Jumping Classes in WPIAL Basketball

Football is still king in Western Pennsylvania, but I still get excited for basketball season. It's possibly because when I went to high school, we were a basketball school. I watched from the rowdy and packed student section as my Butler Golden Tornado had two consecutive improbable runs in the WPIAL Playoffs. There has also been tremendous talent to come out of the WPIAL in recent years. DeJuan Blair, D.J. Kennedy, Sheldon Jeter, Ryan Luther, Micah Mason and those are names that just come off the top of my head. Frankly if you watch WPIAL over the course of the season, not only are you bound to see Division I talent, but also some very exciting games.

New Castle taking home their 2014 PIAA Championship

But, I do find fault with a WPIAL rule that, frankly, I saw first hand the impact it can have on a section, let alone an entire AAAA season. New Castle and Hampton knew they had teams who could compete for state championships last season and the season prior to that. When they saw this opportunity in front of their programs, these AAA class teams jumped up to the AAAA level.

Classes are determined by school enrollment, a very contrite policy. However, one caveat to the rule, is that teams are able to jump up classes every two years if they so choose. So, Hampton and New Castle both realized that they not only had the talent to compete in Quad A, but rather the talent to chase a state championship. So, up came Hampton and New Castle. And they didn't lose. That's also not a hyperbole. Hampton lost five times in the past two years. Four of those games were to New Castle. New Castle meanwhile lost only once, to a team from basketball crazy Philly. They took home state titles and were extremely impressive.

But guess where these teams are this year? AAA. How is it fair to teams who were in New Castle and Hampton's section? I'm saying these teams would have been bottom feeders this year. But, instead Section 3 has to welcome in Central Catholic, always a tough team no matter what year. So, how is that fair to Butler, North Allegheny, Seneca Valley, Pine Richland and the others. They would have had an opportunity to finally get back at Hampton and New Castle, but instead won't even get to see them. Could you imagine being a player on these teams and after two years of getting beat by these teams, there gone. And you could have had a shot to beat them. Every competitor loves the chance of revenge. Now, Hampton and New Castle will go play a class down and try to compete. I just don't see how it's fair. The ability to play with the big guys when you want to and then to retreat again.

I enjoy WPIAL basketball. It's just this one rule that's always irked me.