Welcome to February!

 The Division III regular season ends next Friday night, while Division IV wraps up its regular season on the following Tuesday.

 Our plan is to cover twenty-four boys' playoff games and about the same number of girls' games.

 We are happy to announce that our 3rd annual Boys/Girls Senior vs Underclassman double-header on Wednesday, March 13th, will be hosted by our friends at Bedford High School.

 The girls' game will tip off at 6 pm, and the boys' game will follow immediately afterward.

 We will announce the rosters for all four teams on Wednesday, February 14th.

 Our column today is brought to you by our longtime partners at Great Bay Community College.

 Next Wednesday, we will be covering the Great Bay CC boys basketball team when they take on Bunker Hill Community College!

 We’ll have coverage of two games tomorrow night;

 Pete Tarrier and Ian Melewski will be in Bedford when the undefeated defending champs take on Nashua South.

 Austin Grass and I will be in the North Country when Groveton hosts arch-rival Colebrook.

 Division I

 Division I Standings. Scoring Leaders and Gold Level coaches

 Gold Level Supporters/Coaches: Jaryd Piecuch of Londonderry, Matt Fennessy of Dover, Ryan Cowette of Goffstown, Mike Dunham of Pinkerton, Rob McLaughlin of Salem, Jeff Holmes of Exeter, Jeff Baumann of Timberlane, Leo Gershgorin of Alvirne, Ray Boulay of Keene and Jay McKenna of Winnacunnet

1. Bedford- The list of undefeated teams is down to Conant, Profile, and the Bulldogs. Niko Badoian has been very good defensively (and averaging five assists a night) for Frank Moreno’s team while Logan O’Connell, Spencer Henrichson, and Thomas Braga have all stepped up and contributed in bigger roles.

2. Pinkerton Academy- What changed after their loss to Dover last Friday night, when Jackson Marshall accounted for 36 of the Astros' 58 points? Well,,,not much; Pinkerton beat Manchester Central convincingly on the road (72-57), and again it was Marshall scoring 46 of the team’s 72 points. Team’s are going to make Cristian Brander (seven points in the last two games), Drew Brander (eleven in the last two games), and Parker Bienvenue-Cerruda beat them.

3. Nashua South- Josh Caruso scored his 1,000th career point in a Tuesday night win over a tough Goffstown team. We’ll see Nate Mazerolle’s team tomorrow night against #1.

4. Windham- The Jaguars have found an identity; they’re physical, take care of the basketball, and are undefeated at home. Huge test against Pinkerton, the team that drilled them in the quarterfinals a year ago, tomorrow night in Derry.

5. Trinity- With a favorable schedule down the stretch, the Pioneers have a shot at a top-four seed. Jahmar Gregory-Allen has filled in the do-all the little things, Glue Guy role, while Derrick Erilla has come through for Ray Farmer’s team in crunch time.

6. Nashua North- It’s been a roller coaster ride for Steve Lane’s team, who won four in a row to begin the season, lost four in a row to drop to .500, and now have reeled off four straight wins. A key ingredient to their recent run of success is shooting guard Jaden Pena, who is averaging 18.5 points per game during the winning streak.

7. Exeter- Jeff Holmes’ team earned a really good win at Portsmouth last week and has a chance to move up the standings. Jack Thibadeau and Jack Cartwright have played well for the Blue Hawks, and in their final seven games of the season, only Manchester Memorial (6-5) has a plus .500 record.

8. Dover- Here comes the Green Wave! Matt Fennessy’s team nearly gave away a twenty-point lead, but Dylan Jabre is a flat-out scorer, and David Cady is a knockdown shooter. The win over Pinkerton (the number of ‘Wait..is that score real?’ Texts I got last Friday night hovered around ten) shows you they can beat anyone.

9. Portsmouth- The bubble has burst for the Clippers, who have lost three in a row and were blown out by Windham on Tuesday night. They are more than capable of a quick bounce back though. We’ll see Tyrece Gibbs’ team next week at Goffstown.

10. Keene- Make way for the Blackbirds! Ray Boulay’s team has crept into top-eight seed territory after their win at Alvirne on Tuesday night. Keene has built depth during the season as Evan Spindler, Sawyer Lepple, and Alex Holmes have all made big contributions. 

