Lincoln Southwest wins first ever boys basketball title, keeps Class A trophy in Lincoln
The Silver Hawks' first championship is also the first for a Lincoln public school since 2003
LINCOLN - For the first time in more than two decades, a Lincoln public school is keeping the boys basketball state championship in the capital city.
Lincoln Southwest (24-4) won its first boys basketball state championship in team history on Saturday afternoon at PBA - that's also the first boys basketball title for a team from the capital city since 2003.
The #4 seed Silver Hawks took on #6-seed Papilion La Vista South (19-7), the reigning state champs, in the Class A title game on Saturday afternoon, in front of a packed house at PBA.
Papio South had the hotter start, shooting 53 percent from the field in the first half, and built a 19-13 lead after the first quarter. The Skyhawks cut the deficit to one at halftime (26-25) and then really started to find their groove in the second half.
Dakari Wilson set a tournament record with 16 made three-pointers, including four in the title game, and the Silverhawks' standout twins combined for the title-sealing play: Makkiah Sanders with the setup, Uzziah Sanders with the slam in the final minute of the fourth quarter.
That secured a 57-53 win for Lincoln Southwest, the 2026 champs in Class A, defeating three schools from Omaha along the way.
"We didn’t have everything in the tank, but these guys have so much grit and so much heart, that we were able to amp up some defense in the second half for a stretch there where we could turn them over enough that we could get some things in transition," Southwest head coach Alex Bahe said. "For the second day in a row – and that speaks to who these guys are – it was done with defense. I wouldn’t have envisioned us winning a state championship with such a low-scoring game most of the game, but we just found a way to do it because these guys wouldn’t settle for anything less."
"It feels good to put Lincoln finally back on the map because, you know, Omaha’s been up for a lot of years now – so yeah, it feels good," Uzziah Sanders said.
Just like in the girls bracket last week, the Boys Class A championship pitted a school from Lincoln against a school from Omaha. And the school from Lincoln won this one too - Southwest's first ever boys basketball title is also the first one for a Lincoln public school since 2003, and two schools from the capital city captured the crowns that year, too.
Uzziah Sanders led all players with 20 points (8-of-16 FG), capping off a standout tournament. Wilson added 14 points and a team-high six rebounds; Connor Falkinburg led the Titans with 19 points, hitting five threes.