Could this be a breakthrough year for the MVC?

FROM THE MORNING CALL

In 1999, Stroudsburg won the District 11 Class 4A boys basketball championship.

Since then, all of the gold medal winners in the highest basketball classification have been from the Lehigh Valley Conference, or at least Lehigh or Northampton County.

Is this the year Monroe County breaks through and gets its first 4A gold in more than a decade?

Pocono Mountain West is the top seed in 4A and already owns a win over No. 2 seed Liberty and had narrow losses to other top LVC members, Allen and Easton.

Panthers coach Brad Pensyl has guided either Pocono Mountain West or plain old Pocono Mountain to 22 straight District 11 tournament berths, but has yet to win district gold despite a pair of appearances in the title game.

This may be his most talented team, an athletic squad led by mercurial point guard Tynell Fortune.

Pocono Mountain East, which has defeated Pocono West this season and made it to the 4A final in 2009 and the semis in 2010, is another quality club LVC teams should worry about.

The 4A district tournament begins tonight and it should be every bit as dramatic as last week's league tournaments.

Here's the breakdown of all the classes:

CLASS 4A

The favorite: Pocono Mountain West.

You could also make a case for Liberty, Allen, Easton, Nazareth and possibly Pocono East, but no one was playing better down the stretch than Pocono West, which has won 11 straight since a Jan.19 loss to East.

Dark horse: Pottsville.

Crimson Tide is off the radar screen because they play a lot of smaller schools in the Schuylkill League, but as Central Catholic found out in last year's 3A final, the Tide's Nick Schlitzer is one of the state's best players.

Four potential difference-makers:

Izel Dickerson, Liberty. With teams keying on Darrun Hilliard, the Hurricanes are going to need Dickerson to find the open man and hit open shots.

Branden Harrington, Allen. With D1 recruits Jalen Cannon and Daquan Holiday playing inside, the Canaries are strong in the paint. But they'll need Harrington to shoot well to loosen up defenses for the big boys.

Karl Keglovits, Nazareth. Keglovits' surprise appearance in the LVC semis sparked the Blue Eagles to a win over Allen, but his balky knee acted up again the in the final against Liberty. If he can give Nazareth anything in this tournament, it will be a major plus.

Matt Wiseley, Emmaus. The 6-foot-6 junior, who missed most of the season because of an arm injury, is back in the Green Hornets' starting lineup and makes an already formidable team even more dangerous.

Best possible non-final matchup: No. 1 Pocono West vs. No. 4 Allen in the semis. It would be a rematch of an early-season thriller won by the Canaries, 61-59. It also would be an eye-pleasing battle between some very gifted offensive players.

The pick: Liberty.

The Hurricanes have the pedigree, the experience, and the best player.

CLASS 3A

The favorite: Central Catholic.

Any time a Lehigh Valley Conference school qualifies for the 3A tourney, it generally is considered the team to beat.

Dark horse: Wilson.

The Warriors are athletic and play tough defense. Kowan Scott and Gerald Terry can control the glass. If they would have made free throws and taken better care of the ball, they — not Saucon Valley — would have been playing Salisbury in last week's Colonial .

Four potential difference-makers:

Muhammad Ali Abdur-Rahkman, Central Catholic. The Vikings' point guard, believed to be the first freshman to ever make the Lehigh Valley Conference all-star team, has the ability to take over games. But pressure increases in the postseason.

John Clark, Saucon Valley. The Panthers' Eric Frans is a double-double machine, but when Saucon does well Clark is usually in the middle of it, as he was in the Colonial League championship game.

Jordan Waylen, Northern Lehigh. If the Bulldogs are going to beat Wilson in the semis, they will need Waylen to hit some shots from the outside to open it up for sophomores Caleb Johnson and Lucas Pierce inside.

Matt LaScala, Blue Mountain. The senior has a team-high 19 3-pointers, but is just barely over 50 percent from the foul line.

Best possible non-final matchup: No. 1 Saucon Valley vs. No. 4 Central Catholic in the semifinals. It will be interesting to see what the Vikings come up with to attempt to neutralize 6-foot-8 Panthers star Eric Frans.

The pick: Central Catholic. The Vikings lacked fire in the postseason last year and the football players on this team may be emotionally and physically exhausted. If they can deliver about half as much intensity as they did on the football field, they should be able to collect more gold. If they can't, this team could go home as early as Friday night.

CLASS 2A

The favorite: Pine Grove Area.

The Cardinals have lost just four games and three of them were to a very strong Pottsville team.

Dark horse: Notre Dame

Longtime Crusaders coach Pat Boyle likes this team despite its inconsistent play. It's a team that needs to play smarter and show more patience on offense. If it does, there's lots of offensive firepower in place.

Four potential difference-makers:

Mike Schantz, Salisbury. After missing the Falcons' regular season finale and most of the Colonial League tournament, it will be interesting to see how healthy the team's leading scorer and rebounder will be after having some time off.

Tyler Kohl, Notre Dame. Much like Central's Abdur-Rahkman in 3A, the question is how well this talented freshman handles postseason pressure for the first time.

Kyler Burke, Pine Grove. He leads the Cardinals with 26 3-pointers and is coming off a 16-point performance against Pottsville in the Schuylkill League finals.

Cole Weachock, Minersville. Had 17 points, including three 3-pointers in Schuylkill League semifinal loss to Pine Grove.
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Best possible non-final matchup:

No. 4 Notre Dame vs. No. 1 Pine Grove in the semifinals. It's always a battle of contrasting styles when the Crusaders get together with one of the defensive-oriented Schuylkill teams. The Cardinals will be looking for payback for a 75-52 thumping in last year's semis.

The pick: Salisbury.

The Falcons were impressive in their late-season run and the upset win over Bangor in the Colonial League finals. They are fun to watch in the open floor with the best balance of any team, maybe in any classification. Schantz's health may be an issue. If they can defend and rebound, the offense will be there.

CLASS A

The favorite: Tri-Valley. The Bulldogs reached the 2A final a year ago, and are battle tested coming from the rugged Schuylkill League.

Dark horse: Pius X. The Royals have played another competitive independent schedule and as is the case in most sports, they gear up for districts because it's their first opportunity to win a championship.

Four potential difference-makers:

Chris Barletta, Marian Catholic. The 5-foot-8 guard has a knack for getting to the foul line.

Jay Maletz, Pius X. The 6-foot-4 junior has the potential to be a force inside at both ends of the floor.

Logan Bernard, Moravian Academy. The Lions senior is one of the best players John Donmoyer has produced in his time at the little school just off Route 22. He can hurt defenses inside and out.

Shane Wert, Tri-Valley. The four-year starter is a team leader and savvy point guard who knows how to push his team's buttons. He's also a gifted athlete who shines on the baseball field.

Best possible non-final matchup:

No. 1 Marian vs. No. 4 Pius X in the semifinals. These two schools have a rivalry that extends beyond basketball and they always go at each other hard. The Colts rolled to a 56-39 win in last year's district final, so the Royals would love a shot at revenge.

The pick: Marian

The sentimental choice is Moravian Academy because of the ever-classy Donmoyer. He may have his best Moravian Academy squad and a chance to pull a surprise, but it's hard to see anybody but another tough, scrappy, defensive-oriented team from the Schuylkill League winning this title. After a two-point loss to Tri-Valley in regular season, Marian is due to turn tables.

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