Boys’ basketball: Top four survive to make it to the final four

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Back when the City Section announced the pairings for the City Section boys’ basketball playoffs, nearly 10 days ago, most agreed that Taft deserved to be the top-seeded team in the Championship Division. Westchester ended up with the second seed, followed by Fairfax at three and Fremont at four. In retrospect, the pecking order was right on the money.

One need not look any further than Wednesday’s quarterfinal results for proof. Sure enough, the top four teams are still alive and will meet in Friday’s semifinals at USC’s Galen Center. Westchester takes on Fairfax at 6 p.m. and Taft tangles with Fremont in the second half of the doubleheader at 8 p.m.

With the semis set in stone, it’s time for some predictions.

Figured it might be interesting to see what Daily News prep guru Erik Boal thought about the final four. He likes Taft in a rout, 78-57, and Fairfax in a close one, 62-59. I’m a little leery about my picks, given my poor track record lately, but here it goes anyway: Fremont gets blown out, 72-48. And I’ll take Westchester in a nail-biter, 68-67.

-- Sean Ceglinsky