The Class 3A boys’ basketball tournament starts Wednesday, with four quarterfinal games being played Williams Arena at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Here are a handful of things you should know about the field:

1. St. Paul Johnson is looking to go back to back. The Governors have been kings of Class 3A for the past two years. They were undefeated last year, and two of their three losses this year have been to teams from outside Minnesota. Another championship would make them the first St. Paul City conference boys’ basketball team to win consecutive state titles in the league’s 113-year history.

2. The bigger picture. Speedy St. Cloud Apollo guard Ibrahim Abukar is vital to the Eagles’ success, averaging 12 points per game. But he is not expected to play in the quarterfinals because his sister, Zamzam, has leukemia and Ibrahim was scheduled to donate bone marrow to her on Tuesday. “I’ve always told these guys from Day 1 that family comes first,” Apollo coach Dean Kesler told the St. Cloud Times.

3. The longest drought between tournament appearances in this class belongs to Columbia Heights. With the high-scoring Zach Lofton (30.4 points per game in the regular season) leading the way, the Hylanders outslugged DeLaSalle in a physical Section 3 championship game to advance to the tournament for the first time since 1930.

4. Mad talent takes center stage. Some of the state’s top players will be on display, including Lofton, Waconia forward and Vanderbilt recruit Shelby Moats, Orono sharpshooter Jordan Smith, St. Cloud Apollo power forward Blake Maslonkowski and Johnson guard Estan Tyler, a two-time All-Metro selection.

5. New Prague can’t catch a break. The boys’ basketball team qualified for state in 2009 and the girls’ team qualified in 2010, only to face (and lose to) the top seed both times after random-draw pairings were announced. Who do the Trojans face in the quarters this year? No. 1-seeded Johnson.