By David Rogers. BOONE,N.C. — It was “bling night” in Lentz Eggers Gym as the gathered basketball crowd not only celebrated Watauga High School’s Senior Night, but also the school’s NCHSAA 6A Women’s Cross Country State Championship team. The glittering ceremony, though, complete with rings for the individual harriers, was just the undercard of the evening.
The main event saw the Pioneer men’s varsity extend its winning streak to five games with a convincing, 71-63 victory over St. Stephens in the final regular season tilt of 2026 — and completing what on Jan. 22 was considered an unlikely comeback to stake claim to the likely No. 2 seed in next week’s Northwestern Conference tournament.
A sluggish start by Watauga and a determined effort by the visiting Indians resulted in a 12-12 tie at the end of the first quarter and a narrow, 31-28 lead by the Pioneers at intermission. In the second half, Watauga had runs where it looked to be pulling away, much like they did against the team’s previous four Northwestern Conference opponents. But a dogged St. Stephens five kept battling back, narrowing the gap or at least keeping their deficit at 6-8 points.
Celebrating Watauga’s 6A State Cross Country Champs
Don’t tell the men’s basketball Pioneers about any of those bad luck myths about Friday the 13th. They’re not true. A whopping five Watauga players — all seniors — finished in double figures, scoring. Senior forward Brady Lindenmuth was one of them and finished just two rebounds shy of a double-double after scoring 11 points, 8 rebounds, and swatting away 2 blocked shots.
Point guard Cade Keller tied with St. Stephens’ Chatham Donley for game-high scoring honors (20 points), and was joined in double figures by Jackson Love (14), Kyle Williams (11) and Bowen Mayo (10), as well as Lindenmuth.
With a late basket, St. Stephens tied the Pioneers at 12-12 at the end of the first quarter, but Watauga did just enough to take the lead and add to it ever so slightly in each ensuing period. At halftime, the Pioneers held a tenuous, 31-28 advantage, then expanded it to 50-44 by the start of the final period.
St. Stephens finished the regular season 1-9 in conference play, with their only league win coming against Watauga on Jan. 22. Since the Pioneers rematch wins against the other conference opponents have been by more convincing margins, head coach Byron Payne was asked whether there was anything special in the St. Stephens matchup that proved more challenging for his Pioneers.
“It was a battle tonight. I am proud of the way our guys competed, having had to play five games in seven days (because of the weather-induced rescheduling). They stayed n the battle and were able to pull away in the end. St. Stephens plays hard. They are well-coached. They are patient on offense and they work us really hard on defense,” said Payne.
“I am super proud of our seniors and what they have meant for our program,” Payne added. “The time they have spent… they are helping to build the legacy of this program.”
With the win, Watauga is tied with Alexander Central at 6-4 in conference play but, according to MaxPreps, is listed as owning the No. 2 at the end of the regular season and 15-7 overall. Watauga will get a first round bye into the semifinals of the Northwestern Conference tournament and play the first round winner of No. 3 Alexander Central and No. 6 St. Stephens on Thursday, Feb. 19, with an 8 p.m. scheduled tipoff.
As the No. 1 seed, Freedom receives the other first round bye and will play the winner of No. 4 South Caldwell vs. No. 5 McDowell on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 8 p.m., in the first seminfal.
The semifinal and final games are all hosted by Watauga High School this year.
