Bracketology: Division II Girls Basketball (Feb. 21)

The Division II girls basketball regular season is down to its final week and there is still a lot to be decided before the postseason begins on Feb. 27.

This week, we’ll be updating the playoff picture when necessary for Sports Insider Members. To signup for a membership, click on the register button below.

Note: With the NHIAA’s 70-percent rule in place for the postseason, Division II will have 16 teams. These are not official pairings.

Division I

Playoff field (record, rating)

1. Portsmouth (17-0, 4.0588)
2. Pelham (15-1, 3.7500)
3. Hollis Brookline (15-2, 3.5294)
4. Lebanon (15-2, 3.5294)
5. Kennett (13-4, 3.1176)
6. Goffstown (12-5, 2.8235)
7. Hanover (12-5, 2.8235)
8. Bishop Brady (11-5, 2.7500)
9. Windham (10-7, 2.3529)
10. Bow (9-7, 2.2500)
11. John Stark (9-7, 2.2500)
12. Laconia (9-8, 2.1176)
13. Merrimack Valley (9-8, 2.1176)
14. Pembroke (9-8, 2.1176)
15. ConVal (7-10, 1.6471) ⇑
16. Souhegan (7-11, 1.5556) ⇓

Outside: Coe-Brown (6-11, 1.4118); Timberlane (6-11, 1.4118); Kearsarge (5-12, 1.1765); Kingswood (4-12, 1.0000); Milford (3-14, 0.7059); Plymouth (1-16, 0.2353); Manchester West (0-17, 0.0000); Oyster River (0-17, 0.0000).

Tiebreakers

• Hollis Brookline wins the tiebreaker with Lebanon thanks to a head-to-head victory.
• Goffstown wins the tiebreaker with Hanover thanks to a head-to-head victory.
• Bow wins the tiebreaker over John Stark thanks to a head-to-head victory.
• Laconia wins the three-way tiebreaker with Merrimack Valley and Pembroke thanks to a better rating in head-to-head games.
• Merrimack Valley wins the tiebreaker with Pembroke thanks to a head-to-head victory.

Schedule

• Wednesday, Feb. 21: Bow at Kingswood, 6 p.m.; Portsmouth at Pelham, 6:30 p.m.
• Thursday, Feb. 22: Laconia at Plymouth, 6 p.m.; Timberlane at Goffstown, 6:30 p.m.; Windham at Hanover, 7 p.m.
• Friday, Feb. 23: Kennett at Kingswood, 5:30 p.m.; Manchester West at Pelham, 6:30 p.m.; Bishop Brady at Hollis Brookline, 6:30 p.m.; Merrimack Valley at Pembroke, 6:30 p.m.; Lebanon at John Stark, 6:30 p.m.; Bow at Kearsarge, 6:30 p.m.; Milford at ConVal, 6:30 p.m.; Coe-Brown at Oyster River, 8 p.m.

Scenarios

• Portsmouth has clinched the No. 1 seed.
• Pelham can clinch the second seed by winning both its remaining games, or with a win and loses by Hollis Brookline and Lebanon.
• Hollis Brookline would finish second with a win and a loss by Pelham and Lebanon.
• Lebanon would finish second in a three-way tie with Pelham and Hollis Brookline.
• Kennett clinches the fifth seed with a win.
• Merrimack Valley and Pembroke have clinched playoff spots.

The final two spots

• ConVal, Souhegan and Coe-Brown are alive for the final two playoff spots.
• If ConVal wins its final game, it clinches a playoff spot.
• If Coe-Brown wins its final game, and ConVal wins, the Bears clinch the final spot and Souhegan is out.
• If Coe-Brown loses, ConVal and Souhegan are both in.
• If Coe-Brown wins and ConVal loses, creating a three-way tie, Souhegan and ConVal are both in and Coe-Brown is out.

First-round matchups (changes in bold)

• No. 16 Souhegan at No. 1 Portsmouth
• No. 9 Windham at No. 8 Bishop Brady
• No. 12 Laconia at No. 5 Kennett
• No. 13 Merrimack Valley at No. 4 Lebanon
• No. 15 ConVal at No. 2 Pelham
• No. 10 Bow at No. 7 Hanover
• No. 14 Pembroke at No. 3 Hollis Brookline
• No. 11 John Stark at No. 6 Goffstown