High school tournament: Lowell boys basketball squad to battle undefeated North

The Lowell High boys basketball team will be big underdogs when it takes the court Friday.

The Red Raiders have enjoyed a terrific season in the powerful Merrimack Valley Conference, but the No. 9 seed (16-6) will be playing in enemy territory against the top team in Massachusetts.

North isn’t just the defending Division 1 state champions. The top-seeded Polar Bears (21-0) are undefeated and rarely tested.

Lowell will attempt to pull off the upset in a round of 8 game in Worcester at 6:30 p.m.

Lowell has eliminated Beverly, 83-57, at home and then MVC rival Andover on the road, 54-45, thanks to an impressive third quarter.

Tzar Powell-Aparacio and Xavier Rivera has been dominant in the postseason for the Red Raiders, as they were in the regular season.

Not surprisingly, North has cruised to two state tournament victories over King Philip, 90-64, and Waltham, 78-40. The Polar Bears seem to play at a different tempo than their opponents, the faster the better.

Here are other state tournament games involving local teams this weekend.

Friday: The Littleton girls basketball team will play in Division 4 round of 8 action. The No. 5 Tigers (17-5) and senior star Victoria McCoy will play at No. 4 Millis (17-7) at 6 p.m.

Saturday: Tewksbury and Shawsheen Tech will play in Division 2 and Division 3 final 4 games, respectively, at Stoneham Arena.

No. 1 Tewksbury (20-3), which has outscored opponents 22-3 in three tournament games thanks a dominant first line, will face No. 4 Woburn (15-5-1) at 7 p.m.

In the game before, No. 2 Shawsheen Tech (22-1-0) will face No. 6 Marblehead (15-9-1) at 4 p.m. The Rams and goaltender Mike Cedrone have been stingy in three tournament wins and are coming off two shutout performances.

In a Division 4 round of 8 girls basketball contest, No. 2 Tyngsboro (21-1), sparked by Gianna Donato and Carly DiMento, will entertain No. 7 Bourne (20-2) at 5 p.m.

Sunday: The Pelham boys basketball team will attempt to net its second straight state Division 2 championship. The top-seeded Pythons, led by Zach James and Dom Herrling, will clash with No. 2 Hanover at 1 p.m. at Lundholm Gymnasium on the campus of the University of New Hampshire.