NTX Varsity Sports Columnist
The relief, thrill, anxiety and cruelty of the girls high school basketball playoffs have arrived.
It also has become a series of one-game seasons. One great night produces an upset. One business-as-usual performance means a team with an agenda knows it has to play to a standard.
On Monday, the three-week journey begins for teams from all six classifications to reach the state championships at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The state tournament is set for March 5-7.
The regular season concluded this past Tuesday. From the NTX Varsity Sports coverage area, 10 programs still earn the right to wear the uniform.
They are by classification:
5A: Aledo, Cleburne, Granbury
4A: Decatur, Krum, Bridgeport, Glen Rose
3A: Paradise, Malakoff
2A: Mildred
Using the enrollment figures from 2024-25, the playoffs were divided into Division I and Division II brackets. That means we’re going to have 12 state champions – two from each classification – instead of six.
What that also means is that there will not be a district champion playing a fourth-place seed in the opening round. Four teams from each district still advance to the playoffs. However, it’s set up where the No. 1 seed meets the No. 2 seed.
The were several intriguing stories throughout the 2025-26 season. First, there was Cleburne winning the District 8-5A championship and going undefeated. What likely makes this more satisfying is the Lady Jackets did not make the playoffs last year.
Then, there’s Krum. The Lady Bobcats went through a lot of highs and lows in District 7-4A play. They put themselves in a corner, losing a tough 58-57 decision to Eagle Mountain, a team that was chasing them, last Friday. Krum had to win at Bridgeport in Tuesday’s season finale to avoid a playoff play-in game with Eagle Mountain and did. They beat the Sissies 66-63 in overtime.
Paradise and Aledo each won district championships going undefeated. Paradise in 10-3A. Aledo in 5-5A. Of course, the No. 6 Lady Panthers got a scare at Ponder on Feb. 3 but survived, 43-41. This 2024-25 state finalist didn’t win the district title and went undefeated. For Aledo, it won its first district title since 2018-19 also went undefeated.
Just like we did with volleyball, let’s break down the teams we believe have it in them to make a deep postseason run and could win state.
Aledo (24-7): The Class 5A Region I Division I bracket is probably the deepest. If a team wins this region to advance to the state semifinals, chances are it could win state. Just ask Denton Ryan, which emerged from it and won it all last year. This region features the Lady Cats at No. 14, Cleburne at No. 16, Ryan at No. 2 and Amarillo Tascosa at No. 10. That’s loaded. I think the Lady Cats can advance to the regional semifinals.
That would mean a rematch against Tascosa, who beat them in this round last year. It’s just going to depend on if the Lady Cats can get enough stops if they can reach the regional title game.
Decatur (31-4): The top-ranked and defending 4A Division I state champions are poised to do it again. They’ve been dominating. They’re taking a 19-game winning streak into the playoffs. When the Lady Eagles won the state title last year, they faced only one game where they won by single digits. They survived Canyon in the regional semifinals by five points.
Nothing is ever a given. However, it would have to take a pretty impressive performance by someone in Division I Region I to make Decatur nervous. It could be No. 10 Seminole. It could be No. 8 Brownwood. Stephenville has had an excellent season.
Paradise (28-4): The sixth-ranked Lady Panthers are a relentless defensive team. So much from their offense comes from their full-court press. They typically place five in double figures.
Decatur move-in Renlee Longenbaugh is likely going to be the District 10-3A MVP. She’s got the 3-point touch and can drive to the basket. Don’t discount sophomore Allie McCormick. She has grown into a playmaker on both ends of the floor.
It’s hard to know what the Lady Panthers are going to encounter in Division II Region II. But the good news is that head coach Michael Barnes can play all nine of his players and not suffer much of a drop off. Now, that may change as the playoffs go longer. Still, he has a lot of confidence in his team.
There should be some interesting stories to follow.
