Winter Sports

Playoff Picture: Division I and II Boys Basketball

The regular season is done and the playoffs are set to begin next week. Official pairings are set to be released soon, but who wants to wait?

Here is our best guess at what the Division I and II boys basketball pairings will look like when they are released by the NHIAA.

Note: With the NHIAA’s 70-percent rule in place for the postseason, Division I will have 15 teams and Division II will have 14 teams in the playoffs. Standings based off results reported to NHIAA.org and other media outlets. These are not official.

Division I

Playoff field (record, rating, previous)

Bedford (17-1, 3.7778, 1st)
Pinkerton (17-1, 3.7778, 2nd)
Nashua North (17-1, 3.7778, 3rd)
Nashua South (14-4, 3.1111, 4th)
Bishop Guertin (13-5, 2.8889, 5th)
Exeter (13-5, 2.8889, 6th)
Windham (12-6, 2.6667, 7th)
Trinity (11-7, 2.4444, 9th)
Portsmouth (10-8, 2.2222, 8th)
Winnacunnet (9-9, 2.0000, 10th)
Goffstown (8-10, 1.7778, 12th)
Alvirne (7-11, 1.5556, 13th)
Merrimack (7-11, 1.5556, 11th)
Londonderry (6-12, 1.3333, NR)
Salem (6-12, 1.3333, 14th)

Eliminated: Concord (6-12, 1.3333, 15th); Manchester Memorial (5-13, 1.1111); Timberlane (5-13, 1.1111); Keene (5-13, 1.1111); Dover (5-13, 1.1111); Manchester Central (3-14, 0.7059); Spaulding (1-16, 0.2353).

Tiebreakers

In a three-way tiebreaker, Bedford finishes ahead of Nashua North and Pinkerton thanks to a better rating against tournament teams.
Pinkerton wins the tiebreaker with Nashua North thanks to a better rating against tournament teams.
Bishop Guertin wins the tiebreaker with Exeter thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Alvirne wins the tiebreaker with Merrimack thanks to a head-to-head victory.
In a three-way tiebreaker, Londonderry finishes ahead of Salem and Concord thanks to a better rating against tournament teams.
Salem wins the tiebreaker with Concord thanks to a head-to-head victory.

First-round byes (changes in bold)

No. 1 Bedford

First-round matchups

No. 9 Portsmouth at No. 8 Trinity
No. 13 Merrimack at No. 4 Nashua South
No. 12 Alvirne at No. 5 Bishop Guertin
No. 15 Salem at No. 2 Pinkerton
No. 10 Winnacunnet at No. 7 Windham
No. 14 Londonderry at No. 3 Nashua North
No. 11 Goffstown at No. 6 Exeter

Division II

Playoff field (record, rating, previous)

Laconia (17-1, 3.7778, 1st)
Pembroke (16-2, 3.5556, 2nd)
Souhegan (16-2, 3.5556, 3rd)
Manchester West (15-3, 3.3333, 4th)
Pelham (14-4, 3.1667, 5th)
Coe-Brown (13-5, 2.8889, 6th)
ConVal (12-6, 2.6667, 7th)
Merrimack Valley (11-7, 2.4444, 8th)
Lebanon (10-8, 2.2222, 9th)
Kennett (9-9, 2.0000, 10th)
Bow (9-9, 2.0000, 11th)
Kingswood (7-11, 1.5556, 13th)
Milford (7-11, 1.5556, 12th)
Oyster River (5-13, 1.1111, 14th)

Eliminated: Sanborn (5-13, 1.1111); Bishop Brady (5-13, 1.1111); Hanover (5-13, 1.1111); Plymouth (3-15, 0.6667); John Stark (1-17, 0.2222); Hollis Brookline (1-17, 0.2222).

Tiebreakers

Kennett wins the tiebreaker with Bow thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Kingswood wins the tiebreaker with Milford thanks to a head-to-head victory.
In a four-way tiebreaker, Oyster River finishes ahead of Sanborn, Bishop Brady and Hanover thanks to a better rating against tournament teams.

First-round byes (changes in bold)