Junior Mavericks Advance To Varsity Semis, Junior Hawks Score Prep Upset
Coming off a deflating National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) conference tournament title-game loss weeks ago, Dallas entered this weekend’s National Wheelchair Basketball Junior Varsity Division Championships feeling like its team color — blue.
But as the tourney’s top seed showed during the tournament’s opening day Friday, it’s close, hungry, and it’s also got some of its mettle back.
With their 53-43 victory over the No. 8-seeded Cincinnati Dragons at the West Monroe Sports and Events complex in West Monroe, La., the Dallas Junior Wheelchair Mavericks Blue team became the first team to advance to Saturday’s semifinals across all three divisions. They will play the No. 5 seed Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets in one semifinal, while the No. 6 seed WASA Marquette Eagles will meet the No. 2 seed Kansas City Kings Gold in the other semifinal. WASA defeated the No. 3-seeded RHI Turnstone Racers, 62-58, in a Friday quarterfinal, while Kansas City knocked off the No. 7-seeded Rancho Halos, 61-47, in another.
After Dallas defeated the No. 16-seed Ryan Martin Foundation Trojans, 68-26, in their first-round game, their quarterfinal game was much tighter. Dallas led 48-38 with 3 minutes to go, but had that advantage trimmed to 48-43 with 1:53 remaining after a Henry Horton putback. So, with the Mavericks needing some momentum, 14-year-old Isaac Lujan delivered. With 1:09 left, Lujan launched a shot as he got fouled and it went in, putting them up 50-43.
Although he missed the free throw, it gave the Wheelchair Mavericks Blue an edge. And they hit 3-of-8 free throws to seal the win. It’s the first time Lujan has ever advanced to the semifinals.
“Honestly, like that last quarter, we just started playing all together instead of like, more solo. And that really helped us,” says Lujan, a Midland, Texas, resident who started playing wheelchair basketball three years ago and is a right below-the-knee amputee.
Dallas coach Mike White has guided the Junior Wheelchair Mavericks Blue team the past 12 years. He says their regional tournament title-game loss weeks ago — a one-possession loss to ATX (Austin) — may have been just what they needed.
“We beat them on [a] Saturday, lost to them on [a] Sunday. And I think that was a wake-up call that our guys needed, where they weren’t just going to cakewalk to a national championship, and they’re going to have to earn it every step of the way. And the last four weeks since that tournament, they’ve really kind of started to reach their full potential,” White says. “And, you know, this is the most committed team in 14 years I’ve ever had. These guys show up two or three times a week to practice. They get in the gym as much as they can. And they love and like each other, which is really important. You know, they’re a close team. And our youngest is in eighth grade. We’ve got two seniors. They’re both going to play in college. And it’s just a mixed bag from eighth grade to seniors. And we’ve got a bunch of kids who really believe in each other. They believe in us as coaches and preaching. And, you know, hopefully we’ll be able to get it done.”
Blazing Upset
The NWBA Junior Prep Division’s defending champ has gone down. The No. 3 BlazeSports Junior Hawks knocked off the division’s title holder, the No. 6 seed WASA Marquette Eagles, 34-24, in a Friday quarterfinal game. BlazeSports jumped out from get-go, building a 10-4 lead after a quarter and stretched the advantage to 32-18 after three quarters.
But WASA came back. The Eagles cut the deficit to 32-24 with 3:20 remaining, until Paul Sturtz’s basket put the Junior Hawks back up in double-digits to seal the game.
BlazeSports will play the No. 3 seed Music City Thunder, which hung on for a 27-24 win over the No. 7 seed Lakeshore Sharks in the quarterfinals.
It was nail-biting, though. Leading 25-21 with 59.8 seconds left in the fourth, Lakeshore’s Noah Schepman hit a deep 3-point to cut the deficit to 25-24 with 45.3 seconds remaining. But Music City’s Westin Wiberg hit 1-of-2 free throws with 35 seconds left. And after a Lakeshore missed shot, the Thunder’s Elijah Frohmiller hit his first free throw, missed the second, and Wiberg grabbed the offensive rebound to preserve the win.
Music City coach Emily Hoskins says the team has been in a handful of close games this year, and all that experience helped.
“Clutch at the end there. Some of our kids hit some big free throws, got some rebounds. You know, one thing, that again, I think it speaks to that this is not our first tight-end game situation. Every time I tell my kids, they do exactly what we, as the coaches, tell them. They’re doing exactly what we’re telling them, and they’re going out there and getting it done. And they’re not freaking out or anything like that,” says Hoskins, who’s in her 11th year as Prep Division coach.
Top seed ATX (Austin) will meet the No. 4 seed Courage Kenny Rollin’ Rowdies in the other Saturday semifinal. ATX (Austin) defeated the No. 8 seed Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers, 42-12, in the quarterfinals, while Courage Kenny defeated the No. 5 seed LWSRA/Synergy Hawks, 44-34, in its quarterfinal matchup.
Top Four Advance In Junior NIT
The top four seeds all advanced in the NWBA Junior Division NIT Tournament. The No. 1 seed Fairfax Falcons will take on the No. 4 seed SAAS Junior Wildcats in one semifinal, while No. 2-seeded Adaptive Sports Ohio ASOC will meet the No. 3-seeded Junior Road Warriors in the other. Fairfax defeated No. 8 Lakeshore 57-14 in the quarterfinals, while SAAS knocked off the No. 5 seed New York Rolling Fury, 67-34. The Junior Road Warriors defeated the No. 6-seeded TIRR Memorial Hermann Hotwheels 54-39 in their quarterfinal matchup, while Adaptive Sports Ohio beat the No. 10 seed Mad City Badgers, 61-21, in theirs.
