If the Berks girls basketball playoffs started today . . .
The Berks Girls League playoff picture is beginning to take shape with the snow set to clear and league play picking up this week.
Wyomissing remains the favorite to repeat as Berks champion with a spotless 15-0 record. The Spartans are 5-0 in Berks III and haven beaten second-place Schuylkill Valley 53-29.
The Spartans (.767) have a more-than-worthy challenger in Wilson, which has the highest power ranking among Berks girls teams (.789).
The four division champs, two second-place finishers and the two remaining teams with the highest power rating will make up the eight-team BCIAA playoff field.
Wilson (7-0 Berks I, 15-1), Exeter (3-3 Berks II, 10-5), and Oley Valley (5-0 Berks IV, 12-3) are the leaders and favorites in their respective divisions.
The other playoff qualifiers are currently: Berks Catholic, Brandywine Heights, Gov. Mifflin, and Schuylkill Valley.
If the playoffs started today . . .
| 1 | Wilson | vs. | 8 | Brandywine Heights |
| 4 | Exeter | vs. | 5 | Oley Valley |
| 2 | Wyomissing | vs. | 7 | Schuylkill Valley |
| 3 | Gov. Mifflin | vs. | 6 | Berks Catholic |
Brandywine Heights (.582) has a narrow lead over Reading High (.566) for the last playoff spot based on power rating, but that could easily change.
If the Bullets want to qualify for the Berks playoffs they’ll need to hold off the Red Knights since they’ve already lost to Berks IV rival Oley Valley and Schuylkill Valley, which would earn the Berks III/IV second-place spot by virtue of its head-to-head record.
Wilson and Wyomissing have significantly higher power ratings than the rest of the field. The No. 3 through No. 8 seeds will continue to shuffle as the season plays out.
Berks Catholic (4-1, 6-7), Gov. Mifflin (3-3, 9-6), and Reading High (4-2, 6-8) will be battling for the Berks I-II runner-up spot, as well as chasing Wilson for the top spot. The Saints (.605) have beaten both the Mustangs (.656) and Red Knights. The Red Knights defeated the Mustangs. They each face one another again.
Schuylkill Valley (4-1, 11-5) is in great position for the Berks III-IV second-place spot, with wins over Brandywine Heights and Hamburg (3-3, 6-9), the only other potential challenger. The Panthers beat the Hawks 47-18 earlier this month.
Muhlenberg (1-5 Berks I, 5-10) strengthened its power ranking to .506 with back-to-back wins over division leaders Exeter and Oley Valley but still has lots of ground to make up in order to pass Reading High and catch Brandywine Heights for the final wild card spot.
Twin Valley (2-3, 4-10), Daniel Boone (1-4, 6-9), and Conrad Weiser (1-5, 4-10) remain mathematically in the running for the Berks II title; each has lost to Exeter and trails the first-place Eagles significantly in power rating.
If the playoffs started today, Wilson would be the No. 1 seed and host No. 8 Brandywine Heights, the last qualifier based on power rating. The 4-5 game would feature an intriguing matchup between division leaders Exeter and Oley Valley. Berks I rivals Gov. Mifflin and Berks Catholic would meet up in the 3-6 game and Berks III rivals Wyomissing and Schuylkill Valley in the 2-7 game.
This isn’t set in stone and a lot could change as the teams inch toward the first week of February. Qualifying coaches will be able to challenge their team’s seeding at the end-of-season meeting, meaning even more changes could come after the regular season games end.
