Pleasant Hill to get by in a squeaker.   #3 Dayton (21-5) vs #14 Creswell (12-11) The Pirates a regular in the state title game for most of the 2010s host the visiting Bulldogs looking to get back to Coos Bay after a 3 year hiatus. Dayton the champions of the Pac West Conference are lead by a trio of seniors in 5'7 point guard Braeden Nowlin, 6'2 wing Lukas Findley, and 6'6 post Jaysen Howard. Creswell finished 3rd in the Mountain Valley Conference and claimed one of the four at large berths. Prediction: Can guarantee that Creswell will be prepared & play really hard, but Dayton is just too big & talented for the Bulldogs. We expect Dayton to cruise to an easy victory and another appearance at the state tournament.   #6 Clatskanie (14-7) vs #11 Burns (15-10) The Tigers who won their first league title since 2007 take on the Highlanders in an early afternoon game. Clatskanie backed up their league title with a challenging non league slate including match ups against Santiam Christian, Catlin Gabel, Umatilla, Knappa, & Western Christian. Burns stayed mainly on the east side of the state & is a bit of an unknown to west side observers. The Tigers feature league MVP Cooper Blodgett, a 5'11 senior & frosh sensation Andre Combs a 5'11 point guard who has averaged almost 13 points a game. Prediction: The Tigers overcome first half nerves to pull away in the 2nd half of a competitive game and punch their ticket to the state tournament for the first time since the early 1980s.   #7 Horizon Christian (17-9) vs Amity (16-8) The Hawks enter the round of 16, hoping to send long time head coach Dave Brown out on a good note with another trip to the state tournament. Standing in their way is Amity, a league opponent until this year's OSAA redistricting changed that. Horizon is lead by 6'4 combo guard Connor Zralka & 6'0 sharp shooter Kyle Free. Amity is one of the bigger teams at the 3A level and featured talented sophomore big man Josh Wart, an improve 6'5 forward. Prediction: In a game of evenly matched programs that are familiar with each other, we expect the home team to come out on top and advance to the final 8 next week.   #2 Santiam Christian (22-3) vs #15 Salem Academy (14-11) Most teams at the 3A level would lose a player the caliber of Zach Baugher, a 6'7 wing who signed with Western Oregon earlier in the year, & their season would essentially be over. That's not the case for the Eagles who still feature a roster with three players over 6'5, all of whom should have opportunities to play basketball in college when they graduate. This trio includes 6'5 sophomore guard Josh Baugher, 6'9 junior post Koby Williamson, & 6'8 sophomore big man Joe MaQuatish. Salem Academy, the 2nd place team in the Pac West Conference is lead by talented senior wing Hayden Wakefield, a 6'2 scorer who recently committed to play at NAIA Multnomah University in Portland.   Prediction: Salem Academy has certainly improved since a 30 point trouncing at the hands of Santiam Christian in December. Coupled with the loss of Zach Baugher and we expect this game to be more competitive, but anticipate the Eagles pulling away in the 2nd half for a comfortable victory.