Division I

Playoff Picture: Division I Boys Basketball (Feb. 24)

With the Division I boys basketball regular season schedule done, here is what we expect the postseason pairings to look like when the NHIAA releases the brackets.

This year, 15 teams will make the playoffs in Division I boys basketball, with the top two seeds getting a bye into the quarterfinals. Here are current standings, along with tiebreakers and matchups. These are not official.

Division I

Team (record, rating, previous)

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

Eliminated: Manchester Memorial (7-11, 1.5556, 15th); Salem (6-12, 1.3333); Spaulding (6-12, 1.3333); Bishop Guertin (4-14, 0.8889); Winnacunnet (3-15, 0.6667); Concord (3-15, 0.6667); Timberlane (1-17, 0.2222).

Tiebreakers

Pinkerton wins the tiebreaker with Bedford thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Exeter wins the tiebreaker with Trinity thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Keene wins the tiebreaker with Nashua South thanks to a head-to-head victory.
In a four-way tiebreaker, Portsmouth (2.6667) and Alvirne (2.6667) finish ahead of Dover (1.3333) and Londonderry (1.3333) thanks to ratings in head-to-head games.
Portsmouth wins the tiebreaker with Alvirne thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Londonderry wins the tiebreaker with Dover thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Merrimack wins the tiebreaker with Goffstown thanks to a head-to-head victory.
Manchester Central wins the tiebreaker with Manchester Memorial thanks to a head-to-head victory.

First-round bye (changes in bold)