Welcome to Seeding Day 2026

Pioneer senior Cole Coppinger

Before we get deep into what we will expect by the end of the day, let’s get caught up on what happened on Friday and Saturday.

The 1A teams were the focus, as they played their loser out games on Friday at Lynden High School, then their winner to state games on Saturday.

On Friday night, Meridian eliminated Blaine, 49-42.  The Trojans led by nine points at halftime, and by 15 at the end of the third quarter. 

The Borderites rallied in the fourth quarter as junior forward Peyton Bouma scored 13 of his team high 18 points.  The Borderites closed to within five points in the final minute.

Junior guard Pierce Brzozowski led the Trojans with 18 points, and a chance to play Nooksack Valley, Saturday, for the district’s second entry to state behind Lynden Christian.

The Trojans and the Pioneers have a vivid history in this winner to state game.  More so, for the Pioneers, as they have been in this game all four years of this five-team tournament but have never won.  They lost to Blaine in the first two years, and to the Trojans in the last two years. 

The teams split two games during the season.  Brzozowski hit a free throw with point-four seconds left to give the Trojans a 64-63 win in January.  In the first round of this tournament, the Pioneers prevailed, 65-61.

This winner-to-state game did not raise the anxiety as high as it was the previous two years, as the Pioneers led from the start in their 71-43 victory.  It will be the Pioneers first state tournament appearance since 2011.  They are playing their best basketball right now and will be a handful for their regional opponent.

The Pioneers had four seniors in double-figures as they passed effectively to open up their shooters.  Cole Coppinger led the Pioneers with 16 points, hitting 11-15 from the free throw line.  Jayden Anderson added 15, with Crew Bauman netting 11, and Owen Wichers with 10.  The Pioneers are now 10-14 on the season.

The Trojans finish the year with a 7-16 record and were led by Brzozowski’s ten points. 

The Nooksack Valley girls qualified for their sixth straight state tournament in their 62-36 win over Mount Baker.

Also on Saturday, the Lakewood Cougars traveled to Prosser in the 2A District 1/5 Crossover game, and beat the Mustangs, 57-47.  They join Anacortes and Lynden as 2A boys state tournament reps from the Northwest Conference.

The news was not so good in the reciprocal game of the 2A District 1/5 Crossover, as the Selah girls defeated the Squalicum Storm, 61-39, at Squalicum High School on Saturday.  The Storm finishes a fine season with a record of 20-5. 

It was also bad news from Jackson High School on Saturday, as the season ended for the Sedro-Woolley Cubs in a 64-60 loss to Monroe in the 3A Boys District 1 Tournament. 

The Cubs built a 17-5 lead in the first quarter but trailed the Bearcats by double-digits in the fourth quarter.  The Cubs got to within two points late in the game but could not pull off the win.  Their season ended in the same spot last year.  They finished this season with a record of 18-6.

The basketball committees will seed state tournament brackets for boys and girls on Sunday.  The pairing will come out first, then the sites and times will be revealed as the day goes on. 

Here are the teams who will play in regional games of the state tournament next weekend, February 27 or 28:

1A Girls: Lynden Christian and Nooksack Valley

1A Boys: Lynden Christian and Nooksack Valley

2A Girls: Lynden

2A Boys: Anacortes, Lynden, Lakewood

Here is how it works:

Teams are seeded 1-8 and 9-16.

Teams seeded 1-8 will play a regional game that is not loser out.  The winner advances to the state quarterfinals, played on Thursday, March 5.  The losing team will play on Wednesday, March 4, but that will be a loser out game.

Teams seeded 1-4 are considered home teams and will play near their home site.  Mount Vernon High School is a popular place for NWC host teams to play.  That is based on the past.  There is no guarantee. 

Teams seeded 5-9 will be away teams and will most likely have to travel. 

Teams seeded 9-16 will play a regional game that is a loser out game.  The winner advances to state and will play another loser out game on Wednesday, March 4.  Teams seeded 9-12 are considered as home teams, and those seeded 13-16 are away teams and will travel.

Here is where I expect each of our Northwest Conference teams will be seeded, within a place or two.

1A Girls: Lynden Christian – 3

1A Boys: Lynden Christian – 2, but I would put them at #1. Nooksack Valley - 14

2A Girls: Lynden – 1

2A Boys: Anacortes – 4, Lynden – 9, Lakewood – 12.

Those seedings are what I see, but I am not on any committee.

MOST IMPORTANTLY

I posted an article last Saturday, saying that there will be no sale of State Tournament Programs sold at any state tournament events.  If you want a program, full instructions are in the article entitled, “PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT; STATE TOURNAMENT PROGRAMS.”

Read through that on instructions on how to download a free copy of a state tournament program. 

Check back each day for some sort of state tournament previews.

~ Ted House