Bulldogs, Panthers get ready for playoff run

On Monday, the LHSAA released the playoff brackets for the 2015 post-season. Among the teams that will be vying for a chance at the state championship are two Evangeline Parish Schools, the Ville Platte High Bulldogs and the Pine Prairie Panthers. Both the Bulldogs and Panthers competed in district 5-3A this past season.
Pine Prairie walked away with the district title and Ville Platte earned the district runner-up spot. The Bulldogs earned the number 17 seed after finishing the year with an 18-11 record.
Ville Platte will have to travel on Friday to open the playoffs in the bi-district round. The Bulldogs are set to play Madison High School, located in Tallulah. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Madison High School competes in district 2-3A, a district steeped in basketball tradition. The Jaguars finish this season 20-9 and 3-5 in league play. Key wins over West Monroe, Winnfield and Franklin Parish have propelled Madison to the number 16 seed in the playoffs. The Jaguars have been in the 3A playoffs every year since 2008, including four regional appearances, one quarterfinal appearance and a semi-final appearance in 2012.
Ville Platte comes into the post-season on a six game win streak. The Bulldogs have played one of the toughest schedules in the state. Out of the non-district opponents they have faced this season, 11 of those are in the playoffs of their respective classes.
Included in that group are five teams seeded in the top 10, including number one Madison Prep of class 1A and number two Peabody of class 4A. To say that Ville Platte is ready for the post-season would be an understatement.
Pine Prairie, the number 18 seed, will face off against the number 15 seed Bossier High School. The Panthers completed the season with an overall record of 26-5 and a 9-1 district record. Pine Prairie will travel to Bossier City on Friday to take on the Bearkats. Game time is set for 6:30.
Bossier High School is one of the class 3A basketball powerhouses. The Bearkats won the class 4A championship in 2011 and were runners-up in 2009 and 2010.
In class 3A, they were state runners-up in 2012 and semi-finalists in 2013 and 2014. Bossier finished the year with an 18-11 record and tied for the district 1-3A championship with Evangel.
The Panthers enter the bi-district round having won the district championship in 2015; the first time Pine Prairie has done that since 1994. The Panthers have wins against Avoyelles, Crowley, Notre Dame and Alexandria in non-district play this season.
Pine Prairie has prepared themselves by playing a number of games this year and have been in many different situations. The Panthers know what pressure is and come into the post-season as veterans.