City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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The Public League playoffs begin tomorrow, as 42 teams from the city league's five divisions begin their march towards one eventual champion.

Imhotep Charter, the undefeated 'A' Division champions, are the favorites to win the Pub for the second year in a row and sixth time since 2009. A strong backcourt led by Hampton commit Jaekwon Carlyle and high-major 2017 target Daron Russell power Andre Noble's squad, which also features sharpshooting sophomore Bernard Lightsey and high-flying junior wing Koby Thomas.

The Panthers' biggest competition in the AAA division will come from the team that finished behind them in the division, Delaware Valley. Jason Harrigan is also guard-reliant, with sophomore Antwuan Butler and senior Semaj Motley pacing the Warriors to a 7-3 record in league play.

The Public League playoffs are initially broken down into PIAA classifications, with the quarterfinal round of the league playoffs also serving as the classification final; semifinalists in the AA, AAA and AAAA classifications face off against their Catholic League counterparts for the District 12 championships later in February.

Imhotep wasn't the only team to finish the regular season undefeated: Mastery Charter North gets the No. 1 seed in the AA classification after going 13-0 in the 'C' Division, while Parkway Northwest is No. 4 in Class A after a 13-0 run through the 'E' Division.

Here’s the full schedule:

Thurs., Feb. 4 -- Play-in Round
Tuesday., Feb. 9 -- 1st Round (Higher Seed Home)
Thursday., Feb.11 -- 2nd Round (Higher Seed Home)

Sat., Feb. 13 -- Classification Championship
AA -- 1:00 PM @ HS Future
A -- 2:30 PM @ HS Future
AAAA -- 4:30 PM @ South Philadelphia HS
AAA -- 6:00 PM @ South Philadelphia HS

Tue., Feb. 16 -- Public League Semifinals
     5:00/6:30 PM, South Philadelphia HS

Sat., Feb. 20 -- Public League Campionship
   8:00 PM, Saint Joseph’s University; broadcast on SFBN.com

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Here are the full list of seeds; Public League division and league record in parenthesis. Teams will be re-seeded after the preliminary round.

All preliminary games will take place at 3:15 PM on Thursday.

AAAA
1. Martin Luther King (A, 4-6)
2. George Washington (A, 2-8)
3. Bartram (B, 9-3)
4. Fels (C, 9-4)
5. Frankford (B, 6-6)
6. Kensington (C, 9-4)
7. Northeast (B, 6-6)
8. Gratz (B, 6-6)
9. Overbrook (C, 8-5)
10. Central (B, 4-8)
11. Lincoln (C, 6-7)

Play-In Round:
Lincoln @ Kensington
Central @ Northeast
Overbrook @ Gratz

AAA
1. Imhotep Charter (A, 10-0)
2. Del-Val (A, 7-3)
3. Boys’ Latin (B, 11-1)
4. Ben Franklin (B, 10-2)
5. Sayre (C, 10-3)
6. Audenreid (B, 8-4)
7. West Philadelphia (B, 6-6)
8. South Philadelphia (B, 5-7)
9. Randolph (D, 11-2)
10. Palumbo (D, 10-3)
11. Engineering & Sciences (B, 3-9)
12. Mastbaum (D, 7-6)
13. Prep Charter (C, 4-9)

Play-in Round:
Prep Charter @ Franklin
Mastbaum @ Sayre
Eng. & Sciences @ Audenreid
Palumbo @ West Philadelphia
Randolph @ South Philadelphia

AA
1. Mastery North (C, 13-0)
2. Dobbins (C, 7-6)
3. Parkway CC (C, 7-6)
4. Masterman (D, 9-4)
5. Tacony (E, 11-2)
6. Roxborough (D, 8-5)
7. Strawberry Mansion (C, 4-9)
8. Elverson (E, 8-5)
9. Bodine (E, 8-5)

Play-in Round:
Bodine @ Elverson

A
1. Constitution (A, 4-6)
2. Math, Civics & Sciences (A, 3-7)
3. Robeson (C, 9-4)
4. Parkway Northwest (E, 13-0)
5. Sankofa Freedom (B, 4-8)
6. Motivation (D, 11-2)
7. GAMP (E, 11-2)
8. New Media Charter (C, 3-10)