Storylines for the Section 4 boys and girls basketball tournaments

A new-look Section 4 basketball tournament is about to commence, with boys and girls participants spread for the first time across six enrollment classifications. The New York State Public High School Athletic Association instituted Class AAA to the years-long AA, A, B, C and D breakdown.

The aim is to secure space in sectional finals, to be contested March 1-3.

The down-the-road goal for girls teams is advancement to state final four competition March 14-17 at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy. For boys, the targeted destination is Glens Falls for March 14-17 final fours.

Come next season, Section 4 boys teams will seek “home games” when the tournament concludes – for the first of a three-year stay – at Visions Veterans Memorial Arena. Binghamton’s first go at hosting the boys final fours was from 2017-19.

More: NYSPHSAA Section 4 boys basketball 2024 tournament pairings

More: NYSPHSAA Section 4 girls basketball 2024 tournament pairings

2023 Section 4 boys champions: AA-Elmira, A-Horseheads, B-Owego, C-Moravia, D-South Kortright.

2023 Section 4 girls champions: AA-Binghamton, A-Union-Endicott, B-Newark Valley, C-Union Springs, D-Oxford.

Section 4 representatives most recently secured state basketball titles in 2022 (Newfield boys) and 2018 (Susquehanna Valley and Delhi girls). State tournaments were held in neither 2020 nor 2021 because of COVID-19.

Other storylines to watch for the boys and girls tournaments:

U-E boys a potent No. 1 seed

Union-Endicott’s boys strung eight consecutive victories out of the chute beginning with a two-pointer against Elmira on Dec. 2 before absorbing three losses in a five-game stretch concluding with a 13-point setback at Binghamton.

U-E followed with a four-game win streak – those coming by a 17.8-point average - before dropping its regular-season finale to Johnson City, 79-77, solidifying the Wildcats’ STAC Metro Conference championship. The Tigers are seeded first in a three-team ‘AA’ mini-bracket.

The Tigers await either third-seeded Horseheads or second-seeded Binghamton in the Class AA final.

Elmira-Corning rivalries renewed

For the third year in a row, the boys teams at Elmira and Corning will meet in a sectional final, this time in AAA. Corning took the AA title two years ago and the Express captured the crown last year.

STAC West champion Elmira earned the top seed and home court for the March 1 final in part because of two regular-season wins against the Hawks: 62-54 at Corning on Jan. 12 and 76-55 at Elmira on Feb. 9. Corning led the second game early in the second half before a 29-9 Express run.

The Elmira girls have ridden a mix of youth and senior leadership to an 11-8 record, an active four-game winning streak and the top seed of the two Class AAA teams that play in Section 4, giving the Express home court against Corning for the first game of a finals doubleheader between the schools March 1.

After winning four consecutive Section 4 titles from 2017 to 2020 and being denied a realistic shot to make a run at a state title in 2020 thanks to the COVID shutdown, the Express will try to get over the hump after losing in sectional play the previous two years. Elmira has two wins over Corning: 53-25 at home Jan. 13 and 54-39 on the road Feb. 8.

More: Horseheads' girls capture another STAC basketball title, scraping past Chenango Forks

More: Zubayr Griffin comes up big as Johnson City boys slip past Seton CC for STAC title

Johnson City boys riding high

Johnson City’s boys enter Section 4 Class A play having won all but two games, 85-81 vs. Binghamton (Jan. 10) and 66-50 vs. Maine-Endwell (Jan. 20). The Wildcats rounded out the regular season with six consecutive wins by a 29.8-point average margin and tacked on the program’s first Southern Tier Athletic Conference championship since 2011.

JC began the week ranked 10th in Class A by the New York Sports Writers Association, one rung above Seton Catholic Central, which the Wildcats defeated for STAC supremacy.

Horseheads girls seek championship double

Horseheads’ girls have won nine Section 4 championships since Andy Scott took over as head coach in 1999, with the last coming in 2015. This might be the team to return the Raiders to the top of Section 4 hoops despite a strong group of four in the Class AA field that also includes Vestal and a pair of 2023 sectional champions in Union-Endicott and Binghamton.

Horseheads hasn’t lost since the calendar hit 2024, with its streak at 14 after Friday's victory against Chenango Forks gave the Raiders back-to-back STAC titles.

Defense has been a constant at Horseheads since Scott became coach and this season’s team is living up to that standard. On the offensive end, the Raiders are buoyed by the 3-point shooting of leading scorer Sophia Bonnell. The likes of Megan Wolf, Jordyn Gross and Emma Kamas provide strong options.

New coach has Saints primed for run

Heading his squad down a solid path in his first season is Tommy Dempsey, erstwhile nine-season overseer of Binghamton University’s men’s program who succeeded Chris Sinicki at Seton Catholic Central.

The Saints rolled to 12 consecutive victories leading to STAC playoffs before falling in the final to Johnson City, and are seeded second in Class A.

Class C boys field typically strong

After ending a 10-year drought between division titles in the IAC this season, Elmira Notre Dame’s boys have an opportunity to do the same when it comes to Section 4 titles. They lost on a half-court buzzer-beater in last year’s sectional tournament and bounced back to play their way to the No. 2 seed in Class C behind Candor.

Class C is traditionally the deepest class in Section 4 tournament play and this season’s field is no exception. With third-seeded Moravia, it includes three of the four IAC division champions. Notre Dame, Moravia and eighth-seeded Newfield all have state championships in their pedigrees.

Moravia is coming off a 66-51 win Friday against Candor in the IAC Small School final.

Football powers part of tough B field

A pair of schools that won state football championships in December are among the 14 boys teams that will vie for Class B titles.

Waverly is the top seed and features several players from its Class C football champion, including star quarterback Joey Tomasso, who is likewise prolific in producing points on the basketball court.

Tioga won the Class D football state title for the third year in a row but is a Class B school in hoops after reconfigurations at the state and section level.

The Class B field includes a No. 2 seed that has played like a No. 1 in Lansing, which was impressive last week in topping Notre Dame for the IAC Large School title.

Tradition-rich Watkins Glen girls seeded first

Watkins Glen's girls set a high bar with four Section 4 titles in five seasons from 2015 to 2019, highlighted by the Class C state title in 2017 and a state runner-up finish in 2019. Under the leadership of veteran head coach Alicia Learn, the Lake Hawks are having their best season since that run.

Watkins Glen (15-3) earned a first-round bye in the Class C tournament and has a home quarterfinal awaiting against either Southern Cayuga or Bainbridge-Guilford.

This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Storylines for the 2024 Section 4 basketball tournaments