None ever went as far as the 2026 Green Dragons. As good as some of those previous teams were, they never advanced past the state tournament’s second round.

This year’s team took a sledgehammer to those walls which blocked Lewisburg for so long. They busted through, made history and now can say they are the program’s best team ever.

Yes, the season did not end as Lewisburg hoped, defending 4A state champion Devon Prep defeating it, 75-53 in Tuesday’s state semifinals, but what a season it was. The Dragons (24-5) were in chase mode all night and could not catch Devon Prep, but what they achieved will long make them stand out.

“What they’ve accomplished this year, no other kid who’s stepped into Lewisburg and put on a Lewisburg jersey has done. That’s something to be proud of,” Lewisburg coach Leon Tucker said. “That’s something they’ll take with them for the rest of their lives.”

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg fans cheer on the boys basketball team as they take on Devon Prep in the PIAA Class AAAA semi-final game at Hazelton High School Tuesday.

Along the way, Lewisburg won HAC-II, Heartland Conference and district championships. The Dragons won 19 straight games entering the Final 4 and came light years from where they started the year.

Few believed Lewisburg would make a run like this, but the Dragons showed future teams what is possible. A spirited offseason produced historic results and as the years go by, the journey will mean so much more to all those involved than the ending.

“I’ll just think about all the positives. I’ll put the bad things beside and think about all the good things we did this season, making history,” point guard Cortland Michaels said after closing his superb freshman year with 10 points and four assists. “I wouldn’t want to do it with any other group of guys. I’m grateful for everyone here, and they’re all great people.”

It was not so much what Lewisburg did wrong Tuesday either. The Dragons simply ran into a super team operating at peak capacity. Devon Prep (9-18) holds one of the most deceiving records in state tournament history, taking their lumps in the prestigious Philadelphia Catholic League, one of the East Coast’s best.

But all those bruises healed and made a team with five new starters strong as an ox come playoff time. The Tide beat their third district champion during states by a double-digit margin and will play Philadelphia rival West Catholic in Thursday’s state final. John Doogan scored 29 points, Jaden Craft 17 and the Tide ran a potent offense with surgical precision, denying Lewisburg its Hollywood ending.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Cooper Mowry (1) drives around Devon Prep's Braeden Fisher(33) in the fourth quarter.

“It’s hard to simulate speed and what they do. That’s a great team over there,” Tucker said. “Credit to them. They scouted us and they wanted to attack some things. They wanted to attack us and not let our defense get set. They did a great job of doing that.”

“That was just a great team on the other side,” Michaels said. “They’re very disciplined. They’re fundamentally-sound. They were good with cuts and have a pretty good defense.”

That blend helped Devon Prep build a 10-point first quarter lead and stretch it to 37-22 by halftime. While there were some defensive lapses, especially in transition, Devon Prep operated and shot the ball so well, that even with the Dragon defense functioning at its highest level, it would have been tough to contain.

Lewisburg made a third quarter run, cutting an 18-point deficit to 12 entering the fourth. But every time it felt like the Dragons were on the verge of storming back with a large Lewisburg crowd roaring, Deveon Prep quickly answered and regained control.

Michaels drained consecutive 3-pointers and pulled Lewisburg within 58-44 with 5 minutes, 10 seconds remaining. A player who dazzled throughout the season was at his best come playoff time and added two steals against a team making its fourth state title appearance in five years.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Cortland Michaels (0) shoots around Devon Prep's Jaden Craft (10) in the fourth quarter.

“It’s good that I played in those types of games because the crowds are great. It’s good to play in front of a lot of people and it’s prepared me for things to come,” Michaels said. “It helps to play in loud environments. Even today, a couple of baskets went in, and it got crazy. Those are the types of games I live for. Those are the most fun types of games.”

Moments after Michaels hit his last 3-pointer, however, Owen Raymond answered and buried a trey to push the lead to 17. The Tide pulled away from there.

LJ Tucker capped a fantastic state tournament run with 11 points, while Rebira Jemana had nine, Cooper Mowry eight, Nazir Meredith six and Jaylen Walker five. It was another balanced performance from one of District 4’s most complete teams. And what made Lewisburg the state’s best public school team was that all five on the court at a given time played as one.

Jemana, Mowry, Meredith and fellow senior Aiden Eby set the tone. The underclassmen absorbed everything be taught from them and the coaches and a team which won eight games two years ago became one of the state’s top four.

“I can’t thank our seniors enough for sticking with me these last three years through the tough times, the good times and setting a good example for our younger guys and creating the culture that we have right now,” Coach Tucker said.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Leon Tucker, II, (3) shoots in heavy traffic in the second quarter.

“I’m just so happy for the seniors. Coming in and making history is great,” Michaels said. “This means a lot to them; means a lot to the coaches It was not a very happy ending, but it was a great ride with them.”

There were different times it felt like the ride might continue. Jemana and Mowry scored four straight points early after Devon Prep went up, 6-0. A Tucker steal and layup made it, 10-7 and Meredith heated up in the second quarter, scoring six points in the paint.

But the big runs which Lewisburg used to change games against Big Spring, Pope John II and Bishop McDevitt never materialized. Because even when Lewisburg did heat up, the Tide remained equally hot and almost always responded.

That’s what it took to finally cool a team which burned through 19 straight opponents, including 7 state playoff squads and three district champions.

A year ago, Lewisburg went one-and-done at districts. Instead of looking back, the Dragons looked ahead, hit the ground running and planted the seeds which help them rise above all those Lewisburg teams before them.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Cortland Michaels (23) shoots a free throw in the second quarter.

As the years go by, it will be that rise and all the memories created along the incline which make players and coaches smile.

I know it’s special,” Coach Tucker said. “I’ve enjoyed every single moment of this with those guys.”

DEVON PREP (73)

Jaden Craft 7 0-0 17, John Doogan 13 2-2 29, Cooper Fairlamb 5 1-2 11, Owen Raymond 2 0-0 5, Braeden Fisher 3 0-0 6, Dillon Johnson 1 0-0 3, James Kaune 1 0-0 2. Totals 32 3-4 73.

LEWISBURG (49)

Cooper Mowry 3 0-0 8, LJ Tucker 4 2-2 11, Nazir Meredith 3 0-0 6, Rebira Jemana 3 3-4 9, Cortland Michaels 3 2-2 10, Jaylen Walker 2 1-2 5. Totals 18 8-10 49.

Devon Prep 19 18 13 23–73

Lewisburg 9 13 16 11–49

3-pointers: Devon Prep 6 (Craft 3, Doogan, Raymond, Johnson); Lewisburg 5 (Mowry 2, Michaels 2, Tucker).

Records: Devon Prep 9-18. Lewisburg 24-5.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Cortland Michaels (0) shoots over Devon Preps's Dillon Johnson (3) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Leon Tucker, II, (3) drives down court around Devon Preps's Dillon Johnson (3) in the third quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Leon Tucker, II (3) shoots over Devon Preps's Dillon Johnson (3) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Cortlnd Michaels (0) tries to drive around Devon Preps's Owen Raymond (5) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Nazir Meredith (23) shoots over Devon Preps's Dillon Johnson (3) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Lewisburg's Jaylen Walker (23) shoots over Devon Preps's Braeden fisher (33) in the first quarter.