The 2026 NSAA Boys Basketball State Championships tipped off at Pinnacle Bank Arena and the Devaney Center on Wednesday with the quarterfinals in the D1, C1 and A classes.
The NebPreps team posted up at both facilities to bring you coverage all day on our social feeds and in the roundup below.
Class D2
No. 1 Elgin Public/Pope John 46, No. 8 Pleasanton 44
The top seed survived a scare in the first round with two defensive stands in the final minute to secure the first state tournament win since the two schools consolidated athletically.
Junior Michael Selting knocked down a 3 with 2:50 remaining to give the Elgin Public/Pope John a 46-42 lead, but the Wolfpack didn’t score again. The Bulldogs cut it to two with a steal and score at the 1:47 mark then had a chance to tie it on the next possession, but EPPJ forced a miss inside.
Elgin Public/Pope John senior Jarek Erickson brings the ball up against Pleasanton. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.
After a Wolfpack miss, Pleasanton called a timeout with 10.3 left to draw up its final possession, but the Wolfpack blew it up and forced a runner from 3 at the buzzer that wasn’t close.
After a first half that saw both teams shoot over 55% from the field, EPPJ held Pleasanton to 3-for-11 from the field in the fourth quarter and 34.8% overall in the second half to offset its own offensive struggles. The Wolfpack only committed three fouls the entire game.
The game included nine ties and seven lead changes as the teams went bucket for bucket, run for run for most of the game. The largest lead was six. EPPJ threatened to pull away late in the first half with a 9-0 run ending in a dunk from sophomore Max Henn, but Pleasanton ended the half with a 3 from senior Haden Smith to make it a three-point game at halftime and rallied to take the lead late in the third, setting up a tight fourth quarter.
Senior Jarek Erickson led the way with 16 points, 12 rebounds and four assists. Freshman Jayvin Erickson went 3-for-7 from deep off the bench, matching Selting with nine points.
Pleasanton senior Brennan Lindner totaled a game-high 23 points on 10-for15 from the field (2-of-2 from 3) and 1-of-2 from the foul line. Smith added nine points on 3-of-8 from 3.
"These guys are good enough and smart enough basketball players to push our program to the next level."
EPPJ head coach Matt Euse on the team’s first state tournament win since the schools’ consolidation.
#nebpreps | @pinnbank pic.twitter.com/7cVTqexLR6— nebpreps (@THEnebpreps) March 11, 2026
No. 5 Guardian Angels Central Catholic 54, No. 4 Deshler 50
Junior Luke Guenther shut down a Deshler comeback with a put-back in the final seconds to send the Bluejays to the semifinals.
Leading by two with 10.3 to go, the Bluejays went 0-for-2 at the line, but after the second miss 6-foot-4 sophomore Hudson Bramlet tipped the ball up and Guenther ran under it for the uncontested put-back to make it a four-point game with 10 seconds to go, and that lead held.
Guardian Angels Central Catholic junior Luke Guenther elevates in the lane against Deshler. Photo by Rob Bañuelos.
Guenther finished with 19 points on 50% shooting with three assists and two steals. Junior Sam Hass added 12 points and four boards while senior Isaac Guenther chipped in 11 points and three steals for the Bluejays, who held on despite shooting 7-for-20 at the charity stripe in the fourth quarter.
GACC used a 9-2 run spanning the first and second quarters to build a six-point lead, but Deshler rallied to tie it at halftime. After falling behind midway through the third, Central catholic scored nine straight to surge ahead by six again. Deshler scored the last bucket of the third and the first three points of the fourth to pull within one, but the Bluejays responded with a 9-1 surge to stretch it back out and take their largest lead of the game at 45-36.
Missed free throws on GACC’s end kept the Dragons alive, though they struggled to take advantage, misfiring on 10 of 12 shots, most of them 3s. However, Carson Sieber converted a put-back then Easton Nash buried a 3 with 19 seconds to play to pull Deshler within one.
