LINCOLN – The Amherst Broncos claimed their first state championship in school history with an overtime victory at Pinnacle Bank Arena Saturday evening.
Amherst (26-2) wrapped up their first boys basketball championship in school history with a 59-54 victory over sixth-seeded Lincoln Lutheran.
The Broncos were the top-overall seed in the Class C2 tournament, having claimed a close victory in the quarterfinals over Bridgeport before taking down Cross County in the semifinals Friday.
Lincoln Lutheran had worked themselves off of upsets into the championship game, winning over Norfolk Catholic in the semifinals.
The packed house at PBA rode Amherst to a hot start early, going up 11-5 knocking down three-triples in the first quarter. Tayje Hadwiger was quick to score early, but also had foul trouble at the start with two fouls by the end of the first quarter. The Warrior fought back from their early deficit, but Amherst had the lead 16-11. Senior Austin Adelung ended the first quarter with eleven points including three three-pointers.
The Broncos hot-scoring went cold in the second quarter, as six minutes of game time went by without a Bronco bucket. Lincoln Lutheran took advantage, going on a 7-0 run to go up 19-18 before halftime.
The third quarter proved to be a back-and-forth affair, as Amherst regained their advantage up 34-33 heading into the fourth.
Lincoln Lutheran pressed Amherst defensively in the opening of the fourth quarter, as Hadwiger put the team on his back by continuing to knock down deep shots in the final three minutes.
With less than a minute to play in regulation, Ryan Hager of Lincoln Lutheran rolled in a layup on a fast break to put the Warriors up 41-39. Amherst relied on Hadwiger to tie the game, fading away on an elbow jumper to send the game to overtime at 41-41.
Starting overtime, Hadwiger hit another three pointer – his fifth of the game, putting Amherst up with the Broncos never looking back from the start of the extra period.
Amherst finally claimed the state championship after a fourth place finish in 2022 and a runner-up ending in 2023.
