AUBURN, Neb. - Auburn is heading back to Lincoln once again for the 2023 state tournament next week after torching Lincoln Lutheran in the C1-8 district final Tuesday night, 72-29. 

The Bulldogs (19-6) got out to a 21-8 lead after one quarter, knocking down a host of 3-pointers. Maverick Binder hit one from the top of the key to make it an 8-0 game early, forcing a timeout. 

The closest Lincoln Lutheran got all night was 8-3 after an early Jacob Duitsman trey. From there the Bulldogs took over even more.

Over the course of the second quarter, Auburn outscored Lutheran 20-2 to take a commanding 41-10 halftime lead. Nixon Ligouri scored a team-high 12 points in the first half including two deep rhythm 3-pointers. 

The Warriors also had no answer for Carson Leslie (6-foot-8) as he dominated both ends of the floor. The Warriors (18-8) coupled their poor defense with a ton of missed shots from deep. 

Leslie went on a 6-0 run himself in the third quarter as the game continued to roll in Auburn's favor. The biggest moment of the second half came with 1:43 left in the third quarter when Warriors head coach Jesse Bouwens was assessed a technical foul--much to the delight of the capacity Auburn crowd. 

Bouwens then began to wave his arms in the air encourage the crowd to get even louder. Lincoln Lutheran trailed by more than 30 points at that time. 

The Bulldogs played mostly reserves the rest of the way and secured another state tournament appearance while letting the rest of C-1 know they're still one of the top teams in the state. All 19 of Auburn's wins this season are by double digits. 

Leslie had a game-high 17 points, Ligouri finished with 15 and Binder had 12. The Bulldogs held the Warriors Jonny Puelz to just 8 points. 

The state tournament begins Wednesday, March 8. 

Box Score: 

Lincoln Lutheran (18-8): 8, 2, 12, 5 - 29

Auburn (19-6): 21, 20, 20, 11 - 72