Cold Springs’ Adam Carney (2) fires off a 3-point attempt over Tanner’s Kameron Mull (1) during an area matchup at Jesse George Gymnasium. There’s potential at this week’s regional tourney for yet another rematch between the area rivals.

Cullman and Austin and Cold Springs and Tanner have played some pretty epic clashes this season.

The thought of a fourth between each pair might just bring down Wallace State.

Of course, there’s no use worrying about either rematch if even one of the teams doesn’t take care of business in the Northwest Regional Tournament semifinals. Class 2A No. 1 Cold Springs will kick off local action against sixth-ranked Altamont Thursday at 7:30 p.m., a full three hours after Tanner is scheduled to tango with Tarrant. Meanwhile, 6A No. 3 Cullman will get going Friday at 10:30 a.m. versus Athens, with No. 4 Austin and top-ranked Lee-Huntsville set to battle at 1:30 p.m.

The Bearcats and Eagles enter the Sweet 16 with some of the best players the area — and state — have to offer.

Lawson Schaffer is the clear centerpiece in Cullman’s “Fast32” offense, though fellow senior Brontae Harris and junior Seth Swalve are no jokes in their own right. Jason McAfee is also as capable as anyone of reeling off a string of 3’s. His high this season was nine.

When it comes to Cold Springs, look no further than Triston Chambers. The junior guard has already left 2,000 career points in the dust and has more than a handful of Division I offers to choose from. Chambers put up a season-high 53 points against Holly Pond but made his most significant impact with a 47-point, 17-rebound performance in the area tournament championship game, where he heroically forced overtime with the clutchest of treys in the closing seconds of regulation.

Josh Freeman would be the go-to guy on several other squads around the county and state but has never let that stand in the way of laying down mondo points and rebounds on any given night.

The rest of Cold Springs’ roster is made up of players who have their roles down to a ‘T.’ For Cayde Elliott and Adam Carney, that frequently includes offensive production, particularly from long range.

The Bearcats are seeking their first-ever win in regional play since the state opted for the format in the early to mid-1990s. They’ll do so against an Athens program that ousted them in the sub-regional stage in 1999 and 2013, and made the regional finals two of the last three seasons.

Cold Springs and Altamont have split a pair of sub-regional bouts since 2004. The Eagles edged the Knights 61-58 during the most recent matchup in the 2012-13 playoffs.

Should Cold Springs and Tanner both advance, it’d set up a doozy of a regional final. Though the Eagles swept the season series with a trio of four-point wins, the Rattlers do have history on their side. They’re 6-0 all-time against Cold Springs at regionals, including last year’s 59-52 victory in the semis.

The expansion of the classification system now has 28 boys teams descending on Wallace State for the week-long tourney. The stage will belong to 7A and 2A Thursday, 6A and 1A on Friday, 4A and 3A Saturday, and 5A on Monday. Class 2A will hand out the first regional championship on Monday, followed by 7A, 6A and 1A on Tuesday, and 4A, 3A and 5A on Wednesday.

The state tournament will be Feb. 23-28 at the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex.

Class 5A Parker is the only defending state champion in any boys bracket at this year’s Northwest Regional Tournament.

Admission at Wallace State’s Tom Drake Coliseum is $8 for single entry and $30 for a week-long pass. Parking is $3. Live stats will be available at www.wallacestate.edu/nwregionals.

See the full schedule for each class below:

Class 7A

Tuscaloosa County (23-8) vs. Sparkman (19-12), Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

Hazel Green (15-15) vs. No. 5 Hoover (23-9), Thursday at 1:30 p.m.

Championship: Tuesday at 11 a.m.

Class 6A

No. 3 Cullman (23-8) vs. Athens (16-12), Friday at 10:30 a.m.

No. 4 Austin (23-5) vs. No. 1 Lee-Huntsville (24-6), Friday at 1:30 p.m.

Championship: Tuesday at 3 p.m.

Class 5A

No. 8 Parker (21-7) vs. No. 9 Columbia (19-11), Monday at 10:30 a.m.

No. 5 Ramsay (27-5) vs. St. John Paul II (18-13), Monday at 1:30 p.m.

Championship: Wednesday at 7 p.m.

Class 4A

No. 4 West Limestone (28-3) vs. Central-Florence (14-13), Saturday at 10:30 a.m.

East Lawrence (17-10) vs. Haleyville (15-10), Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

Championship: Wednesday at 11 a.m.

Class 3A

Colbert County (19-10) vs. No. 2 Madison Academy (15-12), Saturday at 4:30 p.m.

No. 7 Winfield (23-7) vs. No. 4 West Morgan (26-6), Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Championship: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

Class 2A

Tarrant (13-14) vs. Tanner (11-13), Thursday at 4:30 p.m.

No. 6 Altamont (19-6) vs. No. 1 Cold Springs (24-6), Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Championship: Monday at 6 p.m.

Class 1A

No. 5 Phillips-Bear Creek (23-5) vs. R.A. Hubbard (13-11), Friday at 4:30 p.m.

No. 7 South Lamar (26-1) vs. Decatur Heritage (11-10), Friday at 7:30 p.m.

Championship: Tuesday at 7 p.m.