See how reigning girls basketball state champions Denton Ryan, Lincoln, Boswell have fared

For the girls basketball teams from Denton Ryan and Lincoln, there is a golden opportunity to win a second straight state title. Denton Ryan (25-4, 6-0 District 6-5A), the reigning Class 5A Division I state champion, is ranked No. 2 in the state in 5A and trails only undefeated and nationally ranked San Antonio Wagner. Ryan beat Wagner 58-47 in last year’s state title game to become the first girls basketball state champion from Denton ISD. Lincoln is also in prime position to repeat as state champion, even though at 17-8 it already has six more losses than last year’s 39-2 Class 4A Division II state title team. Lincoln is ranked No. 5 in the state in 4A but has beaten Denton Ryan, 6A area-ranked DeSoto and 5A state-ranked Prosper Walnut Grove. For the third reigning state champion from the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Fort Worth Boswell, winning state again will be a bigger challenge. Boswell is in fourth place in District 3-6A and is 13-15 on the season under new head coach Jeffery Chatman. If the season ended today, Boswell would be in the Division II playoff bracket and would have to face 25-1 Southlake Carroll — ranked No. 6 in the state — in the first round. The playoffs aren’t far away, starting Feb. 16-17. Only four Dallas-area girls basketball teams have won two or more consecutive UIL state titles in the last decade — Frisco Liberty, DeSoto, Argyle and Duncanville. Denton Ryan, Lincoln and Boswell will try to join that list. Denton Ryan returned three all-state players who have signed to play college basketball — Zaviyana Madison at Incarnate Word, Kinley Lewis at James Madison and Kaylin Jackson at SMU. Lewis leads the team in scoring at 14.6 points per game, Jackson averages 9.7 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds, Madison averages 9.4 points and 4.0 assists and Jamyla Anderson has provided key contributions and ranks second on the team in scoring at 10.4 points per game. Denton Ryan has beaten 6A state No. 2-ranked North Crowley, 5A state No. 5-ranked Argyle and 4A state No. 1-ranked Decatur. Lincoln ended a 16-year state title drought for Dallas ISD when it routed Cuero 60-32 in the state final last year, and that gave Lincoln its first state championship since 2008. Lincoln returned all-state guard Ar’Jayla Elder and All-Area Newcomer of the Year Lanae Dallas and added a key transfer in all-state guard Bralyah Miller, a move-in from Tyler High School who signed with North Texas. Elder, an Old Dominion signee, is averaging 11.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals in a balanced offense. Dallas leads Lincoln in scoring at 13.1 points per game, and Miller averages 12.2 points. Find more high school sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here. Sign up for our FREE HS newsletter.