Local high school basketball teams land playoff matchups

The final three days of the regular season ultimately determined only one playoff berth. Instead, they were used solely to decide where each playoff team would be playing next week.

In total, 15 Grand Strand teams qualified for the playoffs. Beginning Monday with the Class AAA and Class A girls, area teams Myrtle Beach, St. James, North Myrtle Beach, Green Sea-Floyds and Carvers Bay will begin their quests for a state title.

The next night, five boys teams will play first-round games. That includes the three local teams from Region VII-AAA, which were part of a hectic Thursday night. That evening, North Myrtle Beach won the region title, and Wilson beat out Myrtle Beach and St. James amid a three-way tie for second place. All four of those teams are paired with a highly respected group from Region VI-AAAA. Three of the playoff teams from that division were ranked in the South Carolina Basketball Coaches Association’s most recent Class AAA poll.

“There’s not going to be one easy game. It’s going to be tough,” Myrtle Beach coach Craig Martin said of his region’s first-round opponents. “I think any one of them could be playing for the Lower State [championship].”

The Class AAAA brackets were officially released Saturday. Local girls teams Socastee and Conway qualified and will split Region VI-AAAA’s No. 2 and No. 3 seeds. The Carolina Forest boys had also earned a postseason bid, claiming the No. 2 seed from Region VI-AAAA.

The lone area team that hadn’t already punched its ticket by Wednesday was the Waccamaw girls. It lost that night, creating a three-way tie for third place with Marion and Loris. The region athletics directors referred to a defensive points allowed tie-breaker, and the Warriors and Marion were awarded the playoff bids.

MONDAY

GIRLS

Class AAA

▪ No. 4 North Myrtle Beach at No. 1 Crestwood

▪ No. 3 Saint James at No. 2 Manning

▪ No. 4 Lakewood at No. 1 Myrtle Beach

Class A

▪ No. 3 Scotts Branch at No. 2 Carvers Bay

▪ No. 4 Green Sea-Floyds at No. 1 Timmonsville

TUESDAY

BOYS

Class AAA

▪ No. 4 Lakewood at No. 1 North Myrtle Beach

▪ No. 3 Myrtle Beach at No. 2 Darlington

▪ No. 4 St. James at No. 1 Marlboro County

Class A

▪ No. 3 Scott’s Branch at No. 2 Carvers Bay

▪ No. 4 Green Sea-Floyds at No. 1 Hannah-Pamplico

GIRLS

Class AAAA

▪ No. 3 Socastee at No. 2 Summerville

▪ No. 3 Fort Dorchester at No. 2 Conway

Class AA

▪ No. 3 Waccamaw at No. 2 Timberland

WEDNESDAY

Boys

Class AAAA

▪ No. 3 Bluffton at No. 2 Carolina Forest

▪ Class AA

▪ No. 4 Waccamaw at No. 1 Lee Central

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 4:49 PM with the headline "Local high school basketball teams land playoff matchups."