PIAA Class 4A State Championship Tournament Preview (Kehler On Hoops)
Written by: Andy Herr on March 4, 2026
Article by David Kehler
This is the fourth in a series of tournament previews. The complete schedule for the tournament, with updates, is at piaa.org.
The PIAA state championship tournament begins on Friday and concludes on Saturday, March 21. Champions will be crowned in a single elimination format in six, largely enrollment based, classifications. The smallest schools are in Class 1A and the largest in Class 6A. Unlike the NCAA’s March Madness, seeding is not based on power rankings. As such, key games can occur in the early rounds of the PIAA tournament. Just for fun, and to spark discussion, here are some predictions:
The best first round matchup in the entire PIAA tournament is the Class 4A game between District 3 champion Berks Catholic and Carver Engineering & Science, of the Philadelphia Public League. 22-2 Berks Catholic and 20-6 E&S are leading contenders for the state 4A title. Berks Catholic advanced to the championship game last season, and E&S scheduled non-conference games specifically pointing to winning the state title. Amazingly, Berks Catholic and E&S played on a neutral floor in early December, with the former capturing a 53-49 come-from-behind win. Berks Catholic and E&S are in the western half of the bracket.
With veteran coach Snip Esterly, Berks Catholic can be counted upon to play at a high level. Their key player is 6’ 2” senior Kingston McKoy, a Colgate commit who was a 1st team All-State selection last season. McKoy is incredibly clutch and steady. Berks Catholic is on a 19 game winning streak, during which they defeated Bishop McDevitt, Reading twice, Eastern York, Muhlenberg, and Abington Heights, among others.
E&S also has an impressive list of victories, including a win over the outstanding non-PIAA Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. They also defeated Warrior Run, Murrell Dobbins Tech, Universal Audenreid Charter, Constitution, and Sankofa Freedom Academy Charter, all of which are in the PIAA tournament in one class or another. Two of their road losses are notable. They were defeated by one point late in January by District 1 Class 6A champion Plymouth-Whitemarsh, and they lost to Philadelphia city champion and District 12 Class 6A champion Imhotep Charter by eight points. The view from here is that the winner of the Berks Catholic-E&S game should advance to the Class 4A semifinals.
There are other notable contenders in the western half of the bracket: Knoch, Quaker Valley, and Cathedral Prep. Knoch defeated Quaker Valley 48-35 for the District 7 championship last week in a battle of two deliberate teams. Knoch is 22-4 and has been on a roll in recent weeks. Quaker Valley is 20-4.
MaxPreps has Cathedral Prep ranked as the top team in Pennsylvania, irrespective of class. Cathedral Prep is 24-1 and the District 10 champion. They are disciplined and cohesive, and they can shoot. Their only loss was 107-91 at home to defending Class 5A state champion Neumann-Goretti. Otherwise, most of their games against Pennsylvania opposition have been lopsided. For example, they defeated Sharon 99-80 in the District 10 title game. In a more competitive game, they beat District 2 Class 4A champion Scranton Prep 92-86 on a neutral floor in December. In a tournament in Florida, they defeated teams from Louisiana, Utah, and Texas. On their own floor, they beat a team from New York City. Having seen one of their games—vs. Canisius, a team from Buffalo—Cathedral Prep moves the ball very well on offense, and they are surgical in dissecting a defense. Their defensive pressure is effective, too.
Three teams in the eastern side of the bracket stand out: Archbishop Carroll, Bishop McDevitt, and West Philadelphia.
Carroll, a member of the Philadelphia Catholic League and the District 12 champion, is an enigma. They are 14-10, but don’t be deceived by their record: they have played an extremely challenging schedule. They were 9-4 in league games and split two results with defending 5A state champion Neumann-Goretti while defeating Philadelphia Catholic League champion Father Judge. Paradoxically, they lost by 14 at Archbishop Ryan and by 11 at St. Joseph’s Prep, two teams in the middle of the league standings this season. As always, Carroll played top notch out of state teams, including, in an event in the Bahamas, perennial national power Milton (Milton, GA) and Sagemont Prep (Weston, FL). MaxPreps ranks Sagemont the #7 team in Florida this season. So, Carroll is battle tested.
Bishop McDevitt is 21-4, and they split two games with Trinity and won twice against the outstanding Class 5A Milton Hershey squad. They opened the season with 14 straight wins. Their one point loss in the league championship game to Class 6A Central Dauphin, one of the top teams in the state, was an impressive result. In another impressive loss, they fell to Berks Catholic in overtime in a thriller in the District 3 title game.
West Philadelphia is 21-7 and lost by just four points to traditional power Imhotep Charter in the Philadelphia Public League championship game, ending a seven game winning streak. Carroll defeated West Philadelphia for the District 12 championship.
Considering the Class 4A field as a whole, the bracket is very lopsided, with the western portion of the bracket considerably more competitive than the eastern segment. That said, some predictions:
Top teams: Berks Catholic, Carver Engineering & Science, Knoch, Quaker Valley, Cathedral Prep, Archbishop Carroll, Bishop McDevitt, and West Philadelphia
Dark horse: Scranton Prep
Projected final four: Archbishop Carroll, West Philadelphia, Berks Catholic, and Cathedral Prep
Projected championship game: Cathedral Prep over Archbishop Carroll
On X (formerly Twitter): @david_kehler
LLhoops.com contributor David Kehler chairs the Pennsylvania Sportswriters’ selection of the boys All-State basketball teams
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