(Manhattan Cup Finalist Timon remains the top ranked WNY small school / Photo: John Hickey)
Large Schools
1. St. Joe's (A) - They never trailed in the second half and led by as many as 14 points in the Manhattan Cup championship game, ending the Cup drought on Kenmore Avenue and cutting the nets down on their way out.
2. Canisius (A) - Without Declan Ryan in the lineup, the Crusaders still took a late lead at Timon in the Manhattan Cup semifinals, before seeing their season come to an end. Only losses on the year came from St. Joe's & Timon and the resume includes a nine-point victory over Jamestown & a 30-point rout of Health Sciences.
3. Park (A) - Handed Health Sciences a 13-point loss and followed it up with a 16-point win over Tapestry on Thursday night, as Keonjay Carter joined the 1,000 point club.
4. Niagara Falls (AA) - Falls Way included three more wins last week and a whole lot of points. After ringing up 86 in a win over Niagara Wheatfield, the Wolverines hung 103 on Lew-Port in a 35-point road rout, before closing down the regular season with a 55-41 win at Sweet Home. Their championship run now begins with a game against Orchard Park on Monday.
5. Jamestown (AA) - Got clipped at the buzzer by Frontier for their lone league loss earlier in the week, before bouncing back with a win over Fredonia. The defending Class A champions from Health Sciences arrive in Jamestown on Monday night to kick off the Class AA Tournament.
6. McKinley (A1) - The last undefeated team in WNY is now just three wins away from a perfect championship season after handling East in their rematch and winning the Yale Cup.
7. St. Francis (A) - There was a lot to like about the Red Raiders this season, who would caused a restless night of sleep for any Section VI coach if they had to face them in the postseason. Particularly, I was impressed with the play of three seniors from Frannies. Aidan Brunner turned into a true impact player, Amiel Collins was a dependable scorer & leader for the team and a focus for opposing coaches to plan for, and Peyton Consigli became an elite high school player in all phases.
8. Hamburg (A1) - The ECIC II champions finished the regular season with a victory at Frontier, where the Falcons had just downed Jamestown in the game prior. The Bulldogs begin postseason play by hosting Hutch Tech in Class A1 and hope to end up being the squad that ends McKinley's dream season while winning another type of championship.
9. Williamsville East (A2) - Winners in four of their last five games, including a thriller in double OT over Olean on Friday night to drop an exclamation point on the regular season. Also dropping that night were points by Max Schneider - matching the WNY season-high 46 in the victory.
10. Lockport (AA) - A 14-point win at Lew-Port, followed by a four-point nonleague victory at Amherst send the #3 seed Lions into the Class AA Tournament winners of 9 of their last 10 games. The postseason begins for them with a visit from defending Section VI champion Lancaster.
Small Schools
1. Timon (B) - Added another win over Canisius to an already phenomenal resume for a small school and then battled all the way to the end in the Manhattan Cup championship. Kamar Goudelock made some shots in that last game that can only be described as awesome baby!
2. Olean (B1) - The CCAA I West champs saw their 10-game win streak snapped on a Friday night road trip at Williamsville East in double overtime. That might be all it takes to fire up the Huskies in their quest to win a 13th Section VI title in 15 seasons. That journey begins with a rematch of the 2020 Class B1 Final against East Aurora on Tuesday.
3. Bennett (B1) - Big wins last week over IPrep & Middle College send the Tigers into the postseason on a seven-game win streak after finishing tied for second place in Yale Cup I. Maryvale visits Main Street on Tuesday night.
4. Tapestry (C1) - After a season that saw the Thunderhawks play the likes of Park, Falls, O'Hara, & Nichols, they're three wins away from their third Section VI crown in program history. The biggest obstacle in the Class C1 field might be Salamanca, who arrives in Buffalo on Tuesday night.
5. East (B1) - Losses in two of their last three games, with the win coming by one point over Hutch Tech, after winning eight straight games. The Panthers will seek a return to the win column when they host Albion on Tuesday night, looking to advance to face the Olean/East Aurora winner.
6. Cardinal O'Hara (B) - The end of the road came for the Hawks on Wednesday night in Athol Springs, where they fell to St. Francis in the Manhattan Cup quarterfinals.
7. Medina (B2) - With yet another N-O title in hand (the sixth in the last seven years), the Mustangs take their eight-game win streak and #1 seed in Class B2 into the postseason, which starts with a quarterfinal against Alden.
8. Southwestern (B3) - Winners of four straight games heading into the postseason, including victories over Fredonia, Allegany-Limestone, & Salamanca. The Trojans are the hottest team in the Class B3 bracket with recent wins over a pair of the contenders. They host Cleveland Hill on Monday in a Class A3 quarterfinal.
9. East Aurora (B1) - A very good small school that plays in a league with a couple tough teams from Class A2 in Cheektowaga & Iroquois. Both of them knocked off the Blue Devils in the final week of the regular season, setting up a tough first round sectional draw in Class B1 -- a trip to Olean.
10. Clymer (D) - Suffered their first loss of the year at the hands of Sherman, who they split with in the regular season. Still, the Pirates are league champions and the top seed entering the Section VI Class D Tournament and ended the regular season by taking Chautauqua Lake, who owns a win over Randolph, apart in a nonleague game.
-centercourt
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