It’s the most wonderful time of the year to be a basketball fan. March is synonymous with incredible basketball, and that holds true in the WIAA.

We even get it a little early, as some Regional Round matchups are set to get underway on Friday, while the rest will kick off March on Saturday before we get to state tournament sites next week.

Here, let’s take a quick peek at each of the 11 Regional Round games involving area teams.

Top-8 Matchups

2B Girls: No. 1 Rainier (20-3) vs. No. 8 NW Christian (19-4)

When: 6 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28

Where: W.F. West High School

The rundown: The 2B Girls District 4 Champions will be back in Chehalis for their Regional Round matchup, and they’ll come in riding a nine-game winning streak.

Rainier’s defense carried the way all season long, as the Mountaineers only allowed 50 or more points twice, and they’ve allowed just 31.7 points per game during their winning streak.

They’ll welcome the Northwest Christian Crusaders, the District 6 runner-ups. Of NWC’s four losses, two are to Reardan, the 2B No. 4 seed, and another is to Naches Valley, the 1A No. 8 seed). Their only other loss, Davenport, missed the state tournament by one game.

The Crusaders have played their best basketball as of late. Prior to their loss to Reardan in the district title game, they had won 10 straight and 14 of their last 15, with all but two of those wins coming by double-digits.

The Mountaineers will have a week of practice to adjust for the loss of Brooklyn Swenson, who will miss the state tournament with an injury she suffered during the district title game.

2B Boys: No. 2 Freeman (20-3) vs. No. 7 Adna (19-5)

When: 6 p.m. on Friday. Feb. 28

Where: West Valley Spokane High School

The rundown: Adna had success at times early against Cooper Fallon inside in the district title game, but the Pirates have a tougher challenge on deck against the District 6 champions.

The Scotties started the season 2-2 with losses to Lake City (Idaho) and Columbia (Burbank), but have since won 18 of 19, with their only other loss coming to Colfax.

They physically stack up as well as any team in the state, as they’ll field four players with a listed height of 6’ 4” or taller, including 6’ 6” guard Colton Wells, who has received multiple Division III offers.

2B Boys: No. 3 Reardan (21-2) vs. No. 6 Toledo (22-3)

When: 2 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Cheney High School

The rundown: Fresh off their first district title in six years, the Riverhawks will head east for a matchup with Reardan.

The Screaming Eagles come into the opening round coming off a loss in the District 6 title game to No. 2 Freeman, and their only other loss is to Bonners Ferry, a 4A Idaho team that is currently 21-1.

Jakari Singleton has led Reardan, nearly averaging a double-double. He’s listed as a forward, but he’s played inside at times this year and could match up with Cooper Fallon in the paint.

1B Girls: No. 2 Waterville-Mansfield (20-3) vs. No. 7 Pe Ell (21-0)

When: 12 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Wenatchee High School

The rundown: A perfect 21-0 and the Trojans are the No. 7 seed? What gives?

The Trojans’ strength of schedule was almost certainly the biggest reason for their seed, as their opponents combined to win just 34.7 percent of their games.

District 4’s other three qualifiers were all seeded from No. 15 to No. 19, and two of them have already been eliminated (the 1B Tournament includes a play-in round to the Regional Round for teams seeded from No. 13 to 20).

Pe Ell will look to make a statement against the Shockers, whose only three losses have come to two top-eight 1B teams (No. 1 Neah Bay and No. 8 Pateros) and 2B Davenport.

2B Girls: No. 4 Reardan (21-2) vs. No. 5 Napavine (19-6)

When: 12 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Cheney High School

The rundown: The reigning 2B champions have to hit the road for their regional this year, but the Tigers’ 19-6 record can be deceiving.

Four of their six losses have come against Rainier, Adna, and Brewster, the top three 2B teams, and their two others losses were against 1A King’s and 3A White River.

Reardan also lost to Brewster and NW Christian, but it did get its revenge against NWC in the District 6 Championship Game.

Hayden Kaut has been extraordinary so far this postseason, and she could be in store for another big night, as she has at least three inches on every player on Reardan’s roster. 

2B Girls: No. 2 Adna (21-2) vs. No. 7 Cle Elum-Roslyn (18-5)

When: 12 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: W.F. West High School

The rundown: This is actually a rematch of a regular season matchup, as these two teams met less than four weeks ago.