Luke Guenther hit a pair of free throws to make it a three-point game and GACC fouled to prevent a three-point attempt. Junior Peighton Henry hit the first shot and missed the second, but a foul on an offensive rebound attempt set up the final sequence.
Sieber led the Dragons with 22 points on 9-of-12 from the field and 4-of-6 from the line, 15 rebounds (six offensive), three assists and three steals. Nash added 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals.
The Bluejays advance to Friday’s semifinals and will face No. 1 Elgin Public/Pope John at the Devaney Center at 9 a.m.
“If anybody wasn’t composed at the end of the game it was probably their coach, myself. I told them I’ve got more nerves than you guys. You just need to go play a basketball game.”
No. 5 Guardian Angels Central Catholic holds on for the 54-50 win over No. 4 Deshler in the D-2… pic.twitter.com/XJXUx24Sno
— nebpreps (@THEnebpreps) March 11, 2026
Class C2
The Yutan Chieftains celebrate with their fans after their quarterfinal win over EMF. Photo by Benson Hoegh.
No. 1 Yutan 62, No. 8 Exeter-Milligan-Friend 40
Yutan’s star duo of junior Ryan Maguire and senior Isaac Couch nearly outscored the Bobcats by themselves as the Chieftains held EMF to 26.9% shooting for the game to advance.
Maguire, a 6-foot- guard, dropped 20 points and 18 rebounds while Couch added 17 points on 6-of-12 from the field (2-of-4 from 3) and 3-of-4 from the line.
The Bobcats jumped out to a 7-2 lead to start the game, but the Chieftains closed the first period on a 14-3 run then outscored EMF 20-8 in the second quarter to double up the Bobcats at the half, 36-18. The lead swelled to 24 in the third quarter before Yutan cruised through the fourth.
EMF’s Grady Bresson capped his junior season with 16 points and 12 rebounds while fellow junior A.J. Mueller chipped in 10 points and nine boards.
“It was nice. Getting that first one was huge.”
Yutan coach @coachgardner2 talks after the No. 1 Chieftains advance to the Class C2 semifinals after a 62-40 win over No. 8 EMF. #nebpreps | @pinnbank pic.twitter.com/YBbzN1AK1f
— nebpreps (@THEnebpreps) March 11, 2026
No. 5 Norfolk Catholic 48, No. 4 North Bend Central 40
The Knights overcome a scoreless first quarter by dominating the last three periods to advance to the semifinals.
Norfolk Catholic went 0-for-9 from the field and 0-for-10 from the line in the first quarter then missed its first shot of the second as the Tigers took a 15-0 lead 20 seconds into the period.
Norfolk Catholic senior Gavin Schutt dribbles up the floor against North Bend Central. Photo by Benson Hoegh.
However, senior Nathan Timmerman hit a pair of free throws to take the lid off the room, and the Knights rolled from there. They poured in 18 points in the second quarter to pull within three at halftime then outscored the Tigers 23-13 in the third.
North Bend Central trimmed a seven-point deficit to four midway through the fourth, but Norfolk Catholic shut the Tigers out the rest of the way as they missed their last seven shots.
Norfolk Catholic shot 17-for-27 (63%) from the field over the final three quarters while holding North Bend Central to 27.3% shooting for the game. The Knights’ efficiency from the field made up for an 11-for-33 effort from the foul line.
Senior Gavin Schutt led the Knights with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five assists. Timmerman led the way with 11 points, four rebounds and three steals.
Koda Baehr was the line Tiger in double figures with 15 points, six rebounds, five assists and three steals.
Norfolk Catholic will face No. 1 Yutan in Friday’s semifinals, with tipoff set for 1:30 p.m. at the Devaney Center.
“I think we just kept our cool… they just didn’t panic.”
Norfolk Catholic coach Kevin Manzer talks after the No. 5 Knights finish their 16-point comeback in a 48-40 win over No. 4 North Bend Central in the Class C2 quarterfinals. #nebpreps | @pinnbank pic.twitter.com/7s1bG7ogHi
— nebpreps (@THEnebpreps) March 11, 2026
