By JO WANKEL

Era Sports Writer

March is winding down, and the PIAA Class 1A playoffs are as well, with four teams remaining. Both matchups are set for tonight, and the two winning teams will regroup to face one another Thursday after making the trek to Hershey.

Let’s take a look at tonight’s two games:

Neighborhood Academy (27-1) (H) vs. Otto-Eldred (28-1) (at Hagerty Family Events Center, 7 p.m.)

The Otto-Eldred Terrors have made their mark this year, not only celebrating a first-ever for District 9 with three 1,000point scorers as starters but also having the honor of recording 64 straight league victories and notching four straight regular season titles with those wins.

Seniors Landon Francis, Manning Splain, and Shene Thomas are a triple threat, with Francis averaging 20.7 points per game, Splain averaging 14.8 ppg (with a seven-game stretch following an injury that drags that down) and Thomas averaging 15.3 ppg.

During the Terrors’ three rounds of PIAA playoff action, Francis scored 25, 24 and 21 points respectively, while Splain has scored 26 against Nazareth Prep in round 1 and 19 against Aquinas Academy in the quarterfinals. Thomas also scored 19 in the most recent game against Aquinas Academy.

The Terrors were last in the Semifinals in 2023, when they lost 56-28 to Aliquippa, the team that ended up as the 2A runner-up that year. Aliquippa went on to be the 2A Champions in 2024.

Neighborhood Academy was established in 2001. This is the team’s first appearance in the Final Four. Last year, the Bulldogs were eliminated in the second round, falling to Bishop Carroll (71-70) in overtime. This year’s second-round victory over ECC was a scene of retribution for Neighborhood Academy, who lost to the Crusaders 67-47 in the first round of playoffs in 2023.

Courtney Wallace, who has averaged at least 20 points in the three rounds of the PIAA 1A Playoffs, is also a threat on the boards. Wallace had 20 points in the Bulldogs’ opening round win over Shanksville-Stoneycreek (95-32) and 22 in the quarterfinal win over La Academia Charter (64-44).

Wallace celebrated scoring his 2,000th career point during the 63-44 second-round victory that knocked ECC out of the playoffs.

He isn’t the only one to post double digits for Neighborhood Academy however. Syncere Nicholson is also one to watch, having scored 18 points over Shanksville and 10 over ECC, while teammate Kerdon Gilmore scored 16 in the matchup with Shanksville and nine in the victory over ECC.

The Bulldogs’ Shamar Simpson will also be one to watch, as he scored 13 in the win over ECC and 11 in Neighborhood Academy’s win over La Academia (who knocked out Cameron County with an OT win in Round 2).

Lancaster Country Day (18-10) (H) vs.

Sankofa Freedom Academy (18-11) (at Plymouth Whitemarsh HS, 5:30 p.m.)

The Lancaster Country Day (1810) Cougars have battled their way to the Semifinals, winning in overtime twice and facing a shortage of players due to injury. Starting out, the team had high hopes with five returning starters. However, Senior Jeremy Oulikon broke his leg in a soccer match before basketball season was even on the radar. It took four months to recover, and he hit the court in late January, immediately sinking a three-pointer as a statement to his readiness.

Senior Chris Dukes averages 13.6 ppg and has also battled back after an ankle injury. Ben Sponaugle and Kane Kirby have had their own struggles, while health issues took Coach Jon Shultz off the sidelines for a number of games.

However, the team is ready for today’s matchup and will be a force to be reckoned with on the court at Plymouth Whitemarsh.

The Sankofa Freedom Academy Warriors bring senior Asim Hardy and junior Nafis Dubose as the top threats offensively. Hardy and Dubose both score in double digits and also record noteworthy numbers in boards and steals.

Sankofa Freedom is hungry to advance after falling in the second round of the PIAA playoffs last year, defeated by Dock Mennonite 48-45.

The winners of these two games will face one another at 2 p.m.

March 27 in the GIANT Center in Hershey for the 2025 PIAA 1A Title.