One constant in high school basketball is that a player’s senior season is a special one, no matter how much playing time or how successful the athlete was as an underclassman.  For one thing, there was the natural desire to “go out on top;” to make that final season the best season.  Also, there was the feeling of ownership.  While players might have contributed significantly in previous years, the senior year was theirs.  Greg Hain expressed it well:  “As a senior, this year means a lot to me.  Last year’s state tournament was sweet, but this year would be the icing on the cake.”

Added to the 1994 seniors’ expectations was the looming retirement of their coach.  But “winning one for the coach” had not become the team’s focus.  Greg Hain:  “When he announced it (his retirement) we talked about it then, but there hasn’t been a lot said about it since.”  Coach Anderson had played down his pending departure, instead emphasizing what the tournament experience meant to the players – “That (retirement) really hasn’t entered into the picture.  The state tourney is a time for the kids and we’ve got a group of seniors who are very focused on winning another state title and that takes precedence over everything.”

The prospectus for the Warriors in the state tournament was very positive.  First and foremost was that talented group of “focused” and experienced seniors.  Mike Hancock:  “The last couple of years, people like Joel (Weyand), Justin (Anderson) and Trent (Toline) have been the leaders but this year it’s been me and Greg and Travis.  A lot of our other guys have never played in a state tournament and I think our leadership of having been here before can help the team.”  Could the underclassmen provide enough support to produce a championship?  Again, Mike Hancock:  “Not too many sophomores start at Wahoo and they have handled the pressure very well They are going to be very good players. If the game is on the line, I have the confidence in them to give them the ball.”  If the combination of experience and talent weren’t enough to make Wahoo the favorite to win the 1994 championship, then the added element of their season performance was.  The Warriors were 24 – 1 entering the tournament and they had defeated their opponents by an average of 41.24 points with the closest victory being sixteen points (GICC).  All of this made for a confident group and as Travis Toline stated, “We know that if we play our best as a team, we’ve got a good chance to win.”

But the Warriors did have to win three games to claim their title and the Class B field presented some impressive contenders.  However, it was true that several top ten rated teams would not get a shot at Wahoo.  Grand Island Central Catholic, Hastings Adams Central, Holdrege, Omaha Roncalli, and Columbus Scotus were all defeated in district tournament play.  Of the teams that did qualify, one stood out – Norris.  The Titans were undefeated (24 – 0) and ranked #2 in both the Omaha World Herald and Lincoln Journal-Star.  By virtue of Wahoo’s loss in the Prep Classic Tournament to McClancy of New York, Norris had the #1 seed and would play Ogallala (12-9) in the opening round.  On Wahoo’s side of the bracket, Wayne actually had the #3 seed, but their opponent, the #6 seed Omaha Gross (13-8) was seen as a more likely second round opponent.  Seven of the Cougars’ eight losses had been to Class A opponents.  While those teams certainly had a chance against Wahoo, Omaha World Herald writer, Stu Pospisil noted:  “As always, the tricky part about Class B predictions is choosing Wahoo’s final opponent.” 

The 1994 tournament was a little different in that it was the first time since 1989 that Wahoo wasn’t the top seed.  As #2, Wahoo’s first round game was held at Pershing Auditorium rather than the Sports Center.  Coach Anderson saw that as actually being an advantage:  “It’s no big deal (#2 seed) to us at all.  Some people have made a big deal of us having to play at Pershing, but we’ve played three games there already this season so that gives us an advantage over Aurora.”  It would also be the first time since 1988 that Wahoo entered the tournament with a loss.  Again, Anderson saw an advantage:  “The loss took away the pressure of being undefeated and it helped us keep things in focus.”

When you added it all up, Wahoo was the undisputed favorite to win in Class B.  And Stu Pospisil. who had Wahoo ranked #4 in his all-class rankings and had stated that if the top three Class A teams (all having qualified for the tournament) should all lose, a Wahoo championship would produce an unprecedented Class B team at the top of the all-class rankings.  Yes, the script had been written, and if it was followed, Greg Hain would get the icing for his cake.