Papillion-LaVista and Papillion-LaVista South are an even 5-5 against one another since December of 2015, but not for long. The Papillion-LaVista Monarchs will take on the Papillion-LaVista South Titans at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Papillion-LaVista sitting on seven straight victories and Papillion-LaVista South on 13.
Papillion-LaVista took a 22-point loss the last time they faced off against Westview, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. Papillion-LaVista came out on top in a nail-biter against Westview on Monday, sneaking past 47-45. The 47-point effort marked the Monarchs' lowest-scoring matchup of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Bryce Vigness
| 03/03/25 @ Westview | 86% |
| 03/01/25 vs Omaha Central | 67% |
| 02/21/25 @ Lincoln Northeast | 67% |
Papillion-LaVista's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Bryce Vigness led the charge by going 6-for-7 to rack up 14 points. Vigness is also on a roll when it comes to shooting accuracy, as he's posted one of at least 67% in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was DeMarcus McCarty, who shot 42% from the field en route to 14 points and eight rebounds.
Papillion-LaVista was working as a unit and finished the game with ten assists. They are 13-3 when they've passed the ball that well.
Meanwhile, Papillion-LaVista South took their game on Monday with ease, bagging a 69-36 win over Grand Island. The Titans have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won ten contests by 20 points or more this season.
Papillion-LaVista South had a senior duo take command as Reece Kircher went 7-for-11 on his way to 20 points and seven assists and Bryson Bahl shot 58% from the field to rack up 16 points in addition to eight boards and five steals. That's the most steals Bahl has posted since back in January. The team also got some help courtesy of Levi Webb, who went 5-for-10 en route to 13 points.
Papillion-LaVista South pushed their record up to 23-3 with the victory, which was their 13th straight at home dating back to last season. As for Papillion-LaVista, their win bumped their record up to 15-10.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Papillion-LaVista has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 31.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Papillion-LaVista South struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.6 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Papillion-LaVista beat Papillion-LaVista South 62-52 in their previous matchup back in January. The rematch might be a little tougher for Papillion-LaVista since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
