The Plainview Pirates earned a trip to the NSAA State Basketball Tournament for the first time in 18 years after a win over South Loup on Tuesday, Feb. 27 in Callaway. With their 55-53 victory, the Pirates clinched the six-seed in the upcoming state tournament, matching themselves up against the Spartans of Ansley-Litchfield.
The Pirates enter the tournament with a record of 17-7, while the Spartans walk in with an impressive record of 20-3 with a 23-point victory in their district final game against Cambridge. Plainview is coached by Trent Simpson, whose strong leadership helped flip the Pirates around after a seven-win season in 2022-23.
At the State Tournament, the Pirates will enter an entirely fresh territory as all seven of the other teams that qualified are teams the Pirates have not yet played in the season. Joining the Pirates in the 2024 Class D1 State Tournament are: North Platte St. Patrick’s, Guardian Angels Central Catholic, Ainsworth, Dund County Stratton, Johnson-Brock, Riverside, and Ansley-Litchfield.
With their six seed, the Pirates will take on the Spartans in the final game of the day on Thursday, Mar. 7 at 7:45 p.m. in the Devaney Center to begin their road to glory. If the Pirates win, they’ll play the winner of Johnson-Brock and Riverside on Friday, Mar. 8 at 10:45 p.m. at the Devaney Center.
The winner of that contest will advance to the championship game in Pinnacle Bank Arena on Saturday, Mar. 9 at 9:00 a.m., while the loser will play for third place at Lincoln Northwest High School on the same day at 11:00 a.m.
The last time the Pirates made the trip to Lincoln was in 2006, where the squad took down Superior in the first round before falling to Aquinas Catholic in the semifinals.