Hallejuah. Finally, a full night of games.
No sense talking too much about the weather. We know it's been bad and it's evidently going to stay bad this weekend and through the next week at least.
We've had some mild winters the last few years and we were due for a bad one and we're getting it.
It has greatly disrupted what has been a really entertaining high school boys basketball season. Teams lack continuity. Coaches aren't happy with lost practice time. Even the fans have had trouble getting into it because the schedule has been so disjointed and you never know who's playing on a given night.
Hopefully, we'll at least get tonight's regularly scheduled games in and then the Hoop Group event on Sunday. Every game in the LVC tonight has some bearing on either a league or district playoff berth which should make for some interesting results.
Here's a look at how I see tonight's games going after posting a 12-3 mark with last Friday's predictions.
LEHIGH VALLEY CONFERENCE
Parkland 70, Allen 60 -- Trojans must be wary of looking too far ahead. Big games coming up Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Parkland is finally in first place in the LVC North, but must continue to evolve as a team after changing some pieces. Allen looking for some consistency.
CCHS 67, Whitehall 64 -- This is where I will be and I expect a big crowd because it's Hall of Fame Night for the Zephyrs, who seem to be in a funk. The Vikings are the area's premier team, no doubt, but are vulnerable on any given night. Is tonight that night?
Dieruff 68, Freedom 59 -- Freedom has been in a free-fall since Christmas and Dieruff has been almost impossible to figure. Both are in a fight for their District 11 tournament lives. Kohl seems to have elevated his game in the past week. We'll see if it continues.
Becahi 67, Emmaus 64 -- A terrific game that could be a LVC playoff preview. Expect a lot of 3-pointers to be registered and the outcome to be decided on one or two late possessions.
Easton 60, Northampton 50 -- If the Red Rovers get this one and both Freedom and Becahi lose, the Red Rovers could really tighten up that LVC East race.
Liberty 58, Nazareth 54 -- This has been one of the most difficult seasons of Chad Landis' career. The Hurricanes find themselves in a very unusual position of needing to make a run just to get into the district tournament. This is a must-game for them. The good news is that both K.J. Williams and Deshawn Oyeniyi should be back. And if everyone's in sync, this team is still capable of a lot of good things.
COLONIAL LEAGUE
Wilson 59, Southern Lehigh 57 -- Upset special. 93 percent of the contestants in the Groller-Zambelli Challenge are going with the Spartans and with good reason. Solehi won the first meeting by 25. I just think the Warriors are playing better, will be tougher at home and Bob Frankenfield will come up with a better way to defend Solehi.
Notre Dame 71, Saucon Valley 65 -- Another hunch. I covered the first meeting between these two and the Panthers won the game by seven. Again, I think the home court will make a difference and the Crusaders have Eze back and are playing with more confidence.
Salisbury 70, Palisades 54 -- Even though the two times I've seen them live the Falcons have lost, I enjoy watching them play. Good, scrappy team.
Bangor 67, Northern Lehigh 60 -- I saw this one the first time around and it was all Bangor thanks to a big night by Michael Martino. The Bulldogs will keep it closer this time, but do not have the depth to stay with the Slaters for the full 32.
Catasauqua 62, Palmerton 53 -- The Rough Riders had a nice stretch going, but back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Saucon Valley have put them back on the District 11 bubble.
Pen Argyl 50, Northwestern 49 -- Green Knights won the first meeting 49-47. This one will be just as close, if not closer.
MOUNTAIN VALLEY CONFERENCE
ES North 63, Lehighton 58 -- The Indians might have regained some confidence after routing both PM East and Pen Argyl, but the Timberwolves are a different deal. This will be much closer than the 33-point spread the first time around, but North is likely to bounce back from its disappointing loss to Stroudsburg.
PM West 80, ES South 50 -- The Panthers, while off the radar just a little, are still as dangerous as any team in the MVC.
Stroudsburg 80, PM East 59 -- Home and home series concludes between these two. Cardinals really played the Mounties tough on Thursday night at Stroudsburg, but that probably only served as a wakeup call for Shawn Thornton's crew.
Drive safe and enjoy the games.
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