news-record.com

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association basketball playoffs for boys and girls teams — involving 512 teams across the four classifications — will begin Monday. Staff writer Tom Keller looks at the best hopes from our area.

• 5 TEAMS TO WATCH

GRIMSLEY BOYS: The Whirlies looked like they were built for the playoffs during their Pizza Hut Invitational romp, with Krechaun Williams as the lane-opening creator, Carter Gourley the floor-spreading shooter and Rashad Sweeney the ground-clearing big man. The Whirlies sputtered after that, losing four of five, but they won their final four regular-season games. Midseason seems like the exception.

SOUTHEAST GUILFORD GIRLS: The Falcons had seven losses this season but none by double digits and two by a single basket. They played neck-and-neck with defending state champion Dudley while splitting the season series, and they've been close to a regional crown each of the last three years. This could be the chance for Julissa Anderson, Ayshia McNeil and Brittany Price to break through.

SOUTHWEST GUILFORD GIRLS: Has there been a hotter team the last month and a half? We say no. The Cowgirls closed the regular season with 11 straight victories to pry the conference title from perennial runaway Northwest Guilford, and they've got a whole stable of athletes to pressure the ball. This could be a major coming-out party.

EASTERN GUILFORD GIRLS: The Wildcats traipsed through conference play undefeated, winning by fewer than 10 only three times. Then Williams smacked them upside the head with a 45-36 upset in the first round of the Mid-State 3-A tournament, and things got less rosy. Could that be the wake-up call they need for a repeat of last year's sectional final run?

NORTHERN GUILFORD BOYS: Such irony that the Nighthawks will finish with no more losses than last year's team, which was stripped of its title. There's not a lot to nitpick with this team, which plays hard, smart and disciplined. Senior Jonathan Frye, who will play for Appalachian State, is Terminator-like in his persistence, and John McBeth, Dylan Berry and Daniel Downing are perfect role players. They are built for this time of year.

• 5 WHO HAVE BEEN HERE

AARON TOOMEY, Bishop McGuinness: The reigning 1-A title game MVP set a state record with 19 free-throw attempts in last year's finale, which he owned with 35 points. Though the Villains' supporting cast has risen around him this season, they certainly wouldn't turn down another 30-points-per-game run from the senior point guard.

BRENNAN WYATT, Dudley: Of course the Panthers need P.J. Hairston, who scored 29 of their 64 points in a season-ending loss to Kinston last season, to be a title contender. But if Wyatt, the Navy-bound senior point guard who was held to seven points in that loss, hits full stride, there won't be much anyone can do.

BREONNA PATTERSON, Dudley: She led the Panthers with 23 points in their 3-A title game win a year ago, and she may be the best pure shooter in the county. She's one of few players in the field who could take over a game if she gets hot.

GRETCHEN BENNETT, Northwest Guilford: The 1,000-point scorer is one of the most prolific 3-point shooters in recent history and has gone 10-for-11 and 9-for-12 from the field in games this season. The Vikings were a disappointing first-round casualty last season, something the senior will no doubt fight to avoid this time around.

CHEVENA PICKARD, Page: For all the Pirates' regular-season success the last four seasons (see: Pizza Hut Invitational runner-up, 2009), they have struggled mightily down the stretch. They've yet to break through the second round of the playoffs in Pickard's Page career, and they've ended two of the last three seasons on multigame losing streaks. Pickard, a slasher with a knack for getting to the free-throw line, is their best hope of changing a too-familiar script.

• 5 READY FOR THE SPOTLIGHT

ZENA LOVETTE, Southwest Guilford: The sophomore guard is a relentless defender (owner of 10 steals in a game) and capable scorer (better than 14 points per game, including 27 against Northwest). She scored 30 in last year's opening-round upset of East Rowan, and she and the Piedmont Triad 4-A champion Cowgirls should be ready to make that the standard now.

LINDSAY LEE, Ragsdale: Coaches who watch the Tigers always come away talking about this 5-foot-9 senior, who's averaging more than 12 rebounds per game. She was a big part of the Tigers' run to the sectional finals last year, and she'll be relied on even more now.

GREG BRIDGES, Southwest Guilford: The senior guard is the only Cowboy scoring in double figures at 17 per game and is shooting 47 percent, so it's no surprise he kept Southwest in more than a few contests. The Cowboys surged back into the playoff picture and could be a tough first-round out if they figure out how to play a full four quarters.

BUTCH HUFFMAN, Eastern Guilford: An exasperating point guard to defend, he's a master at enough jukes, hesitations and pump fakes to keep every play alive and make up for his lack of athleticism. Plus he's got enough weapons around him — Brandon Hairston, Tre Radcliff and Darius Dawkins — that he doesn't have to worry about scoring 25 a night. For highlight value alone, keep an eye out.

DOMINIQUE BARTELL, Smith: Don't look now, but the surging Golden Eagles have beaten two of the other top four teams in the Metro 4-A (Western Guilford and Grimsley) and the top two teams in the Piedmont Triad 4-A (Ragsdale and High Point Central). Bartell leads them in scoring at 14 per game to go with 2.5 steals. They'll certainly savor a long-awaited return to the postseason.