Seventeen wins and a South Division championship don't mean much anymore for the Mount Greylock boys basketball team.
"I think honestly we're focused on Monday night. Whether it be March Madness at the college level or this exciting tournament, you have to really prepare for your next game," said Mounties coach Bob Thistle. "This is a one-game season for everyone."
Greylock (17-3) will open up its second straight postseason run at home Monday against Smith Voc. at 6 p.m. The Mounties earned the No. 3 seed in the Western Massachusetts Division III tournament, one of three county schools in the field. Defending champion St. Joe (11-8) is the sixth seed and faces Frontier at home Tuesday. Lee (12-8) is the seventh seed and hosts Turners Falls.
Three other county boys teams also qualified. Taconic (12-8) is fourth in Division II and hosts Mahar on Thursday at 7 p.m. Wahconah (10-10), the sixth seed travels to Sabis that same night. Pittsfield, the only Division I team in Berkshire County, is at Amherst on Monday. The Generals (13-7) are the last seed in the 12-team Division I field.
"Eighty-five percent of our schedule is Division II or III, so even [if we were] undefeated we're the last seed," said Pittsfield coach Steve Ray. "You've got to beat everybody anyway to get there. Despite what our seed is we're going to give them a run."
Across town, Braves coach Bill Heaphy said he's thrilled to have a home game this year.
"They're well-coached," Heaphy said. "They were guard-oriented and they're guard-oriented to me again this year. They have a well-balanced team. ... We'll be ready."
Coach Dan Korte also thinks his Lee Wildcats will be prepared to face Turners Falls on Monday. The winner of that matchup advances to face Granby.
Korte said Turners Falls, with 14 wins, will present a challenge but Lee has been on a roll the second half of the season.
"I feel like we're playing pretty well," Korte said. "We won seven out of our last eight games. We're really starting to come together at the end which is what you want to do."
The most tantalizing early-round matchup would come if both St. Joe and Greylock advance. The county rivals would play Thursday in Williamstown for a trip to the Curry Hicks Cage at the University of Massachusetts.
"Greylock, in my opinion is the No. 1 seed in the tournament," said Crusaders coach Paul Brindle. "They were the best team in Berkshire County. Berkshire County is one of the toughest leagues in my opinion. I was shocked to see them third.
"But it is what it is. The way I look at it is you got to beat the best teams to be the best. We're getting the best team in Division III in the second round."
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