Still standing: Mecklenburg teams play for basketball titles 

Four Mecklenburg County schools advanced to the title game in North Carolina high school basketball finals March 11-14 in Winston-Salem.

Four Mecklenburg County teams are competing for North Carolina basketball titles.

West Charlotte and Queens Grant boys and Mallard Creek and North Mecklenburg girls advanced to state title games next week at Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem March 11-14. 

8A 

Both West Charlotte boys and Mallard Creek girls will face Wilmington Hoggard, whose boys and girls were No. 1 seeds in the East. 

Mallard Creek has been on cruise control, winning all their playoff games by 15 or more points. The Mavericks are the No. 2 seed in the West and knocked off top-seeded Ardrey Kell 59-44 on their way to the title game. 

No. 2 seed West Charlotte has been living on the edge the last two rounds, beating South Mecklenburg’s boys 58-53 in the regional semifinal, then top seed West Forsyth 74-70 in overtime. 

Both Hoggard teams cruised in their respective regional finals: the boys beat Wilmington Laney 51-33, and the girls beat Willow Spring 58-38.

The key for West Charlotte and Mallard Creek will be to control pace. Hoggard takes the air out of the basketball and play a slower tempo. If the Mavericks and Lions can speed Hoggard up for higher-scoring games, it will play to their advantage. 

Boys' game is March 11, 5 p.m.; girls' game is March 11, 7:30 p.m.;

7A

No. 3 seed North Mecklenburg girls aren’t playing like the West’s third-best team. The Vikings steamrolled everyone in their path to the title game, including 2025 champion and top seed Lake Norman 73-57 in the regional final. 

The Vikings are a well-oiled machine, and at the point of attack is power forward Lanese Joseph, who averages 18.8 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. At 6-0 tall, she is a matchup nightmare because she can also drive downhill with precision and power. 

North Mecklenburg will face the top-seed from the East, Southern School of Energy and Sustainability, which haven’t been pushed much either in their playoff run. They are ranked No. 5 in the classification according to MaxPreps while the Vikings are ranked No. 2 and No. 5 overall regardless of classification. 

Game time: March 14, 5 p.m.

2A 

The West’s top seed Queens Grant Stallions have one of the most complete teams regardless of classification in the entire state. They have three players averaging double figure scoring with two more right behind at 9.9 and 7.6 ppg. 

Sophomores Mekhi Allen and Chase Smith lead the way for the Stallions. Smith, a 6-8 forward, leads the team with 15.8 ppg. Allen, a guard, averages 15.5. Smith leads the team in rebounds per game with eight per contest. 

The Stallions are led by coach Joe Badgett, who was previously at Carmel Christian school before taking over at Queens Grant. Badgett and company haven’t had to stress much throughout the playoffs, winning comfortably by double digits every round. They will face a bit of a Cinderella story team in Warren County in the championship game. 

Warren County, the East’s No. 8 seed, knocked off the fifth and second seeds on their way to the championship game. 

Game time: March 12, 12 p.m.

Comments