On Feb. 1, the Pirates beat the Warriors 53-45, using a second-quarter run to build a lead and holding on to it in the second half.

The Warriors have won three of four since then, only losing in the District 5 title game to No. 3 Brewster.

The Warriors are led by three first-team All-EWAC West selections, Gracie Glondo, Nellie Nicholls, and Jadison Wallick, who combined to score 31 points in the two team’s first meeting.

2A Girls: No. 5 Archbishop Murphy (22-2) vs. No. 4 W.F. West (23-1)

When: 4 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: W.F. West High School

The rundown: They meet again. Saturday’s matchup will be the third time in four years that the Bearcats and Wildcats have met in the Regional Round of the postseason. Archbishop Murphy took the first two matchups, but only by a combined four points.

Not much has changed from last winter, either, as the two teams lost just a combined four seniors.

Brooke Blachly and Ava Marr, AM’s pair of first-team all-league guards, combined for 38 points in last year’s opening round matchup and are still leading the way.

If W.F. West is able to get a win, it would be their first Regional Round victory since 2020.

Win-and-in Matchups

2B Boys: No. 9 Napavine (21-3) vs. No. 16 La Conner (14-9)

When: 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28

Where: Mark Morris High School

The rundown: The C2BL regular season champions were surely hoping to snag a top-eight spot, but after taking third in the district tournament, they receive the nine seed.

Napavine’s has the athleticism to hang with almost anyone in the state, and they’ll get a test from a La Conner team that is entering the state tournament on a heater. 

The Braves entered the 2B District 1/2 Tournament a pedestrian 11-9, but knocked off Orcas Island, Auburn Adventist, and Mount Vernon Christian to win the title and clinch an automatic berth. MVC also claimed a state spot and earned the No. 15 seed.

The Tigers magic number on Friday is 58. When allowing 58 points or more, the Braves are just 2-9, while they are 12-5 in all of their other games.

1A Boys: No. 9 Chelan (21-5) vs. No. 16 Tenino (10-13)

When: 10 a.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Wenatchee High School

The rundown: The Beavers won eight of their last 10 to make it to state, but a 2-11 start came back to cost them when the seeding committee met.

As the No. 16 team, the Beavers will head east to face Chelan, which took third in the 1A District 5 Tournament.

The Mountain Goats are in just a three-team league, which gave them plenty of flexibility when it came to non-league scheduling.

It’s been a mixed bag against other 1A State Tournament teams throughout the year for the Mountain Goats, as they’ve gone 3-2 in five matchups. They topped No. 11 Cashmere twice and beat No. 14 La Center, but fell against No. 2 Royal and No. 4 Zillah.

2B Boys: No. 12 Tri-Cities Prep (20-5) vs. No. 13 Rainier (15-10)

When: 12 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Richland High School

The rundown: It’s been an up-and-down season for the Mountaineers, who battled through the injury bug early in the season to make it to the district semifinals and eventually take fourth.

They get a tough road test against a battle-tested Tri-Cities Prep, The Jaguars’ five losses have all come against teams in the 2B state bracket, though they have been by an average of over 16 points per game, and all four of those teams placed higher than TCP in the district tournament.

Layne McClure, a first-team All-EWAC East selection, leads the way, while Collin Sweezy and Bryson Wilde, two second-teamers, can also step up on any given night.

2B Girls: No. 11 Columbia (Burbank) (17-7) vs. No. 14 Mossyrock (12-11)

When: 2 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 1

Where: Richland High School

The rundown: After winning three straight elimination games to even get to a Regional, the Vikings will have to win one more to get to Spokane.

They’ll face a Coyotes team that enters the opening round on a skid, as they’ve lost three in a row and haven’t won since Feb. 6.

They were still able to grab a state spot due to their strong mark before this stretch, as they entered their league tournament 16-4 and made the EWAC Championship Game before falling to Cle Elum-Roslyn.

Led by EWAC East Coach of the Year Bailey Newell and the first-team duo of Azlyn Pariera and Hailey Johnson, the Coyotes still have what it takes to potentially give Mossyrock trouble, and the Vikings will hope that they have another stellar defensive outing in them.