prep classic

The lone blemish on Wahoo's 1994 record was the loss to Monsignor McClancy NY in the first round of the Holiday Prep Classic in Lincoln.  Wahoo bounced back from that loss to claim the consolation championship.  The Warriors were invited back to the tournament, but were assigned to the "small school" division rather than playing against the much larger schools, perhaps because of the 1995 team's youth.

In the first round of the "small school" tournament Wahoo found itself facing an even smaller school.  Palmer was ranked in Class D1, but soon found itself overmatched by the Warriors and the game quickly went the way of most of Wahoo's games.  Down 25 at the half, the Tigers put up little resistance as the Wahoo starters rested and the reserves cruised to a 72-39 victory.  Ten Warriors scored in the contest as Mike Simons led the team with 31 points, 22 in the first half. 

The second round opponent would prove to be much more competitive.  Omaha Roncalli had been preseason ranked in Class B, but had faced some tough early season competition and came into the tournament with a 2-3 record.  The Crimson Pride had also easily defeated their first round opponent, Sterling, 80-56. The semifinal of the 1994 Prep Holiday Classic would prove to be Wahoo's closest game since the "richter roar" overtime finish in the 1989 state championship game against Lincoln Pius X.

In the end, the Roncalli game was decided by a rebound.  With three starters over 6'4" Roncalli had a clear advantage on the boards. The Crimson Pride used that advantage to outrebound the Warriors 28-16 in the first half.  The Crimson Pride sprinted to a 13-3 lead at the start of the game, claimed a one point lead at the quarter and then extended it to five at the half.  But Wahoo battled back in the third quarter, reversing the rebound advantage (26-15 for Wahoo in the second half). Roncalli had pushed its lead to 7 early in the third period when Wahoo fought back and a basket by Ryan Fiala at the end of the third tied the game at 59.  The teams exchanged leads in the fourth period and was tied when T.J. Orr drove the lane and scored for Roncalli with 52 seconds remaining.  With 15 seconds left Wahoo called timeout and set up a final play.  Coach Watton described the effort:  "We had a play designed for Simons, but they switched on us defensively."  Roncalli Coach Doug Woodard confirmed:  "We wanted to deny Simons the ball and we did."  But what Roncalli did not do was rebound the ball.  Unable to get the ball to Simons, Josh Anderson drove the lane, but his shot went off the rim.  Josh Herrmann battled for the ball, got possession and tossed it toward the basket.  Herrmann described the moment:  "I saw it roll off the rim and I thought I could get a shot off – I kind of just threw it up."   Herrmann's shot rolled in at the buzzer (his only basket of the game) and Wahoo snatched a 77-75 win.  Coach Watton evaluated the final sequence:  "No matter what you draw up, you have to be able to react.  Josh Anderson did a tremendous job realizing that and not forcing the ball to Simons.  He made the drive, and it was a good move.  It just rolled out.  It's a good thing Herrmann was there."  Coach Woodard explained Roncalli's dilemma:  "We were so conscious of where Simons was, and rightfully so, that once the shot was up – especially if it wasn't Simons – we forgot our responsibilities and mentally relaxed."  The game had indeed come down to a rebound.

The win over Roncalli moved Wahoo into the championship game against the #1 team in Class D1, Paxton.  It was again a mismatch.  The Tigers hung with Wahoo early as Wahoo led by only 3 with two minutes to go in the first quarter.  But Mike Simons and Eric Eddie put on an eight point run that gave Wahoo a 26-13 lead.  Wahoo extended the lead to 49-30 at the half.  The Warriors kept Paxton at bay in the third period as Simons piled up 17 points.  The lead extended to 60-32 in the fourth quarter and Wahoo eventually scored a 79-54 win.  Paxton Coach Jody Rhodes commented on Wahoo's effort:  "You never have time to relax against them because as soon as you make a mistake, they're right there to capitalize on it."

Coach Watton saw the tournament experience as an important step for his Warriors.  Not only had they garnered three more wins, but they had shown they could face and overcome adversity.  Coach Watton saw the benefit of being in the tournament:  "This is as close to a state tournament atmosphere as you'll get during the regular season and for a lot of these young kids that haven't experienced (state tournaments) before this will be very helpful."  Wahoo had shown they could make the big play in a big game when needed.  They didn't know it at the time, but they would eventually be called on again to make a play on that same court (Pershing Auditorium) in their biggest game of the year.