Since the Class L boys basketball tourney began in 1922, there have only been two teams to three-peat.
Salem would like nothing more than to join Portsmouth (1950-53) and the Matt Bonner-led Concord teams (1997-99) in the history books.
The Blue Devils, led by Jason Jones, Mike Kimball and Alex LaRosa will take on Timberlane, with high-scoring Erik Hatton, tomorrow in first-round action.
Salem is the No. 2 seed while Trinity, which lost to the Blue Devils in the 2007-08 title games, is No. 1.
Nobody wants to play No. 5 Pinkerton with its talent and height, including 6-foot-7 Zach Mathieu and 6-3 bruiser Ben Proulx. No. 13 Londonderry boasts a sharpshooter in David Feinstein.
Robby Ficker and Sanborn broke though this year and qualified for the Class M tourney, which also opens tomorrow. The top two seeds are Stevens and defending champion Conant, both of which are 17-1.
Class L Boys
¬ Seedings: 1. Trinity 17-1, 2. Salem 15-3, 3. Manchester Memorial 13-4, 4. Manchester Central 13-5, 5. Pinkerton 13-5, 6. Winnacunnet 11-7, 7. Bishop Guertin 11-7, 8. Manchester West 11-7, 9. Nashua South 11-7, 10. Dover 10-8, 11. Exeter 8-10, 12. Alvirne 8-10, 13. Londonderry 8-10, 14. Spaulding 6-12, 15. Timberlane 6-12, 15. Keene 6-12
First round, March 11, 7 p.m.
Game 1: Keene at Trinity; Game 2: Nashua South at Manchester West; Game 3: Londonderry at Manchester Central; Game 4: Alvirne at Pinkerton; Game 5: Timberlane at Salem; Game 6: Dover at Bishop Guertin; Game 7: Spaulding at Manchester Memorial; Game 8: Exeter at Winnacunnet
Quarterfinals, March 14, 7 p.m.
Site of higher seed
Game 9: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner; Game 10: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner; Game 11: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner; Game 12: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner
Semifinals, March 18 at UNH
Game 13: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7:30 p.m.; Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 6 p.m.
Final, March 21 at UNH, 3 p.m.
Game 15: Game 13 winner vs. Game 14 winner
Class M Boys
¬ Seedings: 1. Stevens 17-1, 2. Conant 17-1, 3. Campbell 16-2, 4. Prospect Mountain 15-3, 5. Franklin 14-4, 6. Mascoma 12-4, 7. Somersworth 12-6, 8. Berlin 11-7, 9. White Mountains 10-8, 10. Winnisquam 10-8, 11. Inter-Lakes 8-10,12. Hopkinton 8-10, 13. Hillsboro-Deering 8-10, 14. Sanborn 8-10, 15. Epping 7-11, 16. Belmont 6-10
First round, March 11, 7 p.m.
Game 1: Belmont at Stevens; Game 2: White Mountains at Berlin; Game 3: HIllsboro-Deering at Prospect Mountain; Game 4: Hopkinton at Franklin; Game 5: Epping at Conant; Game 6: Winnisquam at Somersworth; Game 7: Sanborn at Campbell; Game 8: Inter-Lakes at Mascoma
Quarterfinals, March 14, 7 p.m.
Site of higher seed
Game 9: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner; Game 10: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner; Game 11: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner; Game 12: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner
Semifinals, March 18 at Southern N.H. University
Game 13: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7:30 p.m.; Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 6 p.m.
Final, March 20 at Southern N.H. University, 7 p.m.
Game 15: Game 13 winner vs. Game 14 winner
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