With the postseason on the horizon, rankings and power points are becoming of the utmost importance. There will be 64 playoff teams in the top three conferences in the state, including 16 teams receiving "first-round" byes. In the 6A and 5A conferences, where more than half of the field makes the postseason, there is not much drama, per se. However, in 4A, there would be two teams outside of the top 16 make it as automatic qualifiers, meaning that in all likelihood any at-large bids will only be secure with a top 14 ranking at the end of the season.
Heading into a full slate of games Tuesday, here are the potential matchups for the play-in tournament for 6A and 5A and the top 16 seeds for the 4A conference:
6A CONFERENCE
BYES
No. 1 Pinnacle
No. 2 O'Connor
No. 3 Cibola
No. 4 Tucson
No. 5 Perry
No. 6 Desert Ridge
No. 7 Hamilton
No. 8 Corona del Sol
PLAY-IN TOURNAMENT
No. 9 Desert Vista vs. No. 24 Xavier Prep
No. 10 Sunnyside vs. No. 23 Chandler
No. 11 Red Mountain vs. No. 22 Westwood
No. 12 Mountain Pointe vs. No. 21 Gilbert
No. 13 Westview vs. No. 20 Dobson
No. 14 Rincon/University vs. No. 19 Mountain Ridge
No. 15 Boulder Creek vs. No. 18 Millennium
No. 16 Desert Mountain vs. No. 17 Horizon
5A CONFERENCE
BYES
No. 1 Cienega
No. 2 Shadow Ridge
No. 3 Sahuaro
No. 4 Chaparral
No. 5 Ironwood Ridge
No. 6 Arcadia
No. 7 Verrado
No. 8 Desert Edge
PLAY-IN TOURNAMENT
No. 9 Marana vs. No. 24 Liberty
No. 10 Queen Creek vs. No. 23 Barry Goldwater
No. 11 Mountain View-Marana vs. No. 22 Agua Fria
No. 12 Mesquite vs. No. 21 Ironwood
No. 13 Desert View vs. No. 20 Lake Havasu
No. 14 Centennial vs. No. 19 Williams Field
No. 15 Poston Butte vs. No. 18 Vista Grande
No. 16 Campo Verde vs. No. 17 Willow Canyon
4A CONFERENCE
No. 1 Canyon del Oro vs. No. 16 Gila Ridge*
No. 2 Cactus vs. No. 15 Prescott^
No. 3 Sunrise Mountain vs. No. 14 Casa Grande
No. 4 Apache Junction vs. No. 13 Seton Catholic
No. 5 St. Mary's vs. No. 12 Cactus Shadows
No. 6 Coconino vs. No. 11 Mingus
No. 7 Prescott vs. No. 10 Pueblo Magnet
No. 8 Greenway vs. No. 9 Salpointe Catholic
*Makes playoffs as automatic qualifier for leading the Southwest Region.
^Makes playoffs as automatic qualifier for leading the Grand Canyon Region.
