SAN DIEGO -- Fourteen years have passed since Lincoln High celebrated a boys basketball championship.

That feeling finally returned Friday night.

Starting fast and building a 20-point lead at one point in the first half, the No. 2-seeded Hornets held on in the final quarter for a 58-51 victory over Hoover to claim the CIF San Diego Section Division II championship at the Jenny Craig Pavilion, the first title since 1996 when the Hive beat Christian for the Division IV crown.

Despite being two of the section's oldest schools, this was the first time Lincoln and Hoover competed against each other for a CIF title in boys basketball.

But it wasn't an easy victory as the Hornets (25-2) built a 35-15 lead and then watched as the No. 1-seeded Cardinals make a serious run at claiming a second straight title with a 19-10 outburst in the fourth quarter.

Hoover closed the deficit to just seven points, the last time being 54-47, but didn't score on the next two trips down the floor and that was the end of the Cardinals' reign.

Lincoln, the Western League champion, used a balanced scoring attack with Rasean Simpson leading the way with 12 points followed by Norman Powell with 11 points, freshman Tyree Robinson with 11 points and 6-foot-10 senior Nathan Maxey with 10 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.

Hoover's 6-10 junior center Angelo Chol took game-scoring honors with 25 points to go with 16 rebounds.

Dame Ndiaye added 14 points and nine rebounds as Hoover, the Eastern League champion, suffered through a terrible night from the floor, hitting just 19-of-69 attempts.