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So much for that first-ever matchup of unbeatens in the Class A final.

Lincoln Southeast eliminated that possibility — and perhaps much of the state tournament excitement — with its 71-62 win at Norfolk to hand the Panthers their first loss after 22 consecutive wins. The win also ended a four-game skid for the Knights.

Only Omaha Central will go to the postseason undefeated. The Eagles (25-0) extended their winning streak to 33 games — the longest since Lincoln High strung together 35 wins from 1958 to 1960. The Class A record is 41 by Grand Island ending from 1946 to 1948.

Central also is the first Class A team to get to districts with a perfect record since the last undefeated Class A boys state champion, Millard South in the 1988-89 season.

Norfolk's loss isn't enough to dislodge the Panthers (22-1) from No. 2. They still are regarded as the team that will play Central in the state finals.

Tuesday, the Nebraska School Activities Association will draw up the district assignments and pairings for Class A based on its point system. As there are no games left that should alter the standings, here are the projected district pairings (first-round games are Saturday at the school in bold):

No. 1 Central (25-0) vs. No. 28 Omaha Northwest (4-18); No. 14 Kearney (13-11) vs. No. 15 Omaha Westside (10-12). Outlook: Looks like a Central romp.

No. 2 Norfolk (22-1) vs. No. 27 Fremont (3-19); No. 13 Grand Island (11-10) vs. No. 16 Omaha Creighton Prep (10-12). Outlook: Being the No. 2 seed is advantageous, especially when looking at what No. 3 could face in the finals.

No. 3 Papillion-La Vista (19-3) vs. No. 26 Columbus (4-19); No. 12 Lincoln High (12-10) vs. No. 17 Millard West (10-12). Outlook: With Lincoln High and Millard West coming on strong in February, the host Monarchs have no lock on a district title — but a loss won't keep them out of state lest there's an upset of No. 1 or No. 2.

No. 4 Lincoln North Star (17-6) vs. No. 25 Lincoln East (6-17); No. 11 Bellevue West (13-9) vs. No. 18 Omaha North (10-13). Outlook: North Star has won 9 of 10, Bellevue West 6 of 7 and Omaha North 5 of 7. Vikings lost by 13 at home to Bellevue West two weeks ago, and North Star beat the Thunderbirds by 15 in January. Any of those three could be the winner.

No. 5 Millard North (16-6) vs. No. 24 Papillion-La Vista South (5-17); No. 10 Omaha Benson (13-9) vs. No. 19 North Platte (8-13). Outlook: Should be a Millard North-Benson final, with their season series tied at 1. North Platte last played the Bunnies in the 1975 state tournament.

No. 6 Lincoln Southeast (14-8) vs. No. 23 Omaha Burke (7-16); No. 9 Lincoln Southwest (14-8) vs. No. 20 Bellevue East (8-14): Outlook: Should be an All-Lincoln final. Which Southeast team shows up, the one that beat Southwest in December and won at Norfolk or the one that dropped four in a row before Saturday's upset?

No. 7 Omaha South (16-9) vs. No. 22 Millard South (7-16); No. 8 Omaha Bryan (16-8) vs. No. 21 Lincoln Northeast (7-14): Outlook: Omaha South can't look past Millard South to a third meeting with Bryan, for it lost at home to the Patriots in January. Bryan evened the series with the Packers on an overtime win Feb. 10. The Bears also cannot take lightly a Northeast team that added a win Friday night against Southeast to one against North Star in December.

Central, Norfolk and Millard North also hosted districts last year, the first time the NSAA gave the top seven seeds in Class A the opportunity to have home-court advantage in districts.

If the host team wins all seven districts, the one Class A wild card berth in the state tournament appears to be between Omaha Bryan and Lincoln Southwest.

Class B, which continues to have district assignments made before the season, also has its district pairings released Tuesday.

Beatrice and South Sioux City head the pecking order for Class B's two wild card berths, followed by Scottsbluff.

Boys Town in Class C-1, Ravenna in C-2, O'Neill St. Mary's in Class D-1 and Howells in Class D-2 are the other point leaders. All but St. Mary's appear to have wild card berths clinched if they aren't district champions.

National record tied: Pender played in four straight overtime games last month, making the Pendragons at least the sixth team nationally to achieve the feat. They went 2-2 in those games.

Statistics due: Coaches of Class A, Class B and other Omaha-area schools are reminded that updated statistics reports are due by Tuesday night.

Postseason nominations: Coaches will be emailed their all-state nomination forms Monday. Those should be returned upon the close of their seasons and no later than the Monday after the boys state tournament.

Contact the writer:

402-444-1041, stu.pospisil@owh.com

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