 Division II

 Division II Standings, Scoring Leaders, and Gold Level Coaches

 Gold Level Coaches: Peter Pierce of Souhegan, David Smith of Coe-Brown, Joe Morin of Pelham, Mike Donnell of Pembroke, Ryan Kelley of Hollis-Brookline, Rich Otis of Manchester West, Ben Davis of Hanover, Joe Faragher of Kingswood, Steve McDonough of Laconia and Don Gutterson of Milford

1. Hanover- The Bears have been the best team in the division over the last month but proved that the gap between the top teams and the second-tier contenders can be paper thin on certain nights. Oyster River had the ball down one in the final minute at Hanover before Ben Davis’s team pulled out a 35-32 win behind 14 points from Ryan McLaughlin.

2. Pembroke Academy- Mike Donnell’s team earned a really good overtime win over Manchester West on Tuesday night behind 25 points from Joe Fitzgerald and 22 from Evan Berkley. The Spartans have two straight tough road games when they face Bow tomorrow night and Oyster River on Tuesday.

3. Pelham- We’ll be at the Snake Pit one week from tonight when the defending champs take on Manchester West.

4. Manchester West- The Blue Knights have lost three of their last four, but I’m not ready to bump them out of the top four. They lost to Hanover, Pembroke in overtime, and to a dangerous Merrimack Valley team (I told ya..). Rich Otis’s team has a challenging stretch coming up, where they will have to play four games in seven days, culminating with their match-up against Pelham. Max Shosa had 33 points in the loss to Pembroke.

5. Coe Brown- David Smith’s Bears have won six in a row. Right now, their focus should be on a top-four seed. The defense has improved by the week, and Connor Bagnell (14.5) is having another all-state season.

6. Bow- Quietly and with seemingly little fanfare Scott Drapeau’s team has won five games in a row. Tomorrow night, they get their rematch against Pembroke, who put up 91 points on them in the first meeting (a game we covered) and did so with little to no resistance. It’ll be interesting to see if the Falcons have improved or if the winning streak is more a product of their schedule. 

7. Laconia- The Sachems look like they will finish outside the top four, and the losses to Plymouth and Milford will likely seal that fate. They’ve been tough this season, but the book written about them in November hasn't been edited, erased, or amended. Pack the paint around Keaton Beck (18 and 12 a night..he’s been outstanding) and make someone else beat you from the perimeter.

8. Oyster River- Teams like Hanover and Merrimack Valley have been labeled as teams that will win ugly,, grinding out low-scoring victories. You can throw the Bobcats into that mix. They matched up very well with a Hanover team that I’m guessing would like to avoid them come tourney time. 

9. Kennett- A one-point win over Plymouth earns the nine-spot for the Eagles.

10. Plymouth- Ben Cronin’s team finishes with five of their last six games on the road, including a Monday night match-up with Merrimack Valley that we are covering. The Bobcats have the look of a tournament team, but there is still work to be done…

Division III

Division III Standings, Scoring Leaders, and Gold Level Coaches

Gold Level Coaches/Supporters: Nate Camp of Kearsarge, Justin Dibenedetto of Campbell, Jim Hill of Monadnock, Tony Martinez of Belmont, Rick Acquilano of Gilford, Eric Saucier of Conant, David Morissette of St Thomas, Jim Gallagher of Raymond, Matt Dancosee of Stevens, Matt Miller of Hopkinton and Silas Ayres of Mascoma.

1. Conant- Pete made a good point on our podcast; the one-seed (likely) avoids St Thomas and Mascoma until the finals (if they can get there…just work with me; we’re going hypothetical here), adding value to the top seed. A dinged-up Orioles team will need to win at Campbell and a surging Kearsarge team to do it.

2. St Thomas- James Allen scored a season-high 22 points in the Saints 76-56 win over Raymond on Tuesday night.

3. Mascoma- Here is a crazy stat for you. The Royals have played one game that was decided by twenty-eight points or less in the last forty-five days. Going into last night's game at Stevens…

4. Hopkinton- The Hawks earned an impressive 58-43 win over Campbell on Tuesday night behind a season-high 17 points from Kristof Cauley. The coach of the year will come down to Nate Camp, Eric Saucier, and Hopkinton’s Matt Miller. All three are terrific candidates. 

