Class A State Tournament Preview

<p>As we near the end of a parity-filled high school basketball season, the champion will finally be crowned at Pinnacle Bank Arena this Saturday. This years field is loaded with talent and it would be no surprise to anyone to see any of the 8 teams cutting down the nets this weekend. Here’s my insight on this weekend’s State Tournament:</p> <p><strong>#1 Bellevue West vs #8 Elkhorn</strong></p> <p><strong>#4 Omaha Westside vs #5 Creighton Prep</strong></p> <p><strong>#3 Omaha Central vs #6 Omaha South</strong></p> <p><strong>#2 Millard North vs #7 Papillion-LaVista South</strong></p> <p><strong><span style="color: #ff6600;">Pick to Win The Championship: Omaha Central</span></strong></p> <p>The team I believe that is going to be cutting down the nets on Saturday is the #3 seed Omaha Central Eagles. They have been playing extremely well as of late and are getting hot at just the right time as they haven’t lost a game since January. The senior backcourt duo of [player_tooltip player_id="890350" first="Latrell" last="WrightsellJr"]. and [player_tooltip player_id="890354" first="Max" last="Polk"] has been a huge reasoning of their success. They come to Lincoln this weekend trying to avenge their State Finals loss last year to Omaha South, who is their first round matchup this Thursday. This Central team loves to play fast and when they can turn defense into offense, they’re nearly unbeatable. In order to win this weekend, the Eagles will have to make shots from the perimeter but the way they have been playing, I can see them doing just that. With the help of [player_tooltip player_id="892668" first="Abraham" last="Hoskins"], [player_tooltip player_id="890569" first="PJ" last="Davis"], and Jay Dawson, who can all make shots from outside, it takes a little pressure of the shoulders of Wrightsell Jr. and Polk. This would be Central’s first State Title since 2013.</p> <p><strong><span style="color: #ff6600;">Dark Horse Team: Creighton Prep</span></strong></p> <p>Creighton Prep is a team that I believe can take the state by storm this weekend. Yes, they are the 5 seed, but no one is really expecting them to win besides themselves. They have already beaten the top 3 seeds which improves their case for being able to bring the trophy back home. Led by senior [player_tooltip player_id="890375" first="Spencer" last="Schomers"], this Creighton Prep team plays extremely well together which becomes crucial in the postseason. Schomers is coming off of a 31 point performance in the district championship versus Grand Island, and is supported by big man [player_tooltip player_id="890472" first="AJ" last="Rollins"] and wing [player_tooltip player_id="946019" first="Brendan" last="Buckley"]. Prep is a very efficient defensive team, holding their opponent under 60 for majority of their games, and if they want a chance to take some hardware back to the "Birdcage", they will have to keep up their defensive effort.</p> <p><strong><span style="color: #ff6600;">Low-Flying Players to Watch</span></strong></p> <p><span style="color: #000000;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="946019" first="Brendan" last="Buckley"] - Creighton Prep (11.1 ppg)</strong></span></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="890580" first="Daniel" last="Brocaille"] - Papillion-LaVista South (9.1 ppg)</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="955458" first="Caden" last="Schutte"] - Elkhorn (?)</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="890384" first="Skyler" last="Wilson"] - Omaha South (14.9 ppg)</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="890479" first="Saint" last="Thomas"] - Millard North (15.8 ppg)</strong></p> <p><strong>Jay Dawson - Omaha Central (6.2 ppg)</strong></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>