The Montgomery County and Wellsville-Middletown basketball teams will wrap up the final week of February by playing in their respective district tournaments.

And they hope their seasons will be extended into March.

Seedings and pairings were released on Tuesday for the Wildcats and Tigers in both boys and girls divisions. The MCHS boys are seeded first in the Class 3, District 7 tournament at South Callaway, the MCHS girls were selected as the No. 2 seed in the Class 3, District 7 tournament in Centralia, the W-M boys are seeded fourth in the Class 1, District 10 tournament in Madison and the W-M girls have the No. 6 seed in the Class 1, District 9 tournament in Madison.

The MCHS boys have a first-round bye in district play. Their quest for their second straight appearance at the Class 3 Show-Me Showdown begins at 6 p.m. on Feb. 26, when they play either fourth-seeed North Callaway or fifth-seeded Missouri Military Academy in a semifinal game. North Callaway and MMA will square off at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 24 in a quarterfinal game.

The championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Feb. 28. The winner advances to the sectional tournament, which will be played on March 3 at Ballew & Snell Court.

The Wildcats earned the top seed in district play for the second year in a row. Last year, MCHS was the No. 1 seed in the District 7 tournament at New Bloomfield and defeated Hermann 62-37 in the finals, en route to a fourth-place finish at the Class 3 Show-Me Showdown.

The Wildcats are enjoying an outstanding season with a 24-1 record. They wrap up their regular season play on Thursday with a home game against Clopton and will look to win their third straight Eastern Missouri Conference title. 

MCHS was 2-0 against its district opponents this season, beating North Callaway on Feb. 15 at home and Hermann on Feb. 1 in the Hermann Tournament championship game.

Hermann is the No. 2 seed in the South Callaway district tournament. South Callaway is third, New Bloomfield is sixth and Linn is seventh.

The MCHS girls will take on third-seeded North Callaway at 7 p.m. on Feb. 27 in a semifinal game. The winner advances to the championship game at 1 p.m. on March 1. The district champion advances to play in the sectional round – which is also hosted by MCHS – on March 4.

Centralia is the top seed and will play either fourth-seeded Mark Twain or fifth-seeded Bowling Green in a semifinal game on Feb. 27.

Last year, the Wildcats were the top seed in the North Callaway district and lost to second-seeded Centralia 47-39 in the finals.

This year, MCHS is 14-10 and has home games against Southern Boone (Wednesday) and Clopton (Friday) remaining in its regular season. The Wildcats are 3-0 against their district opponents, beating North Callaway, Mark Twain and Bowling Green.

The W-M boys will play fifth-seeded Bevier at 5 p.m. on Feb. 24 in a quarterfinal game. The winner plays top-seeded Cairo at 6 p.m. on Feb. 26 in a semifinal game. The championship game is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Feb. 28.

The other teams in the tournament are Higbee (No. 2 seed), Madison (No. 7 seed), Columbia Independent (No. 3 seed) and Community R-6 (No. 6 seed).

W-M is competing in Class 1 in the postseason this year after playing in Class 2 the last two years.

The Tigers cruised to a 54-21 win over Bevier in the third-place game of the Keytesville Tournament on Feb. 1. They are 2-1 against their district opponents. They beat Community 61-40 in their season opener on Nov. 26 and lost to Higbee 61-16 in the Keytesville Tournament semifinals on Jan. 30.

W-M is 6-18 and has tripled its win total of two from last year. The Tigers will play Wright City at Roundtree and Johnson Court on Thursday to end their regular season. 

The W-M girls will face Community at 8 p.m. on Feb. 25 in a quarterfinal game. The winner will play either second-seeded Higbee or seventh-seeded Madison at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 27 in the semifinals. The championship game is scheduled for 1 p.m. on March 1. 

Cairo is the top seed and will play either fourth-seeded Jamestown or fifth-seeded Prairie Home in the semifinals on Feb. 27.

The Tigers lost to Community 45-21 in their season opener on Nov. 26. They are 1-2 against their district opponents. They lost to Higbee 60-30 in the Keytesville Tournament finals on Feb. 1 and picked up a forfeit win over Prairie Home in the New Franklin Tournament in January.

W-M is 5-19 this year after winning 13 games last year. The Tigers take on Wright City in their regular season finale on Thursday at home.