MIAA releases basketball pairings

FRANKLIN ? The MIAA released the 2015 high school basketball tournament bracket Saturday at its headquarters, and the North Shore is well-represented. The top of the boys? bracket in Division 1 North is controlled by Lynn English (17-3) as the No. 2 seed and St. John?s Prep (16-4) as the No. 3. Both the Bulldogs and the Eagles received first-round byes and will host games on Friday night. Peabody (10-10) also broke into the tournament for the first time since 2012. The Tanners travel to No. 4 Lawrence (15-5) on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. tipoff.The Division 2 North bracket also features a strong local flavor. Danvers (21-0) is the top seed and is the favorite to win the state title, while No. 5 seed Salem (15-5), No. 13 Beverly (11-9), No. 14 Gloucester (11-9) and No. 16 Lynn Classical (11-11) all earned the right to play in the postseason. Classical and Gloucester host preliminary tournament games on Monday, while Beverly plays at home against North Andover on Tuesday.Division 3 includes No. 4 Lynnfield (15-5), No. Saugus (9-11) and No. 9 Swampscott (7-13). Swampscott travels to Saugus on Tuesday, while Lynnfield hosts Stoneham the same night.St. Mary?s (15-5) is the No. 4 seed in the Division 4 bracket and will play Mystic Valley at home on Wednesday. A win by the Spartans would likely set up a rematch with undefeated Hamilton-Wenham, which St. Mary?s eliminated last season in the North semifinals.On the girls’ side, the Division 1 bracket includes No. 5 Revere (16-4), No. 8 Salem (14-6), No. 9 Beverly (14-6), and No. 10 Peabody (13-6). Peabody travels to North Andover on Monday, while Revere hosts Lawrence on Tuesday. Beverly plays at Salem on Wednesday.The girls? Division 2 North bracket features a dozen squads, including No. 9 Marblehead (12-8) and No. 12 Danvers (10-10). Marblehead travels to Tewksbury on Monday, while Danvers tips off at Belmont on Tuesday.Division 3 North is a 10-team tourney that includes No. 3 St. Mary?s (17-5), No. 4 Bishop Fenwick (14-6) and No. 5 Lynnfield (13-7). Lynnfield looks to avenge a postseason loss to Fenwick on Friday night while South Boston will meet St. Mary?s.