NWBA Tournament Moving
Next year’s NWBA Junior and Adult Division Wheelchair Basketball Championships are headed west, according to an announcement made Thursday. And instead of being on two weekends, they’ll just be combined into one, with the championships running April 8-11, 2027, at the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz.
It’s a 275-acre athletic complex that hosts major sporting events and tournaments, according to its website. The Arizona Athletic Grounds also hosted the 2024 USA Pickleball National championships, which included USA Pickleball’s first wheelchair pickleball championships.
Additionally, it marks the first time the Junior and Adult wheelchair basketball championships will be held on one weekend since 2018 in Louisville, Ky. More than 1,300 athletes are expected to compete.
National Wheelchair Basketball Association National Wheelchair Basketball Championships At West Monroe Sports & Events Complex West Monroe, La.
March 20
Juniors
Varsity Division
First Round
No. 1 Dallas Junior Mavericks Blue 68, No. 16 Ryan Martin Foundation Trojans 26
No. 8 Cincinnati Dragons 63, No. 9 LWSRA/Synergy Hawks 37
No. 4 ATX (Austin) 58, No. 13 Courage Kenny Junior Rolling Timberwolves 46
No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets 47, No. 12 Nebraska Red Dawgs 38
No. 6 WASA Marquette Eagles 50, No. 11 Brooks Bullsharks 49
No. 3 RHI Turnstone Racers 53, No. 14 Katie’s Komets 32
No. 7. Rancho Halos 63, No. 10 BlazeSports Junior Hawks Red 44
No. 2. Kansas City Kings Gold 61, No. 15 Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers 41
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Dallas Junior Mavericks Blue 53, No. 8 Cincinnati Dragons 43
No. 5 Charlotte Rollin’ Hornets 40, No. 4 ATX (Austin) 35
No. 6 WASA Marquette Eagles 62, No. 3 RHI Turnstone Racers 58
No. 2 Kansas City Kings Gold 61, No. 7 Rancho Halos 47
Consolation
No. No. 9 LWSRA.Synergy Hawks 59, No. 16 Ryan Martin Foundation Trojans 48
No. 13 Courage Kenny Junior Rolling Timberwolves 57, No. 12 Nebraska Red Dawgs 47
No. 11 Brooks Bullsharks 45, No. 14 Katie’s Comets 40
No. 10 BlazeSports Junior Hawks Red 45, No. 15 Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers 28
NIT Division
No. 1 Fairfax Falcons 58, No. 16 Ability 360 Phoenix 15
No. 8 Lakeshore Lakers 43, No. 9 ParaSport Spokane 34
No. 4 SAAS Junior Wildcats 42, No. 13 Dallas Junior Wheelchair Mavericks White 31
No. 5 New York Rolling Fury 44, No. 12 Orlando Dreamers 14
No. 6 TIRR Memorial Hermann Hotwheels 39, No. 11 Music City Thunder 16
No. 3 Junior Road Warriors 54, No. 14 Seattle Sonics 23
No. 10 Mad City Badgers 34, No. 7 Louisville Lightning 18
No. 2 Adaptive Sports Ohio ASOC 73, No. 15 Fresno Wheelers 32
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Fairfax Falcons 57, No. 8 Lakeshore Lakers 14
No. 4 SAAS Junior Wildcats 67, No. 5 New York Rolling Fury 34
No. 3 Junior Road Warriors 54, No. 6 TIRR Memorial Hermann Hotweels 39
No. 2 Adaptive Sports Ohio ASOC 61, No. 10 Mad City Badgers 21
Consolation
No. 9 ParaSport Spokane 36, No. 16 Ability360 Phoenix 24
No. 13 Dallas Junior Wheelchair Mavericks White 32, No. 12 Orlando Dreamers 18
No. 14 Seattle Sonics 34, No. 11 Music City Thunder 22
No. 15 Fresno Wheelers 28, No. 7 Louisville Lightning 5
Prep Division
No. 1 ATX (Austin) 56, No. 16 Bridge City Blazers 11
No. 8 Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers 32, No. 9 RHI Junior Racers 30 (2OT)
No. 4 Courage Kenny Rollin’ Rowdies 33, No. 13 Dallas Junior Wheelchair Mavericks Blue 18
No. 5 LWSRA/Synergy Hawks 39, No. 12 New York Rolling Fury 17
No. 6 WASA Marquette Eagles 29, No. 11 Louisville Lightning Green 21
No. 3 BlazeSports Junior Hawks 26, No. 14 Cincinnati Dragons 7
No. 7 Lakeshore Sharks 29, No. 10 Katie’s Komets 28
No. 2 Music City Thunder 41, No. 15 Fairfax Falcons 18
Quarterfinals
No. 1 ATX (Austin) 42, No. 8 Mary Free Bed Junior Pacers 12
No. 4 Courage Kenny Rollin’ Rowdies 44, No. 5 LWSRA/Synergy Hawks 34
No. 3 BlazeSports Junior Hawks 34, No. 6 WASA Marquette Eagles 24
No. 2 Music City Thunder 27, No. 7 Lakeshore Sharks 24
Consolation
No. 9 RHI Junior Racers 32, No. 16 Bridge City Blazers 18
No. 12 New York Rolling Fury 26, No. 13 Dallas Junior Wheelchair Mavericks Blue 21
No. 11 Louisville Lightning Green 25, No. 14 Cincinnati Dragons 15
No. 10 Katie’s Komets 44, No. 15 Fairfax Falcons 34