5. Kearsarge- The Camper Train rolls along with eight consecutive wins, including a wire-to-wire win over Gilford last week, followed by wins over Raymond and Winnisquam. 

6. Gilford- The champs need a resume win; a victory over Kearsarge tonight at home would certainly qualify.

7. Campbell- The Cougars have lost four of their last six games but can swing the momentum in their favor if they can knock off undefeated Conant tomorrow night. Austin McHugh, Logan Rice, and Jack Breton have combined for 34.2 points per game this season.

8. Raymond- Drezell Duffaut scored a game-high 30 points against St Thomas on Tuesday, but it wasn't enough in a twenty-point loss. We plan to cover the Rams next Tuesday when they take on Campbell.

9. Belmont- Tony Martinez’s team would love to earn a home playoff game after having had to travel to Conant in the first round a year ago. To do so, they will likely have to win two out of three against Raymond, Derryfield, and at Gilford.

10. White Mountains- The nine-point home loss to Groveton stings (the Eagles swept White Mountains this season), but a win over Winnisquam keeps them on track for a top-eight seed. If they can get past Kevin Dame’s team, they should take care of business against Newfound and Berlin (two wins between them) before their season finale against Mascoma.

 Division IV

 Division IV Standings, Scoring Leaders, and Gold Level Coaches

 Gold Level Coaches/Supporters: Jamie Walker of Woodsville, Jay Darrah of Pittsfield, David Bedard of Franklin, Mark Collins of Groveton, Nick Tzannos of Mascenic, Greg Farland of Concord Christian, Mitchell Roy of Profile, Matt Manning of Lin Wood, Josiah Riley of Pittsburg Canaan and Trevor Howard of Littleton.

1. Profile- Some numbers on the Patriots: they are averaging 75.2 points a game, third in the state behind Pinkerton (84.3) and Bedford (80.8). Josh Robie leads the division in scoring at 26.4 per game and is trying to become the first player to win back-to-back Division IV scoring titles since Wilton Lyndeborough’s Jordan Litts in 2015. A pair of ten-point wins over Woodsville and Portsmouth Christian were their two closest games of the season.

2. Littleton- All eyes were on last night's rematch with Profile…

3. Woodsville- The three-time defending champs will face Littleton, Gorham, and Profile in seven days. The Engineers need more scoring from Ryan Walker and Connor Houston. Both can have a big tournament, and this team needs them.

4. Derryfield- Great win at Holy Family behind 36 points from all-state forward Jack Krasnof. Tough road tests against Belmont and Portsmouth Christian are coming up.

5. Holy Family- The Griffins are coming together at the right time and have a favorable schedule down the stretch. 

6. Gorham- That was a big-boy win at Colebrook on Tuesday night (67-54) as Brendan Saladino led the way with 27 points and Isaac Langlois added 20. The Huskies have had six losses on the season; five came against Profile, Littleton, and Woodsville, a two-point loss on the road. This is a pretty good basketball team.

7. Farmington- The Tigers earned their best win of the season on Friday night against Portsmouth Christian, 68-56, behind 25 points from Demery Hadges and 25 combined from Shawn Murphy and Aiden Place.

8. Groveton- Excited to be up in Groveton tomorrow night for their showdown with Colebrook. Will I be seeing the team that won at White Mountains, to complete a season sweep of their Division III rivals, or will I see the team that lost to Moultonborough and to Pittsburg-Canaan by twenty?

9. Portsmouth Christian- It’s been a tough stretch as the Eagles have lost four of their last five during the most difficult stretch of their schedule. This is still a team that is going to be a tough out. Closing games against Derryfield (home) and Holy Family (away) likely will decide whether they can earn a home playoff game in round one.

10. Concord Christian- Let’s give Greg Farland’s team some love. The Kingsmen, led by Isaac Bowers, Jaden Young, and TJ Charbono, own wins over Mascenic & Franklin and don't have a bad loss on the resume. They’ll head to Farmington tomorrow night.