Auburn Boys Claim ECNC Basketball Title in Dominant Fashion

For the sixth straight season, the ECNC boys basketball championship was a matchup between the Auburn Bulldogs and the Freeman Falcons, but 2026 would be the final time the teams would meet in the title game as Freeman will be leaving the conference next year. Auburn won three of the five previous conference titles, but the Falcons are the reigning conference champions, having beaten the Bulldogs last season.
The Bulldogs earned their spot in the conference final as the #2 seed after blowing through #7 Falls City by a score of 71-19 and Mead by a score of 73-29. Sophomores Brayan Palmer and Ryan Guenther each had a game-high 14 points against the Tigers. Senior Carson Lavigne led Auburn past Mead with 24 points on a school record-tying eight made threes to advance Auburn to a sixth straight rematch with Freeman in the title game.
In the final conference title game meeting between the Bulldogs and Falcons on Saturday night in Mead, Auburn came out on top, knocking off the top-seeded Falcons by a score of 55-36 to win the ECNC boys basketball championship for the fourth time in six seasons.
Senior Brenton Wenzl led all scorers in the title game with 20 points on nine made field goals. Lavigne added 12 points on four made threes and Guenther added another nine points and 10 rebounds to the championship effort.
The Bulldogs struck early, winning the tip and scoring on the game’s opening possession to take a lead that they would never surrender. Midway through the second quarter, Auburn’s lead had grown to 15 points after a Blake Swanson three. Senior Creighton Keeling knocked down a pair of free throws late in the half to send Auburn to halftime up 16 points.
The Falcons cut Auburn’s lead to nine points late in the third quarter, but Auburn responded with a 10-0 run to go back ahead by 19 points in the fourth quarter. From there, Auburn’s defense shut down any chance at a Falcon comeback as the Bulldogs claimed the ECNC title, defeating Freeman 55-36.