Girls state basketball: Epic fourth quarters, upsets top Thursday’s highlights
The Idaho high school girls basketball state tournaments kicked into full swing Thursday. Below are the key highlights, biggest performances and a recap of Treasure Valley teams.
You can all see all the latest state tournament brackets here.
STATE TOURNAMENT HEADLINES
Mountain View advances: Behind another monster fourth quarter from Naya Ojukwu, the Mavericks (18-2) pulled away late to beat Timberline 65-52. The defending champs will face Rigby (20-3) in the 5A state tournament semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday.
Four No. 1 teams fall: Top-ranked Middleton (4A) and Cole Valley Christian (2A) both were bounced into the consolation bracket. Unranked Burley upset Middleton 57-48. No. 3 Grangeville knocked off Cole Valley Christian 37-29.
And at the 1A level, Lapwai (Division I) and Rockland (Division II) both lost in the semifinals.
Treasure Valley teams struggle: Teams from the greater Boise area went 4-6 in Thursday’s first-round games. Mountain View (5A), Parma (3A), Melba (2A) and New Plymouth (2A) were the only ones to advance. Melba and New Plymouth play each other in the 2A semifinals.
Tri-Valley plays for title: The Titans (19-3) are already guaranteed the best finish in program history after beating defending champ Rockland 45-26 in the 1A Division II semifinals. Tri-Valley will battle Kendrick for the state title at 11:30 a.m. Friday at the Idaho Center.
Cinderella run: Bear Lake (12-12) scored the upset of the day, knocking off second-ranked Ririe 38-36 in the opening game of the 2A tournament.
Bear Lake was the fourth seed in its own five-team district tournament, needing a run just to qualify for state. It trailed 31-20 in the third quarter before mounting another rally.
THURSDAY’S TOP 5 PLAYERS
Naya Ojukwu, Mountain View: The junior forward came up big in the clutch again, racking up 34 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks in a 65-52 win over Timberline in the 5A first-round.
Amari Whiting, Burley: The sophomore point guard scored 15 of her game-high 37 points in the fourth quarter to lead the unranked Bobcats to an upset of No. 1 Middleton. Her 37 points are a 4A state tournament record.
Eboni Shaw, New Plymouth: The junior post racked up a double-double of 17 points and 18 rebounds as the Pilgrims won a first-round game for the first time since 2016.
Maniah Clegg, Grace: The senior center led the Grizzlies to an upset of unanimous No. 1 Lapwai with 26 points, 14 rebounds and two assists.
Madison Hodnett, Liberty Charter: The senior post fell one block shy of a triple-double in a 40-39 win over Murtaugh in the 1A Division I consolation bracket. She finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds and nine blocks.
5A STATE TOURNAMENT
Mountain View 65, Timberline 52: The legend of Naya Ojukwu continues to grow.
The 6-foot junior forward scored 14 of her game-high 34 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Mavericks (18-2) to a first-round victory over Timberline in a rematch of last year’s state championship game and two tournament favorites.
“She’s just a phenomenal basketball player, and an athlete,” Mountain View coach Connie Skogrand said. “When you can leap the way she can, and she has great hands, and she’s so strong — you put all that together, she’s just going to will it in.
“That’s what she did in the fourth quarter. She just willed it in.”
Ojukwu, already a two-time first-team All-Idaho pick with a host of Division I offers, grabbed 13 rebounds to finish with a double-double. She also added three blocks as an imposing force in the middle of the Mountain View defense.
And she did it with an injury after taking a knee to her thigh early in the game.
“I had to pull her out,” Skogrand said. “She was not elevating. She couldn’t get up. She couldn’t do it. But she just gutted it up in the fourth quarter.”
Thursday’s performance follows her fourth-quarter heroics that won Mountain View its third straight district title last week. She scored 12 of her 30 points in the final frame to lead the Mavericks to a come-from-behind win.
The Mavericks trailed by four points early in the fourth quarter again Thursday. But Ojukwu and Mountain View rallied again to make the semifinals for the fourth straight year. The Mavericks finished the game on a 10-0 run to pull away from what had been a close game throughout.
Mavericks senior Trinity Slocum did most of the work finding Ojukwu inside, finishing with 14 points, eight assists and five steals. D’Nia Williams chipped in 11 points and six rebounds.
Sophie Glancey led Timberline (11-3) with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Audrey Taylor added 17 points, six rebounds and four steals.
Timberline was without coach Andy Jones for most of the second half after a health scare related to lingering COVID-19 effects. His blood pressure spiked to dangerously high levels after doctors found blood clots in both lungs Monday.
He told the Idaho Statesman later Thursday he was feeling much better but likely wouldn’t coach the rest of the tournament.
Timberline drops into the consolation bracket, where it will face Post Falls (14-8) at 7 p.m. Friday at Ridgevue.
Coeur d’Alene 56, Boise 50: The No. 1-ranked Vikings (19-1) survived an upset bid from Boise, rallying in the fourth quarter to make the semifinals for the first time since 2014.
Unranked Boise (9-5) held a six-point lead early in the fourth quarter. But Coeur d’Alene responded with a 12-0 run, then iced the game at the free-throw line.
The Vikings finished 17-of-19 at the free-throw line, including 5-for-6 in the final minute.
“We took a bunch of quick shots,” Boise coach Kim Brydges said of the fourth quarter. “They weren’t necessarily bad shots, but they were quick shots that unfortunately didn’t fall for us. They started converting on the other end, and the momentum shifted quickly.”
