Playoff scenario for Southern Arizona teams if season ended today:
Open Division
— Salpointe (5-0) would be the No. 2 seed hosting No. 7 Pinnacle (5-1) in the opening round.
Class 6A
— Tucson (3-3) would be out of the playoffs ranked No. 23. With three 6A teams presently in the Open Division (Chandler, Pinnacle and Brophy Prep), that moves the Badgers to the No. 20 slot. The top 16 after the removal of teams to the Open Division qualify for the 6A state playoffs. Tucson has a very important game at No. 8 Cesar Chavez on Friday. If the Badgers win that one, it would boost their 6A rankings tremendously.
Class 5A
— Four Southern Arizona teams are ranked high enough presently to make the 5A state playoffs after the removal of 5A powers Centennial, Notre Dame Prep and Campo Verde to the Open Division state playoffs.
— No. 9 Buena (5-1) would be the No. 6 seed in the 6A state tournament and hosting No. 14 Casteel (4-3).
— No. 11 Ironwood Ridge (3-3) would be the No. 8 seed hosting No. 12 McClintock (4-3).
— No. 13 Cienega (4-2) would be the No. 10 seed traveling to No. 10 Sunrise Mountain (4-2)
— No. 18 Nogales (4-2) would be the No. 15 seed traveling to No. 5 Higley (5-2).
Class 4A
— In 4A, the eight region champions automatically qualify as well as eight at-large teams based on rankings. The seeding of the tournament is based on the rankings.
— Salpointe would be the No. 2 seed in the Open Division state playoffs. Scottsdale Saguaro is the No. 5 team in the Open Division. That would mean all the other teams would move up two spots in the 4A state tournament bracket.
— No. 3 CDO (6-0) would be the top seed in the 4A state playoffs. No. 4 Sahuaro (6-1) would be the No. 2 seed.
— No. 7 Walden Grove (5-1) and No. 13 Pueblo (5-1) would also qualify.
Class 3A
— In 3A, the seven region champions automatically qualify as well as nine at-large teams based on rankings. The seeding of the tournament is based on the rankings.
— No. 7 Sabino (4-2) is the only 3A team from Southern Arizona that would be in the playoffs. Pusch Ridge (3-3) is presently rated too low at No. 19.
Class 2A
— In 2A, the seven region champions automatically qualify as well as nine at-large teams based on rankings. The seeding of the tournament is based on the rankings.
— No. 5 Santa Cruz Valley (5-2), No. 8 Bisbee (5-1) and No. 9 Benson (5-1) are in solid position to make the state playoffs.
Class 1A
— In 1A, the four region champions automatically qualify as well as eight at-large teams based on rankings. The seeding of the tournament is based on the rankings.
— No. 11 Baboquivari, located at Sells, is Southern Arizona’s only possibility to make the state playoffs as of now.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
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