GAINESVILLE – With the district title games in the books and in the rearview mirror, the FHSAA has set the field for all qualifying playoff teams in seven total classifications.

Let us get something out of the way right now.

We have no teams that made it to the Class 1A and Class 4A playoffs, which leaves our area with five classifications to focus on.

Our presence is all over two regions and two classes in particular: Class 3A – Region 3 and Class 7A – Region 3. Five of our area’s 13 qualifying teams are in 3A – Region 3, while four more are in 7A – Region 3.

Here are the seedings for both regions:

3A – REGION 3

•No. 1 seed Benjamin (15-7); District 11-3A champion
•No. 2 seed St. John Paul (15-10); District 12-3A champion
•No. 5 seed Jupiter Christian (15-7): District 11-3A runner-up
•No. 6 seed St. Andrew’s (18-7): District 12-3A runner-up
•No. 8 seed Cardinal Newman (12-11): District 12-3A semifinalist

7A – REGION 3

•No. 3 seed Wellington (21-6): District 11-7A champion
•No. 5 seed Lake Worth (18-3): District 11-7A runner-up
•No. 6 seed Palm Beach Central (21-4): District 11-7A semifinalist
•No. 8 seed Forest Hill (19-5): District 11-7A semifinalist

The other three classifications we have teams featured in the FHSAA postseason are 2A, 5A, and 6A.

Here is the breakdown for all three respective classifications:

2A – REGION 4

•No. 4 seed Lake Worth Christian (18-7): District 14-2A champion
•No. 8 seed Atlantic Christian (12-5): District 12-3A runner-up

5A – REGION 4

•No. 5 seed Suncoast (19-5): District 14-5A runner-up

6A – REGION 4

•No. 6 seed Dwyer (20-3): District 13-6A runner-up

In all, Palm Beach County has 13 total teams participating in the boys basketball playoffs.

Here are the set dates for the regional quarterfinals, regional semifinals, and regional finals for all classifications and all locations:

•Regional Quarterfinals: Thursday, Feb. 17 – 7 p.m. tip-off

•Regional Semifinals: Tuesday, Feb. 22 – 7 p.m. tip-off

•Regional Finals: Friday, Feb. 25 – 7 p.m. tip-off

KEY AREA REGIONAL QUARTERFINAL MATCHUPS

7A – REGION 3: No. 3 Wellington vs. No. 6 Palm Beach Central

This is a rematch of last week’s District 11-7A semifinal matchup, which turned out to be a 68-52 win for Wellington over Palm Beach Central.

The winner will advance to the regional semifinal round, while the loser’s season is officially over.

3A – REGION 3: No. 1 Benjamin vs. No. 8 Cardinal Newman

This will be the first meeting between these two 3A schools.

The winner will advance to the next round, while the loser’s season is over.

NOTE: All teams seeded 1-4 will be at home, while all teams seeded 5-8 will be on the road.

You can go ahead and FHSAA’s website at www.fhsaa.com to see all of the regional quarterfinal matchups there for yourself.

PHOTO CREDITS: FHSAA and Wellington Basketball