GIRLS STATE BASKETBALL: Southwest Advances over Southeast In Thriller, North Star Gets First Tourney Win

Lincoln Southwest’s Kennadi Williams dribbles the basketball past Lincoln Southeast’s Kya Branch in Wednesday night’s Class A Girls State Basketball Quarterfinal at Pinnacle Bank Arena. (Jeff Motz/KFOR Sports)

LINCOLN–(KFOR Feb. 28)–The return match between the Lincoln Southwest and Lincoln Southeast girls basketball teams on the state’s biggest stage Wednesday night lived up to its billing.

It came down to a pair of late free-throws from senior guard Kennadi Williams and good defense with seconds remaining for the No. 3 seed Silver Hawks to earn a 58-56 victory over the Knights at Pinnacle Bank Arena during the quarterfinal of the NSAA Class A Girls State Basketball Tournament, in a game heard on KFOR.

The Southwest victory gives the Silver Hawks a showdown with No. 2 seed Bellevue West in Friday’s 7:45pm Class A semifinal. Plus, Silver Hawks head coach Tim Barada earned his 250th career coaching victory.

Southwest (22-3) saw an early 10-point lead in the first half erased when Southeast outscored the Silver Hawks 20-8 in the second quarter, behind three-pointers from Kya Branch and baskets from senior Chatrice Olds and 6-2 center Nyaluak Dak to give the Knights a 35-30 halftime lead.

But the Silver Hawks, who got 22 points from Eleanor Griffin, countered with a 16-4 run in the third quarter, which included an 11-0 run at the end to to take a 46-39 lead.

As the game tightened up to a two-point lead for Southwest in the fourth quarter, Emma Dostal connected on a three-pointer with 2:38 remaining for a 56-51 Silver Hawk lead.

Dak led all scorers with 23 points for Southeast, who finished the season with an 18-7 record. Click on the link below to hear the podcast of the game.

Girls State Basketball-Class A-Lincoln Southwest vs. Lincoln Southeast 2-28-24

LINCOLN NORTH STAR 46, MILLARD NORTH 31

After trailing by one point at halftime, Lincoln North Star used defense and hitting three-point shots on the offensive end to bounce back to get their first state tournament win in program history on Wednesday afternoon.

KayTee Irons and Kendall Anderson were among the Gators hitting from long range in the early part of the third quarter. Ani Leu’s three-pointer right before the end of the quarter gave the Gators a 34-23 lead.

Millard North committed 23 turnovers in the game, thanks to North Star’s defense.

The Gators will play top-seed Millard West in Friday’s 6pm semifinal at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Click the link to hear the podcast of the game.

Girls State Basketball-Class A-Millard North vs. Lincoln North Star 2-28-24