Basketball playoffs begin Tuesday in the Kingston Area Secondary Schools Athletic Association.
A day-long basketball festival begins in the Queen’s University Athletics and Recreation Centre, where the Kingston Blues will play the Queen Elizabeth Raiders at 2:30 p.m. During the regular year, the Blues, who finished second at 8-1, posted a 58-38 home-court victory over QE.
Regardless of how they do in the KASSAA playoffs, the Raiders, who finished 3-6, will go on to represent the league in the single-A eastern Ontario championship tournament.
At 4 p.m., the undefeated regular-season champion Holy Cross Crusaders, 9-0, will host the La Salle Black Knights and the Napanee Golden Hawks will visit the Frontenac Falcons, who finished third at 7-2.
Both the Hawks and Knights finished the year as part of a three-way tie at 3-6. Napanee was awarded sixth place on the basis of a coin toss when the tie could not be otherwise broken. QE got seventh place for having defeated La Salle during the regular season.
The final game of the day is scheduled for 5:30 at Sydenham, where the Golden Eagles, 6-3, will entertain the Regiopolis Notre Dame Panthers, who finished the regular year 5-4.
There were no upsets at the top of the standings this year, as Holy Cross defeated everyone; KC beat everyone but Holy Cross; Frontenac got the best of everyone but Holy Cross and KC—and so on.
The Crusaders defeated La Salle 48-32 at home in early January and Frontenac pinned a 56-35 home-court win on Napanee two days later. Sydenham, winner of five of its last six games, defeated Regi 56-47 at home Jan. 19.
Tuesday’s four winners will be re-seeded, with the survivor with the best record meeting the survivor with the poorest record in one semifinal, and the other two teams meeting at the home of the team with the better record in the other.
The KASSAA senior boys championship game will be played Sunday at 2 p.m. in the main gym at Queen’s.