Here are five thoughts from the bi-district round of the UIL boys basketball playoffs:
Chaos in 6A Division I Region I
Yes, state No.2 North Crowley took care of business with a 68-50 win over Hurst L.D. Bell, and No. 24 Allen handled Denton Braswell 61-51 in the first round.
But wilder things happened in the Region I bracket of the 6A Division I playoffs.
Unranked Coppell upset Plano East, which won the 6A state title in 2024 and was state-ranked throughout this season, 69-56 on Monday night. Arlington Martin won a 62-57 thriller over Lake Highlands on Tuesday, and Northwest Eaton stunned Mansfield Lake Ridge 70-55 the same day. Lake Ridge, a 6A state semifinalist in 2024, entered the playoffs as the state’s 16th-ranked 6A team. Eaton was unranked.
High School Sports
Big area round matchups
The first round offered exciting matchups early in the playoffs, but more are on the way.
Carter, the state’s top-ranked 4A team, will face No. 23 Frisco Panther Creek in the area round. The former has looked like a favorite to win the 4A Division II state title and Panther Creek boasts one of the state’s leading scorers in junior Rodney Wagner, who was averaging 30.2 points per game ahead of the playoffs and dropped 33 in a 119-18 win over Hampton Prep on Monday.
The 5A Division I Region bracket might have the biggest second round matchup, with state-ranked teams Denton and Mansfield Timberview set to clash on Friday. Denton, on a historic run, entered the playoffs as the state’s third-ranked Class 5A team. Timberview ranks 12th in the state.
McKinney Boyd makes history
Boyd, which went 10-6 in District 6-6A, arguably had the upset of the first round — and made history while doing so.
The program beat defending 6A Division II state champion Denton Guyer 46-37 on Tuesday, winning its first playoff game in program history. Boyd held Guyer to seven points in the fourth quarter and pulled away late on free throws. The school opened in 2006.
Tight games
The thrillers came early this year, as several teams survived close contests in the first round.
Seagoville edged W.T. White 67-64 and South Oak Cliff outlasted Woodrow Wilson 73-69 in two games that pit Dallas ISD programs against each other. Frisco Reedy edged Frisco 68-65, Crowley bested Southlake Carroll 64-62 and state-ranked South Grand Prairie survived Richardson 42-39.
Lopsided wins
Several Dallas-area teams enjoyed blowout victories in the first round.
Kimball, the defending 4A Division I state champion, began its title defense with a 71-30 win over Alvarado. Celina routed Irving North Hills Prep 118-46. District 11-6A had a strong showing in the Region II bracket of the 6A Division I playoffs, with defending 6A Division I state champion Duncanville blowing out Temple 74-38 and Waxahachie dominating Copperas Cove 91-54.
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