Class A, B Girls Basketball District, State Tournament Field Projections

Class A Girls Basketball Districts

District A-1: There is that misstep about a month ago, a 10-point loss to overall No. 2 Omaha North, but that’s the only flaw on 22-1 North Star’s resume. The Gators gathered themselves and have won eight in a row, including last week’s 53-40 win over No. 2 tournament seed Millard South. Like most rematches, expect a closer game the second time around. Projected District Winner: Lincoln North Star.

District A-2: Speaking of North High (22-4), like when Fred Flintstone would take off in his car, it took a while for the gears to mesh but once they did the Lady Vikings have been unstoppable. They have won 19 of their last 20 games, including a 31-point victory over second-seeded Bellevue West (13-10) back in early January. Projected District Winner: North High.

District A-3: Top-seeded Kearney (18-3) has been a little wobbly down the stretch, going 4-3 in its last seven games, and will be a stern test from No. 2 seed Omaha Marian (13-9), which last weekend beat Class B top seed Norris, making it nine wins in its last 10 tries, the loss to unbeaten Johnston, Iowa. Hmm. Projected District Winner: Marian.

District A-4: Two-time defending state champion Millard West (18-4) is the tournament’s top seed, and not played second-seed Papillion-LaVista (15-). Millard West has won its last five, with three of its four losses to unbeaten Bishop Heelan (Iowa), North High and North Star. They’ll be back to defend their titles. Projected District Winner: Millard West.

District A-5: Since a lopsided loss to Millard North back on Jan. 20, top-seeded Omaha Westside (20-5) has certainly taken on the look of a state title contender. The Warriors have won eight in a row, including that epic 86-82 win over North High, the girls basketball game of the year to this point, some would say. They have not played second-seeded Lincoln High (16-6), which is 9-3 its last 12 games, but will be in some deep water on Thursday. Projected District Winner: Westside.

District A-6: Tournament top seed Omaha Westview (18-5) is at the top of its game, having won 10 of its last 11, and has not faced No. 2 seed Lincoln Northeast (15-7). Regardless, we like Westview to make its return to state. Projected District Winner: Westview.

District A-7: With the way the Class A seeding goes, we should naturally have a very competitive final on Thursday, between No. 7 overall Lincoln Southwest (14-8) and eighth-overall Millard North. Southwest has struggled down the stretch, losing four of its last six, while Millard North has won just three of its last seven, though some of those losses have come to heavy hitters like North High, Westview and Marian. (Does it feel to you like Marian’s gonna break some hearts over the next week and change? It does here.) Projected District Winner: Millard North.

Projected Wild Card: Kearney.

First Out: Lincoln Southwest.

Class B Girls Basketball Districts

District B-1: Norris (20-3) gets the top overall seed this postseason, in part because the Titans have won 14 of their last season, and are 4-0 against top seeds in three other districts. They haven’t played No. 2 seed Waverly (12-9), but have played District 2 leader, unbeaten Bennington, and lost both times. There’s sure to be on that next week. Projected District Winner: Norris.

District B-2: Bennington (23-0) is unbeaten and basically unchallenged so far this season, except for the two Norris games, where they won by 9 and then 1. (Again, sure to be more on that next week.) Bennington beat No. 2 seed Crete by 52 in a romp, back in the second game of the season. Projected District Winner: Bennington.

District B-3: Pius X (17-4) earned the top seed by virtue of playing some pretty great basketball the last two months, winning 14 of its last 16 games. The Thunderbolts have not played No. 2 seed Gross Catholic (16-6), which has won six of its last eight. Projected District Champion: Pius X.

District B-4: Last year’s state runner-up, Gretna East (18-5) earns the top seed, and with 11 straight wins entering the postseason they look like they might want to match, or better, that performance. Gretna East hasn’t played No. 2 seed York (14-8), but beat No. 3 Grand Island Northwest by 30, and the Vikings split two games with York. So there is that. Projected District Winner: Gretna East.

District B-5: Numbers can be deceiving, so while it is true top-seeded Sidney (18-5) has lost four of its last 10 games, all those teams are state tournament caliber. The Red Raiders have not played second-seeded Gretna High (13-9) – the way games are scheduled these days, that’s no longer a reach – nor third seed Seward.  Keep in mind, Gretna High’s losses are all to teams most likely to play in their own district final, so…Projected District Winner: Gretna High.

District B-6: Beatrice (16-6) comes in as the one seed despite losing three of its last seven, but either way it’s pretty scary when the defending state champion (and four-time state finalist) gets hot like Skutt Catholic has, winning 10 of its last 12 games. And those two losses? To overall No. 1 Norris and No. 2 Bennington, so that hardly counts. Projected District Champion: Skutt Catholic.

District B-7: Like in Class A, District 7 has some real potential for drama…and frequent flyer miles. Scottsbluff (15-8) is your number one seed, having won six in a row and eight of its last 10, but Blair (16-6) is a mighty scary No. 2. The Lady Bears have won six of their last seven, the loss a two-pointer to well respected Gretna East, and there’s also a two-point loss to Norris mixed in there. Blair’s reward for a Wednesday night win is a berth in the district title, and an epic bus ride. Projected District Champion: Blair.

Projected Wild Card: Sidney.

First Out: Beatrice.