Wilson's road to state title doesn't leave Florence

Wilson coach DeAndre Scott will be worrying about a lot of things as his team prepares for the postseason.

Traveling won’t be one of them.

The Tigers, who open the playoffs Tuesday against Hilton Head, won’t have to leave the city if it’s going to advance to the Class 3A championship next month. The way the brackets work this year, Wilson is guaranteed being at home as long as it keeps winning, and this year’s lower state championships will be held at the Florence Civic Center.

Wilson, the Region 8-3A champion, has been dominant at home over the last two seasons. The Tigers went 9-0 this season and have won 19 of their last 20 games at home.

“I would be lying to say we weren’t aiming for that,” Scott said about his team being at home for playoffs. “Since our workouts in September, our number one goal was to win the region and be at home.

“It’s always good to have home games, especially in our case, where it has been really good for us this year.”

The Tigers won’t have an easy road to get to the lower state championship with A.C. Flora, Hartsville and Bluffton as possible matchups along the way. Scott thinks there are about six teams capable of winning the lower state title.

After a four-game losing streak in the middle of season, Wilson went 8-2 in the region and won its last three games by more than 10 points after winning only two games by more than 10 points prior to that.

Darlington sits on the other side from Wilson and Hartsville in the lower state bracket. After losing all five starters from last year’s state runner-up team, the Falcons went 10-0 to win their third straight Region 6-3A title.

“Nobody thought much of us this year I don’t think,” Darlington coach Ken Howle said after his team clinched the region title against Hartsville on Feb. 3. “We were just a bunch of no-namers who have worked extremely hard. It’s a credit to our program, too. I got a bunch of assistant coaches who work extremely hard.”

The Falcons host Airport on Tuesday and face a similar road back to the lower state title game. If Darlington wins, it will likely face Lake Marion, a team it beat in the second round last year.

The Falcons might travel to Lower Richland in the third round in a rematch of last year’s lower state championship. Lower Richland defeated Darlington then.

Here is a look at the other playoff brackets involving Pee Dee teams:

Class 4A

South Florence shared its first Region 6-4A title with Carolina Forest and will open the playoffs at home against Goose Creek on Wednesday.

The Bruins have faced Goose Greek the last two times it has made the playoffs. South lost at Goose Creek in 2009.

South is led by senior guard Will Daniels and forward Dontay Holmes and finished the year by winning five of its final six games. 

Class 2A

Marion comes into the tournament on a 10-game winning streak. The Swamp Foxes, who won the Region 8-2A title after defeating Mullins 52-48 on Wednesday, host Manning on Wednesday.

Junior Marqui Mckelvey is averaging 17.6 points and 13.5 rebounds a game for the Swamp Foxes. Marion might be without junior Kevin Rowell, who missed the final five games with a knee injury. Marion coach John Washington said he will know early this week about his status.

Mullins, the Region 8-2A runner-up, hosts Lake City in the first round and will be looking for its third state title trip in the last four years. If the Auctioneers win Wednesday, they will likely meet Silver Bluff in the second round, a team they beat 76-57 last year in the playoffs.

“We had already talked to our kids about if we didn’t win the region and what we would have to do,” Mullins coach Mark Gerald said after Wednesday’s game. “We had to go to Timberland last year and won. So it’s a matter of just getting our heads back together.”

In the upper state, Lee Central went unbeaten in Region 4-2A and will have home-court advantage until the upper state title game in Greenville.

Cheraw, the second seed from Region 4-2A, will host Strom Thurmond.

Class A

Johnsonville and C.E. Murray are two of the top teams from the Pee Dee in the lower state bracket.

The Flashes won the Region 8-A crown, their first since 1992, and will host East Clarendon in the first round. Johnsonville hasn’t won a playoff game since it beat Latta in 2004.

“To go from the bottom of the pack for so many years and win a championship in a region with Carvers Bay and Hemingway is very exciting,” Johnsonville coach Harris Avant said. “Hopefully, we have earned a little more respect by winning this thing in such a tough region.”

C.E. Murray, the Region 7-A champs, will be looking for its second straight lower state title trip. The War Eagles host Latta on Tuesday in the first round.

There will be two more first-round games involving Pee Dee matchups with Timmonsville hosting Carvers Bay and Hemingway hosting Lamar. 

Girls
Class 4A

West Florence will host a first-round game after finishing second in Region 6-4A. The Knights take on Wando on Tuesday.

West is looking for its first playoff win since 2007 when it defeated Dutch Fork.

South Florence will try and continue coach Lisa Jones’ final season as it travels to West Ashley on Tuesday. The Bruins rallied from a 19-point deficit Friday against West Florence to make the postseason.

Class 3A

Marlboro County, the Region 6-3A runner-up, hosts A.C. Flora in a first-round matchup Monday. The Bulldogs feature senior Nikkei Blackburn, one of the top players in 3A.

Hartsville, the fourth seed out of Region 6-3A, is at Dreher on Monday in a rematch of last year’s lower state semifinal, which the Red Foxes won 86-57.

Class 2A

Lake City, Mullins and Marion each have good chances to make it to the lower state championship.

The Panthers won their first region title since 1998-99 and will host Waccamaw on Tuesday. Lake City made it to the second round last year before losing to Silver Bluff.

Mullins, the Region 8-2A champs, will host Andrews in the first round and is looking for its first playoff win since 2005. Region 8-2A Player of Year Brittany Rowell is averaging 21 points and 10.4 rebounds a game.

Marion also will be a factor is coming off a 15-3 season, including 8-2 in Region 8-2A. Sophomore Tyshanna Lester is averaging 21.4 points and 6.5 steals a game.

Cheraw won its first region title since 1979 and has home-court advantage until the upper state championship in Greenville.

Class A

Timmonsville is eyeing its second straight trip to the lower state championship but it won’t be easy. The Whirlwinds are in same part of the bracket as Baptist Hill and Ridgeland.

The Whirlwinds are the No. 2 seed from region 7-A and host Johnsonville on Monday. Timmonsville defeated the Flashes in the lower state semifinals last year.

C.E. Murray, the Region 7-A champion, hosts Creek Bridge on Monday and is looking for its second trip to the lower state championship in the last three years. The War Eagles have three players averaging 10 or more points, led by Naomi Moore (20.0).