BOBBY ARDOIN
Contributing Writer
At least two St. Landry Parish boys’ basketball teams are moving into the playoffs ranked as perhaps top five representatives from their classifications.
Beau Chene and North Central also closed out their regular seasons Friday night as district champions as the 2021-22 season transitions into playoff matchups that will be determined on Monday when the division and select brackets are announced by the Louisiana High School Athletic Association.
North Central is expected to remain as the No. 1 team in Class A. The Hurricanes breezed through District 5-1A averaging over 80 points in league games and finishing with an overall 29-5 record under first-year head coach Basil Brown II.
Beau Chene, picked at the start of the year to win the league title, ended its championship run in 6-4A at 7-1. Overall the Gators under coach Chris Charlot are 25-7 and ranked No. 4 in their classification. The district title is the first for Charlot, who is in his fourth season at the school.
Northwest coached by Mark Cassimere, was ranked seventh in Class 3A last week. The Raiders (20-9) also won District 5-3A after losing only once in league games. The Raiders put together a district championship run beginning in January. A loss last week to Ville Platte is the only district defeat for the Raiders.
Who Else Qualifies from St. Landry?
Early in the season it appeared Eunice had no chance to make the playoffs, but the Bobcats launched a late-year winning streak and won four of the last five games. That surge included a 75-69 Friday night victory over district opponent LaGrange.
Opelousas High (19-10) finished the season as a top 20 seeded team in Class 4A. The Tigers finished behind Beau Chene in 6-4A, but Opelousas defeated the Gators 63-60 in front of a home crowd Friday night. Beau Chene defeated Opelousas previously (68-57) this year.
In Class B J.S. Clark Leadership Academy is ranked among the Top 10. The Bulldogs are 19-23 after playing a difficult non-district schedule and losing several quality players off last year’s semifinalist.
Opelousas Catholic finished the regular season 8-17, while Westminster Christian Academy is 15-14.
OCS won four of five district games, losing only to North Central. The Vikings were seeded No. 17 last week in Division IV.
WCA was 2-3 in district games. The Crusaders are 15-15 overall and won one of the last three regular season contests.
