Pictured Above - Handley's Jaevon Brisco
The final monday of February 2025 produced some Madness feel to it on a few different playoff games across the state with 10 of the 24 regions in play.
Thanks to the NFHS Network, I was able to jump around from game to game, almost like it was an NFL Red Zone type of Sunday, except with it being Virginia High School Basketball, Yes, yours truly was in hog heaven in a sense.
The first one that had a spine-tingling finish for me was in Region 5D, where the No. 1 seed Albemarle Patriots, who had a heart-breaking loss on a lengthy buzzer-beater in last year's Class 5 State Semis to L.C. Bird, nearly got bit by eighth-seeded James River. The upset-minded Rapids drained a couple of three-pointers late in the fourth quarter and had a 68-64 lead with 2:03 remaining. However, the Patriots responded on their home floor behind Isaac McLaughlin-Radde, who hit a go-ahead three-pointer from the corner with 1:27 remaining. Plus, talented sophomore Makai Ragland - who had 21 points and five rebounds - came through with a pair of crucial buckets in the final 33 seconds, one coming off a steal, to help get his team to the next round.
In the regional semis, they'll take on a tough test in Mills Godwin, a team that beat them earlier in the season, back in the holiday tourney held in late December. Godwin overcame a 10-point deficit after one quarter of play to dust fourth-seeded Patrick Henry-Roanoke, 62-43.
A No. 8 seed did knock off a No. 1 seed, though. It came in Region 1B, where William Campbell took down Cumberland 59-56. That puts the Generals at 6-17 overall visiting No. 4 seed Altavista, a 75-51 winner over Rappahannock County, in a regional semifinal with a State Tournament berth on the line. Those two teams boast records of 6-17 overall and 11-13, so someone under the .500 mark will be playing in the month of March in the VHSL Class 1 State Playoffs. The Dukes are done at 16-7 overall.
Another Class 1 regional game that had its fair share of excitement was in Region 1A, where fourth-seeded Mathews, down practically the whole game, rallied from 10 down at the break to beat fifth-seeded Westmoreland, 57-54. Westmoreland, coached by former Varina state title winning Head Coach Andrew Lacey, saw Mathews nudge ahead for good with 2:29 to play.
One of the more intriguing regional semifinals across the board that will be coming on Wednesday features No. 3 seed Staunton visiting No. 2 seed Spotswood. It has the makings to be a shoot-out with prolific scorers. Staunton got 39 points from Joaqin Bell and 20 from Ky'Ree Scott in holding off Heritage-Lynchburg, 75-67, in the quarterfinals. Spotswood beat Alleghany 68-57 as Mount St. Mary's pledge Cam Pacheco (pictured below) dropped 30 points and his stellar, All-State caliber backcourt mate Tyler Sprague chipped in 23. Staunton will come in at 22-2 overall, riding a 17-game winning streak, while Spotswood counters with a 21-3 mark and 16-game winning streak.
Also from the Class 3 ranks, eighth-seeded Lakeland held off ninth-seeded Colonial Heights by a count of 70-61 in Region 3A as Jayden Skinner enjoyed one of his best outings as a member of the Cavaliers with 30 points, five rebounds and four assists. Lakeland, which last year as a No. 12 seed stunned No.4 seed Hopewell in the regional playoffs before eventually falling to Class 3 runner-up Lake Taylor in the regional semis, will now get another chance to pull a shocker. They will travel on Wednesday to top-seeded New Kent, who's 22-1 overall.
In Region 4B, the Hanover Hawks came from behind to beat Huguenot, 57-54, as junior Arrie McWilliams iced the victory with a couple of free-throws with five seconds to play. Just a month ago, McWilliams had 29 points and four three-pointers in a triumph over Capital District foe Henrico, which was ousted in its regional quarterfinal by Powhatan, 65-63. That halted a five-game losing streak for the Indians.
History was made in Region 5C, where J.R. Tucker continued its season for the ages with a 54-49 overtime win over seventh-seeded William Fleming. It marked the first home playoff win for the Tigers since 1978. Multi-sport standout and 6-foot-4 senior Dennel Douglas dropped 28 points in the contest as Tucker now gets to host perennial power L.C. Bird, the Class 5 State Tournament runner-up from a year ago, in the regional semis.
GW-Danville moved to 21-3 overall under first-year Head Coach DeMarcus Morrison as his Eagles beat Salem 68-59. His son, Kobe Morrison, led the way with 19 points, while Isaac Smith (17 points) and Zay Cobbs (14 points) provided support. They may be running into E.C. Glass in the regional semis, though the favorite in that region remains top-seeded John Handley out of Winchester after the Judges beat Sherando for a third time on the campaign, 69-45, in its quarterfinal. While sophomore scoring machine Will Braun-Duin (28 PPG) is the headliner for the Judges more times than not, the one that starred in this most recent Handley rout was 5-foot-9 junior point guard Jaevon Brisco (pictured above), who had a game-best 24 points and six made three-pointers.
One note on the ladies side - - kudos to freshman Jordyn Wilson of William Campbell, who posted a double-double with 26 points and 11 rebounds, in her first ever regional playoff game as William Campbell beat Cumberland 56-49 in the Region 1B quarterfinals. Got a hunch that's a name we'll be hearing more from in the years to come.
Pictured Above - Spotswood's Cam Pacheco
Let's review how the Predictions did for regional playoff for the final Monday of February 2025 below...
6C = 4-0
5C = 3-1 (missed on Mills Godwin/PH-Roanoke)
5D = 1-1 (missed on Stone Bridge/Massaponax)
4B = 2-2 (missed on Powhatan/Henrico and Caroline/Dinwiddie)
4D = 3-1 (missed on Mecklenburg/Halifax)
3A = 3-1 (missed on Lakeland/Colonial Heights)
3C = 4-0
1A = 4-0
1B = 3-1 (missed on William Campbell/Cumberland)
1D = 1-0
Record on Monday 2/24/25 Games: 28-7 (80%)
Hatfield's 2025 Region Playoff Total: 43-8 (84.3%)
Only four of the ten regions that were in play saw me go spotless, which included a comeback for West Springfield to knock off Annandale in OT in Occoquan Region 6C. The toughest one came in 4B with narrows win by Caroline and Powhatan, both higher seeded teams. It drops the percentage from the over 93% mark to just above 84% for the postseason.
It'll be an even busier Tuesday with 19 of the 24 regions in action, including each one at the Class 6, Class 4 and Class 2 levels.
Make Sure You Save This Link Here with our VHSL Playoff Brackets / Landing Page OR the direct link below...
VHSL 2025 Hoops Playoff Brackets Here
Let's now get to the games and picks, which you can find in the next post...
