LHSAA 1st Round Predictions: 3A

Top Half: 1) Sophie B. Wright vs. 32) Mamou Wright only has three losses on the year this season. Two of them are against legitimate title contenders, and the other is against an out of state team. Mamou isn’t a title contender. Prediction: Sophie B. Wright 16) Westlake vs. 17) Iota This is an interesting matchup of two pretty similar teams. Two pretty undersized teams that rely heavily on guard play. However, I think that Iota is able to win on the road. They have the better player in the matchup, in 2019 G Colby Wilson, who is averaging an astounding 27.5 PPG. He is good enough to single-handedly beat the opposition any given night, and I think he can go on the road and get a win. Prediction: Iota 9) Washington-Marion vs. 24) Albany Washington-Marion is one of the historic programs that the state has to offer. This season they don’t have a standalone guy to rely on, but they go deep with guys that are capable of contributing every night. I think that their depth in combination with one of the winningest coaches than the state has, they get the win. Prediction: Washington-Marion 8) Carroll vs. 25) Bolton I will be honest, this is a rough matchup for Bolton. They are a team full of guards, with only one player at 6’4. Carroll is the opposite, and they can throw big after big out onto court. They have 4 players 6’6+, and will be able to control the boards. Prediction: Carroll 5) Abbeville vs. 28) Bogalusa This is a story of two teams heading in the opposite directions. Abbeville has only lost one game since the start of the new year, and have won 12 of their last 13. On the other hand, Bogalusa just barely squeeked into the playoffs, after finishing the season with a losing record. I’ll take the Wildcats in a blowout. Prediction: Abbeville 12) Green Oaks vs. 21) Sterlington This might be my favorite matchup in the first round for 3A. This is going to be a head to head battle between some of the best guards that 2020 has to offer in the class. Israel Edwards for Green Oaks is averaging 17 PPG and Kyle Henderson for Sterlington is averaging 26 PPG. I expect both of those guys to wind up with a combined 45 points or more. This game is a toss-up, but I think whoever plays better between those two will walk away with a win. Prediction: Sterlington 13) Northwest vs. 20) Jena This is another pretty interesting matchup. Both of these teams are pretty similar. They both have one or two seniors, but are relying mostly on underclassmen. They both have big rim protectors who don’t do much else outside of 5 feet. However, Northwest has gotten hot at the right time, winning 12 of their last 14. I’ll take the Raiders at home. Prediction: Northwest 4) Madison Prep vs. 29) Eunice Earlier this year, Eunice was able to walk away with the state championship in 3A in football. However, I don’t think that the basketball team is going to be making it out of the 1st round. Prediciton: Madison Prep   Bottom Half: 3) Wossman vs. 30) Loranger I will be honest, Wossman getting a top 3 seed in 3A is a bit of a surprise. They have been title contenders the last few years, but I wasn’t expecting them to be as good as they were this season. However, their three headed monster at the guard position in Rayson Robinson, Nick Traylor, and Devonte Austin are good enough to give opponents fits. They aren’t going down in the 1st round. Prediction: Wossman 14) Pine Prairie vs. 19) Brusly This is a matchup of two teams that have been struggling as of late. They have both only won 2 of their last 5 games. However, Brusly’s district schedule was much tougher, and I think that schedule will prepare them well for the first round of the playoffs. However, I think regardless of who wins this game will get eliminated in the next round. Prediction: Brusly 11) Madison vs. 22) Richwood Both of these teams have hovered at about .500 over the last couple of months, since getting football players back. However, when it comes to these two district opponents, Richwood has come out on top twice already this season. However, it was only by a total of 6 points. When two similar teams are matched up, it is really tough to win 3 games in one season. Prediction: Madison 6) Lake Charles College Prep vs. 27) Port Barre This is another matchup of two teams that are moving in opposite directions. Port Barre is only 1-5 over their last 6 games. On the other side, LCCP has won their last 9 games straight. They are also going to have the two best players in the game, in 2019 Raymond Guillory and 2020 Caleb Robinson. That’s going to be tough to overcome. Prediction: Lake Charles College Prep 7) Donaldsonville vs. 26) St. James This is yet another matchup of district foes. Donaldsonville is 2-1 so far this season, which makes a lot of sense. They have the best player in the matchup, in Everette “Big Poppa” Wilson, a big 6’8 post holding down the middle. I think that when it comes to the playoffs, he is going to be a lot to handle. Prediction: Donaldsonville 10) Glen Oaks vs. 23) Crowley Glen Oaks coach Harvey Adger is one of the state’s most winningest coaches, and has had his fair share of great teams. However, I don’t think this is one of them. They have played some good teams tough, but don’t really have a signature win on the season. Crowley has some size at the wings and big spots, and I think that could give Glen Oaks some struggles. I think that Glen Oaks wins, but it is closer than one might expect, Prediction: Glen Oaks 15) Patterson vs. 18) South Beauregard Once again, a tale of two teams moving in opposite directions. South Beauregard has been a team that has been up and down all season long. At one point in the season, they won 5 games straight, and then right after that, they lost 7 games straight. Patterson on the other hand has ended the season winning 8 of their last 11 in a pretty tough district, including a win over 5 seed Abbeville. Patterson is peaking at the right time Prediction: Patterson 2) Peabody vs. 31) Iowa This one is pretty simple. Are you going with the team that is 10-16 this season, or the team that is 28-4? That’s what I thought. Prediction: Peabody