The following are capsule looks at the Missouri Class 1 boys Final Four teams.
For additional coverage, read St. Elizabeth to face Golden City in return to Class 1 Final Four.
St. Elizabeth (24-5)
Coach: Dillon Tenholder (63-23 overall, 63-23 at St. Elizabeth).
Final Regular Season Ranking: No. 4.
Team Notes: St. Elizabeth shared the Show-Me Conference championship with Eugene and Fatima, claiming its second straight conference title. The Hornets lost 64-46 to Eugene, which reached the Class 2 quarterfinals this season. The Hornets have won their last 16 games after starting the season with an 8-5 record. Their last lost came Jan. 14, an 87-80 loss in double overtime to California in the first round of the California Tournament. St. Elizabeth began the season ranked No. 3 in Class 1. They were ranked as high as No. 2 in the first regular-season poll and have been ranked as low as No. 7. The Hornets won the District 9 Tournament at Capital City High School by an average of 26.3 points in their three wins. They defeated Jamestown 65-51 in the title game. To get to the Final Four, St. Elizabeth edged fifth-ranked Northeast: Cairo 46-44 in the sectionals and defeated Meadville 82-71 in the quarterfinals. St. Elizabeth is averaging 68.0 points per game, led by forward Ross Struemph (6-6 sr.) with 20.3 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. He has scored more than 500 points in each of the last three seasons. Forward Brady Heckemeyer (6-5 sr.) also averages double figures at 13.6 points per game. The Hornets have held opponents to 50.7 points per game, the third-best scoring defense among the Final Four teams. Jefferson: Conception Junction has allowed just 40.0 points per game, while Golden City has given up 50.6 points per game. This is St. Elizabeth's fourth Final Four appearance. The Hornets finished second in Class 1 in 2004 and took third in 2005 and 2019.
Golden City (28-2)
Coach: Michael Reeves (43-31 overall, 28-2 at Golden City).
Final Regular Season Ranking: No. 7.
Team Notes: Golden City has not lost since Jan. 10, a 91-57 decision against Class 2 No. 1 Greenwood. The Eagles have won 19 consecutive games. Michael Reeves is in his first season as head coach at Golden City. He spent the previous two seasons as head coach at Brashear. The Eagles average 70.3 points per game this season and have scored 80 or more points in seven games. Golden City is led by guard Arlo Stump (5-11 sr.), who scored 2,084 points in his first three seasons. He has added 643 points this year for 22.2 points per game to lead the Eagles. Forward Lane Dunlap (5-10 jr.) is next in scoring for Golden City with 19.7 points per game, followed by guard Chain Parrill (5-9 jr.) with 16.1 points per contest. Those three players have accounted for 79.6 percent of the Eagles' scoring this season. Center Seth Miller (6-5 jr.) is the Eagles' only player listed taller than 6-foot. He leads the team with 7.7 rebounds per game. Golden City cruised to a District 5 title, beating Liberal 56-35 in the championship game. In the Class 1 state tournament, the Eagles defeated Rich Hill 77-43 in the sectional round and won 72-42 against Green Ridge in the quarterfinals. This is Golden City's third Final Four appearance. The Eagles were runner-up in Class S in 1965 and took fourth in Class 1 in 1997.
Dora (30-2)
Coach: Rick Luna (260-124 overall, 260-124 at Dora).
Final Regular Season Ranking: No. 2.
Team Notes: Dora enters the Final Four with an 11-game winning streak. The Falcons last lost Feb. 1, a 68-64 decision to Class 2 No. 2 Hartville, but they won the rematch six days later, 69-61 in overtime. Dora's longest winning streak of the season is 18 games. Its other loss this season was a 69-67 defeat to Tupelo (Miss.) in the Washington (Ill.) Tournament of Champions. The Falcons are led by guard Isaac Haney (6-2 jr.), who has already committed to play basketball at Missouri State. He is averaging 30.8 points per game and needs just 14 points to reach 1,000 for the season. Dora has a set of triplets in the starting lineup. Mason Luna (5-11 jr.) averages 13.1 points per game, while Bryson Luna (5-11 jr.) is next at 12.5 points per game. Auston Luna (5-11 jr.) scores 8.0 points per game. Dora averages 80.2 points per game, the highest scoring average of any Class 1 Final Four team. After winning the District 4 championship, Dora knocked off top-ranked South Iron 59-54 in the sectionals, then defeated ninth-ranked Delta 106-70 in the quarterfinals. The paid attendance for the sectional game was 2,290. This is Dora's second straight Final Four appearance. The Falcons finished runner-up last season.
Jefferson:
Concept. Junct. (28-2)
Coach: Tim Jermain (662-191 overall, 468-92 at Jefferson: Conception Junction).
Final Regular Season Ranking: No. 3.
Team Notes: Jefferson: Conception Junction has more Final Four appearances than the other three Class 1 teams combined. This year is the school's 11th appearance, which includes five Class 1 and 1A state championships (2000, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2019). Jefferson: Conception Junction's semifinal game against Dora will be a rematch of the 2019 state championship game. The Eagles defeated the Falcons 75-65. Jefferson: Conception Junction, which formed a co-op this season with South Nodaway, is averaging 68.5 points per game. Center Chase Farnan (6-6 sr.) is the team's leading scorer with 16.4 points per game. Forward Clayton Merrigan (6-1 sr.) is also in double figures with 13.9 points per game. Both players are returning all-staters. Jefferson: Conception Junction coach Tim Jermain was credited with his 800th career win in the Eagles' 68-64 overtime win against Mound City in the sectionals. The District 16 champions followed that with a 62-48 win against Princeton in the quarterfinals. Jefferson: Conception Junction enters the Final Four with a 10-game winning streak, the shortest of the four Class 1 Final Four teams.