Delta's boys and Scott County Central's girls will try to continue their postseason march tonight when both squads face Ste. Genevieve Valle in Class 1A sectional-round games.

The contests will be played at Poplar Bluff High School, with the girls game slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. and the boys matchup to follow at around 8.

Tonight's winners move on to Saturday's quarterfinal round in Cabool, with those winners advancing to the Class 1A Final Four in Columbia.

Delta (21-7) is coming off a 79-62 win over Holcomb in Monday's regional playoff round. The Bobcats trailed 40-36 at halftime but they dominated the second half.

Valle (25-5) whipped Thayer 66-53 Monday to advance to tonight's action.

"From what I understand, it should be a good ballgame," said Delta coach Nate Crowden. "They seem to be a lot like us, about our size and with all five guys being able to handle the ball.

"We might be a little quicker and maybe a little deeper, but that's about it."

Both squads have steeled themselves against a schedule that consisted of plenty of bigger schools, so each team figures to be battle tested.

Delta has faced the likes of Jackson, Charleston, Scott City, Kelly and others while Valle competed against only larger schools in the Mineral Area Activities Association yet won the league championship.

Valle's top player is 6-foot-3 senior Brian Meyer, who averages close to 25 points per game.

"Meyer is very athletic and he's their top player, but all five kids are pretty decent," Crowden said.

Delta has been paced by its potent senior tandem of 6-2 forward Garrett DeBrock and 5-10 guard Shawn Kinder, who average 21 and 19 points per game, respectively.

DeBrock and Kinder both had 25 points during Monday's win over Holcomb.

"Garrett and Shawn have done it for us all year, but lately we've had a lot of other guys step up and that's been a big key for us," said Crowden.

Added Crowden, "If both teams play well and play like they're capable, it should be a very good game."

Tonight's girls game would seem to favor Scott Central, but like the school's boys team, Valle has also played primarily larger schools.

Scott Central (16-11) rolled past Naylor 67-41 Monday despite leading by just two points at halftime.

Valle (9-16) defeated Van Buren 45-35 in its regional game.

Bravettes' coach Semona Penrod was not all that happy with her team's play against Naylor, but she figures Scott Central will pick things up tonight.

"I just don't think we were mentally ready to play, but we should be for this next one," she said. "We'll have to play better if we want to keep winning."