MIAA A Conference Playoff Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tuesday officially begins postseason play in the MIAA A Conference and now that the standings have been finalized, matchups have been set. Times are TBD and will be updated on this article once released, but we'll preview the four games that will take place Tuesday Feb. 21 hosted by the higher seed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>No. 1 Mount St. Joe vs No. 4 Loyola</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Gaels are rolling on all cylinders at the most important time of the year as they ended their season on a 17-game winning streak to finish 33-3 overall. Loyola enters this on riding a two-game losing streak as they look to pull off what would be the upset of the year. Mount St. Joe won both meetings between these two teams by an average of 14 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to watch: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>MSJ- <em>'23 [player_tooltip player_id='957018' first='Amani' last='Hansberry'] (Illinois), '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1049863' first='Ace' last='Valentine'] (UMBC), '23 [player_tooltip player_id='957059' first='Austin' last='Abrams'] (Stonehill), '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1164830' first='Sean' last='Clark'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1280947' first='Tyonne' last='Farrell'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1369642' first='DJ' last='Wingfield'], '25 Joe Green</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Loyola: <em>'23 [player_tooltip player_id='1280964' first='Ryder' last='Drew'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1366895' first='J'Lin' last='Brown'], '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1598809' first='Mason' last='Ellison'], '25 Quron Elliot</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>No. 1 St. Frances vs No. 4 Glenelg Country</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While this is a No. 1 vs No. 4 matchup, I'd say Glenelg Country has the argument for having the most talent other than MSJ and St. Frances. The Panthers got back to their winning ways after taking a loss on Super Bowl Sunday to MSJ with wins over Loyola and John Carroll. Maryland commit [player_tooltip player_id='957025' first='Jahnathan' last='Lamothe'] set a school record with 57 points in his final game in a St. Frances uniform. After winning three-straight games, the Dragons took a double-digit loss to Mt. Carmel on Friday evening. These teams met once during the regular season where it took two overtimes before St. Frances ran away with an 87-74 win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to watch:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>SFA- '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1114066' first='Carlton' last='Carrington'] (Pittsburgh), '23 [player_tooltip player_id='957025' first='Jahnathan' last='Lamothe'] (Maryland), '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1370503' first='Tyler' last='Jackson']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>GC- <em>'23 [player_tooltip player_id='1362720' first='Jackson' last='Pugh'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1225253' first='Drew' last='McKenna'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='2242065' first='Dominic' last='Carr'], , '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1366893' first='Xavier' last='Pickett'], '25 [player_tooltip player_id='2241983' first='Jalen' last='Baker']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>No. 2 Mount Carmel vs No. 3 Calvert Hall</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mount Carmel is another team who has found their footing to end the regular season by rattling off four-straight wins. Depth is key with the Cougars and if they're able to execute in crunch time, they're fully capable of making a run as they did last season. The Cardinals enter this one with a 2-4 record in their last six games, but have a few guys who can catch fire and change the course of a game. These two split the regular season matchups with Calvert Hall winning by 10 in the first game and Mt. Carmel winning by 13 in the second.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to watch:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>MC:<em> '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1482974' first='Omarion' last='Reid'], '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1164829' first='Mitchell' last='Kalu'], '23 Drazen Sinogoj, '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1579094' first='Allen' last='Mordi'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1127307' first='Andrew' last='Dixon'], '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1370512' first='Mario' last='Tatum'], '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1494081' first='Rodney' last='Scott']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Calvert Hall: <em>'23 [player_tooltip player_id='1413514' first='Jonah' last='Biggers'], '23 [player_tooltip player_id='1585962' first='Troy' last='Tinch'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1366890' first='Brendan' last='Johnson'], '24 [player_tooltip player_id='1536021' first='Tyrin' last='Bizzelle']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>No. 2 John Carroll vs No. 3 Archbishop Spalding</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Before losing their final regular season game, John Carroll had been riding a four-game winning streak. This year was certainly looked at as more of a developmental year for the Patriots, but their ability to get hot from the outside at any given moment is what can make them a potential danger in postseason play. Spalding is another young roster who brings plenty of grit and toughness to the table. The Cavs are 1-4 in their last five entering Tuesday's game. The regular season series was split 1-1 with each team winning by three points. It couldn't be much more of a toss up than this.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to watch:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>JC: <em>'23 [player_tooltip player_id='957030' first='Jeannot' last='Basima'] (Yale), '25 Caden Chinnia, '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1495115' first='Theartis' last='Battle'], '26 [player_tooltip player_id='1782586' first='Aidan' last='Able']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Spalding: <em>'24 [player_tooltip player_id='1127303' first='RJ' last='Newton'], '25 [player_tooltip player_id='1370513' first='Malik' last='Washington'], '26 [player_tooltip player_id='1782587' first='Elijah' last='Barrett'], '26 [player_tooltip player_id='1782656' first='TJ' last='Moultrie']</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->