*** Follow 2021-22 VHSL Playoff Brackets Here ***
Friday's opening night of VHSL Region Basketball Playoff action for 2022 did not disappoint. A pair of double-digit seeds sprung upsets, as we projected, in Monacan and Matoaca both moving on in Region 4B. Over in Region 5D, William Fleming - behind a stellar performance from 6-foot-3 junior Elijah Mitchell (22 points, 12 rebounds) - outlasted Patrick Henry-Roanoke 56-53 in overtime in what was their third victory over the Patriots on the season. Just last year, it was PH-Roanoke ousting Fleming in the Region 5D title game.
A couple of unbeaten squads in Hayfield out of Region 6C and Patriot from Region 6B will be in action on this evening. Plus, there's no shortage of star power with Boston College signee Donald Hand Jr. leading Landstown against Kellam, while Kyle Honore keys Potomac in an intriguing matchup with John Champe.
If you don't count the Class 5, Region 5D sub-region game for the top seed with Albemarle and William Fleming, the only three classifications playing on this night are Class 6, 3 and 1, but a total of seven regions have games. Let's get to our picks below...
Hatfield's Region Picks from Fri. 2/18/22: 26-4 (86.7%)
Matthew Hatfield's 2021 Region Playoff Record: 109-24 (82%)
Hatfield's 2020 Postseason Record: 207-60 (77.5%)
Hatfield's 2019 Region Playoff Record: 139-56 (71.3%)
MONDAY 2/21/22 VHSL REGION PLAYOFF ACTION:
Region 6A: Quarterfinals
West #4 Cosby (14-8) at West #1 James River (16-3)
Hat's Pick - James River
East #3 Kellam (12-7) at East #2 Landstown (16-4)
Hat's Pick - Landstown
East #4 Grassfield (9-9) at East #1 Oscar Smith (17-4)
Hat's Pick - Oscar Smith
West #3 Thomas Dale (13-7) at West #2 Manchester (17-5)
Hat's Pick - Manchester
Region Tourney Final Pick: Landstown over Manchester
Region 6B: Quarterfinals
Cedar Run #4 Osbourn Park (11-12) at Cardinal #1 Woodbridge (14-7)
Hat's Pick - Woodbridge
Cedar Run #2 Battlefield (16-5) at Commonwealth #1 Colonial Forge (14-7)
Hat's Pick - Colonial Forge
Cardinal #3 C.D. Hylton (17-7) at Cedar Run #1 Patriot (22-0)
Hat's Pick - Patriot
Cedar Run #3 John Champe (15-6) at Cardinal #2 Potomac (13-6)
Hat's Pick - Potomac
Region Tourney Final Pick: Potomac over Woodbridge
Region 6C: Opening Round
Patriot #8 James Robinson (1-21) at National #1 Hayfield (25-0)
Hat's Pick - Hayfield
National #5 John R. Lewis (9-13) at Patriot #4 W.T. Woodson (16-6)
Hat's Pick - W.T. Woodson
Patriot #6 Alexandria City (10-10) at National #3 Annandale (14-8)
Hat's Pick - Annandale in OT
National #7 Mount Vernon (4-17) at Patriot #2 South County (18-5)
Hat's Pick - South County
National #8 Justice (3-17) at Patriot #1 West Potomac (13-8)
Hat's Pick - West Potomac
Patriot #5 Lake Braddock (15-7) at National #4 Falls Church (15-9)
Hat's Pick - Lake Braddock
National #6 Thomas Jefferson-Alexandria (5-14) at Patriot #3 Fairfax (17-5)
Hat's Pick - Fairfax
Patriot #7 West Springfield (4-17) at National #2 Thomas Edison (15-8)
Hat's Pick - Thomas Edison
Region Tourney Final Pick: Hayfield over Fairfax
Region 5D: Sub-Region Play-In
William Fleming (21-3) at Albemarle (19-3)
Hat's Pick - Albemarle
Region 3A: Opening Round
#9 Southampton (8-8) at #8 York (10-10)
Hat's Pick - York
#13 Colonial Heights (2-18) at #4 Lake Taylor (13-10; 11-9)
Hat's Pick - Lake Taylor
#12 Lakeland (5-15) at #5 Phoebus (11-11)
Hat's Pick - Phoebus
#10 Lafayette (8-11) at #7 Booker T. Washington (11-11; 10-10)
Ha's Pick - Booker T. Washington
#14 Norcom (0-20; 0-19) at #3 Park View-South Hill (9-5)
Hat's Pick - Park View-South Hill
#11 New Kent (8-13) at #6 Tabb (12-9)
Hat's Pick - Tabb
Region Tourney Final Pick: Petersburg over Hopewell
Region 3D: Opening Round
#9 Carroll County (5-16) at #8 William Byrd (8-14)
Hat's Pick - William Byrd
#10 Magna Vista (5-13) at #7 Christiansburg (9-13)
Hat's Pick - Christiansburg
Region Tourney Final Pick: Cave Spring over Northside
Region 1A: Quarterfinals
#8 Rappahannock (5-13) at #1 Lancaster (20-1)
Hat's Pick - Lancaster
#5 Middlesex (15-4) at #4 Northampton (12-4)
Hat's Pick - Middlesex
#6 Essex (11-5) at #3 Washington & Lee (13-6)
Hat's Pick - Essex in OT
#7 Mathews (7-14) at #2 West Point (17-5)
Hat's Pick - West Point
Region Tourney Final Pick: Lancaster over West Point
Region 1D: Play-In
Cumberland #3 J.I. Burton (12-11) at Black Diamond #3 Hurley (6-15)
Hat's Pick - J.I. Burton
Friday's opening night of VHSL Region Basketball Playoff action for 2022 did not disappoint. A pair of double-digit seeds sprung upsets, as we projected, in Monacan and Matoaca both moving on in Region 4B. Over in Region 5D, William Fleming - behind a stellar performance from 6-foot-3 junior Elijah Mitchell (22 points, 12 rebounds) - outlasted Patrick Henry-Roanoke 56-53 in overtime in what was their third victory over the Patriots on the season. Just last year, it was PH-Roanoke ousting Fleming in the Region 5D title game.
