Five Games to Follow: February gets busy

January snow means a busy February for high school sports teams.

Thanks to all the postponements, some teams are looking at back-to-back days with games and three games in one week. With so little time left in the season, and winter weather still a threat, things are going to get even crazier in the coming weeks.

Click below for a list of games to keep an eye on this week.

1. Alvirne at Londonderry girls basketball, 7 p.m., Tuesday

All that's at stake in this game is a top four seed in the Division I girls playoffs. Both teams enter with identical 10-2 records, but they've gotten there in different ways.

After starting the season 3-2, Alvirne has won seven straight to put itself in the conversation of contending teams in the division, while Londonderry won its first six games this season and gone 4-2 since.

The Lancers come in allowing just 39.8 points a game defensively, and have held teams below that average six times this season. The Broncos' offense has been hot as of late, averaging 68.3 points in its last three wins. However, those three games were against teams that are a combined 5-31.

2. Exeter at Bishop Guertin boys hockey, 5:50 p.m., Wednesday

It didn't take long for the Cardinals to get a rematch. The Bluehawks won the first meeting between these teams on Feb. 3, 2-0. That was the first of two back-to-back shutout loses for Bishop Guertin (8-2), which will take on Malden Catholic in a non-division game Monday.

The Cardinals have lost their last two by a combined 7-0 after winning their previous two 18-3. While Bishop Guertin is still first in Division I, thanks to NH Points Index, the Cardinals only win against a team with a winning record came against Trinity on Dec. 22.

Exeter (8-2-1) has won four of its last five games, but that one loss was a 3-2 setback to a Berlin team that didn't have a division win before that.

3. Merrimack at Dover boys hockey, 3 p.m., Friday

This games was rescheduled from last Wednesday and gets a rare Friday afternoon start time. With just three weeks left in the season, Dover (7-3) appears to be the only team with a shot at threatening Merrimack (11-0) for Division II's No. 1 seed.

Merrimack won the previous meeting, 3-2, on Jan. 8, and since then, Dover has won four of five, with its lone loss to Bedford. The Green Wave are coming off a 6-0 win over Goffstown on Saturday, the team's fourth shutout of the season.

The Tomahawks picked up a 2-1 win over Keene, also on Saturday, for their fourth one-goal victory this season. Despite its success, Merrimack has scored more than four goals in a game just three times this year.

4. Hollis/Brookline at Hanover girls basketball, 7 p.m., Wednesday

Both teams started the year off strong, as Hanover won its first five games and H/B started off 6-0. But since, the Marauders and Cavaliers are both 3-2.

After winning its first six, H/B dropped two straight to Souhegan and Portsmouth. Since then, the Cavs have won three straight. H/B has averaged 56.6 points a game, but it will have a tough team reaching that against a Hanover team that gives up 35.3 on average.

5a. Nashua North at Dover boys basketball, 7 p.m., Friday

5b. Dover at Nashua North girls basketball, 7 p.m., Friday

All four teams are on the cusp of a top eight spot in Division I and need a few more wins to secure their position.

Both girls teams have a tough schedule to finish out the regular season. For Dover, Friday's game will be the end of a week that has the Green Wave playing at Manchester Memorial (10-2) on Monday and at Bishop Guertin (7-6) on Tuesday. Then to finish the season, Dover has games at Merrimack (6-5), home to Winnacunnet (12-0) and Manchester Central (4-7) and at Alvirne (10-2). The North girls head to Pinkerton (11-1) on Tuesday and finish the season at Winnacunnet, at Bishop Guertin, home to Merrimack and at Central.

The North boys have gone just 2-3 in their last five games, but the Titans (6-4) finally picked up a signature win last Friday, beating Spaulding 74-68. After playing just once in the last nine days, Dover has three games this week, finishing up with North. The Green Wave lost to Pinkerton 50-46 last Friday in their only game during that span.

Busy week for Souhegan

Both the Souhegan girls and boys basketball teams are scheduled to play three games in four days, starting Tuesday.

The Souhegan boys (6-2) will host Oyster River (8-3) on Tuesday before going on the road to take on Portsmouth (8-2) on Wednesday and Windham (1-10) on Friday. Meanwhile, the girls (9-0) will travel to Oyster River (9-2) and face Portsmouth (8-3) and Windham (6-6) at home, all on the same dates.