A couple of unbeaten squads in Hayfield out of Region 6C and Patriot from Region 6B will be in action on this evening. Plus, there's no shortage of star power with Boston College signee Donald Hand Jr. leading Landstown against Kellam, while Kyle Honore keys Potomac in an intriguing matchup with John Champe.
If you don't count the Class 5, Region 5D sub-region game for the top seed with Albemarle and William Fleming, the only three classifications playing on this night are Class 6, 3 and 1, but a total of seven regions have games. Let's get to our picks below...
Hatfield's Region Picks from Fri. 2/18/22: 26-4 (86.7%)
Matthew Hatfield's 2021 Region Playoff Record: 109-24 (82%)
Hatfield's 2020 Postseason Record: 207-60 (77.5%)
Hatfield's 2019 Region Playoff Record: 139-56 (71.3%)
MONDAY 2/21/22 VHSL REGION PLAYOFF ACTION:
Region 6A: Quarterfinals
West #4 Cosby (14-8) at West #1 James River (16-3)
Hat's Pick - James River
East #3 Kellam (12-7) at East #2 Landstown (16-4)
Hat's Pick - Landstown
East #4 Grassfield (9-9) at East #1 Oscar Smith (17-4)
Hat's Pick - Oscar Smith
West #3 Thomas Dale (13-7) at West #2 Manchester (17-5)
Hat's Pick - Manchester
Region Tourney Final Pick: Landstown over Manchester
Region 6B: Quarterfinals
Cedar Run #4 Osbourn Park (11-12) at Cardinal #1 Woodbridge (14-7)
Hat's Pick - Woodbridge
Cedar Run #2 Battlefield (16-5) at Commonwealth #1 Colonial Forge (14-7)
Hat's Pick - Colonial Forge
Cardinal #3 C.D. Hylton (17-7) at Cedar Run #1 Patriot (22-0)
Hat's Pick - Patriot
Cedar Run #3 John Champe (15-6) at Cardinal #2 Potomac (13-6)
Hat's Pick - Potomac
Region Tourney Final Pick: Potomac over Woodbridge
Region 6C: Opening Round
Patriot #8 James Robinson (1-21) at National #1 Hayfield (25-0)
Hat's Pick - Hayfield
National #5 John R. Lewis (9-13) at Patriot #4 W.T. Woodson (16-6)
Hat's Pick - W.T. Woodson
Patriot #6 Alexandria City (10-10) at National #3 Annandale (14-8)
Hat's Pick - Annandale in OT
National #7 Mount Vernon (4-17) at Patriot #2 South County (18-5)
Hat's Pick - South County
National #8 Justice (3-17) at Patriot #1 West Potomac (13-8)
Hat's Pick - West Potomac
Patriot #5 Lake Braddock (15-7) at National #4 Falls Church (15-9)
Hat's Pick - Lake Braddock
National #6 Thomas Jefferson-Alexandria (5-14) at Patriot #3 Fairfax (17-5)
Hat's Pick - Fairfax
Patriot #7 West Springfield (4-17) at National #2 Thomas Edison (15-8)
Hat's Pick - Thomas Edison
Region Tourney Final Pick: Hayfield over Fairfax
Region 5D: Sub-Region Play-In
William Fleming (21-3) at Albemarle (19-3)
Hat's Pick - Albemarle
Region 3A: Opening Round
#9 Southampton (8-8) at #8 York (10-10)
Hat's Pick - York
#13 Colonial Heights (2-18) at #4 Lake Taylor (13-10; 11-9)
Hat's Pick - Lake Taylor
#12 Lakeland (5-15) at #5 Phoebus (11-11)
Hat's Pick - Phoebus
#10 Lafayette (8-11) at #7 Booker T. Washington (11-11; 10-10)
Ha's Pick - Booker T. Washington
#14 Norcom (0-20; 0-19) at #3 Park View-South Hill (9-5)
Hat's Pick - Park View-South Hill
#11 New Kent (8-13) at #6 Tabb (12-9)
Hat's Pick - Tabb
Region Tourney Final Pick: Petersburg over Hopewell
Region 3D: Opening Round
#9 Carroll County (5-16) at #8 William Byrd (8-14)
Hat's Pick - William Byrd
#10 Magna Vista (5-13) at #7 Christiansburg (9-13)
Hat's Pick - Christiansburg
Region Tourney Final Pick: Cave Spring over Northside
Region 1A: Quarterfinals
#8 Rappahannock (5-13) at #1 Lancaster (20-1)
Hat's Pick - Lancaster
#5 Middlesex (15-4) at #4 Northampton (12-4)
Hat's Pick - Middlesex
#6 Essex (11-5) at #3 Washington & Lee (13-6)
Hat's Pick - Essex in OT
#7 Mathews (7-14) at #2 West Point (17-5)
Hat's Pick - West Point
Region Tourney Final Pick: Lancaster over West Point
Region 1D: Play-In
Cumberland #3 J.I. Burton (12-11) at Black Diamond #3 Hurley (6-15)
Hat's Pick - J.I. Burton