Boise initially struggled with Coeur d’Alene’s pressure defense and up-tempo style, falling into a 13-3 hole in the first quarter. But it eventually found holes to work the ball inside to its superior size, including 6-foot-4 junior forward Ashley Banks, who finished with 15 points, six rebounds and three blocks.
The Vikings ratcheted up the pressure again in the fourth quarter, though, to retake control and win their 11th straight game.
Coeur d’Alene junior Skylar Burke scored a game-high 20 points, including eight in the fourth quarter and a 10-for-10 performance at the free-throw line.
“We had a bunch of really good looks in the first quarter,” Brydges said. “I don’t know if we were nervous or not ready for the moment. But we weren’t able to get those chip shots to fall. We finally settled in, but we dug ourselves a real big hole.”
Thunder Ridge 66, Meridian 55: The Titans (20-4) shredded 5A’s top defense, shooting 53% from the floor to win the first state tournament game in the school’s three-year history.
It’s the most points Meridian (13-5) has allowed all season. The Warriors entered the tournament holding opponents to 36.8 points per game.
But Thunder Ridge was never intimidated, leading from the opening whistle to the final buzzer. Sophomore guard Aspen Caldwell poured in 26 points, and Boston signee Lauren Davenport added 13 points and nine rebounds.
Senior Jaleesa Lawrence led Meridian with 26 points, nine rebounds, three steals and two assists. The Warriors face Boise in a loser-out game at 5 p.m. Friday at Ridgevue.
Rigby 56, Post Falls 36: The Trojans (20-3) won their first state tournament game in their latest incarnation as a 5A program behind a 36-23 edge in rebounding and a defense that held Post Falls to 29% shooting.
Tylie Jones racked up 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Rigby. Brooke Donnelly added 11 points, and Kambree Barber finished with 10.
4A STATE TOURNAMENT
Burley 57, Middleton 48: Sophomore Amari Whiting poured in 37 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, to upset top-ranked Middleton (17-3) at Mountain View.
Whiting, a 5-9 point guard, added eight rebounds and shot 11-for-20 from the field for unranked Burley (18-5). She even drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter, then turned and blew a kiss to the Middleton student section.
Middleton cut the lead to three points twice in the fourth quarter but never could get any closer.
Middleton junior Payton Hymas scored 13 points and racked up seven assists. Junior Casidy Fried added eight points, eight rebounds and five blocks for the Vikings, who face Skyline (17-8) in an elimination game at 2 p.m. Friday at Mountain View.
Burley will face Blackfoot in the semifinals.
Sandpoint 44, Columbia 36: The Wildcats (13-11) cut the deficit to three points early in the fourth quarter. But they couldn’t get any closer in their first state tournament appearance.
Sandpoint (12-10) forced 18 turnovers and rode Kaylee Banks’ 16 points into the semifinals, where they will face Century at 5 p.m. Friday at Mountain View High.
Columbia senior guard Mia Nottingham recorded a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds. And Sage Myers added 10 points. But it wasn’t enough for the Wildcats, who face Mountain Home (16-8) in an elimination game at noon Friday.
Century 55, Mountain Home 25: Idaho State commit Tenleigh Smith racked up 22 points and 5 rebounds to lead the Diamondbacks (17-5) to a first-round rout.
Century has reached the state finals three years in a row. It will battle Sandpoint (12-10) for a fourth straight trip to the Idaho Center.
Blackfoot 48, Skyline 40: The Broncos (20-7) won the sixth meeting of the year between the two High Country Conference rivals behind Kianna Wright’s 20 points and six rebounds.
Blackfoot and Skyline have now split those six games, with Skyline winning the district title last week.
3A STATE TOURNAMENT
Parma 46, Snake River 36: A double-double from Austyn Harris (10 points, 15 rebounds) led the Panthers back to the semifinals.
Grace Jackson added 13 points, Brooke Johnson scored 12 and Harris also added four assists for Parma (17-5). The Panthers pulled away in the second half, out scoring Snake River 26-17.
Parma faces defending champ Timberlake (21-12) at 7 p.m. Friday at Middleton for a chance at their second state championship appearance in program history.
Timberlake 66, McCall-Donnelly 36: The Vandals (6-5) received a rude welcome in their first state tournament appearance since 1993.
Timberlake jumped out to a 20-4 lead in the first quarter. Blayre Jeffs scored a game-high 18 points off the bench, and McKennah Kronenberg (17 points) and Brooke Jessen (15 points) both finished in double figures.
Matti Burtenshaw led the Vandals with 11 points.
In other 3A games, Filer beat Marsh Valley 58-49 and Sugar-Salem routed Bonners Ferry 70-10.
2A STATE TOURNAMENT
Melba 42, Soda Springs 27: The Mustangs (20-4) rebounded from an early deficit and dispatched the three-time defending state champ with a dominant performance on the glass, out rebounding Soda Springs 32-21.
Melba’s Kendall Clark finished with game highs in points (14) and rebounds (seven). Brooklyn Dayley added nine points, and Keylee Wilson finished with seven.
New Plymouth 44, Valley 28: Junior Eboni Shaw racked up 17 points and 18 rebounds to carry the Pilgrims (17-6) into a semifinal rematch with Melba.
Nicole Binggeli added 10 points, and Alyssa Christensen added six points and 10 rebounds for New Plymouth, which finished with a 47-27 edge in rebounds.
The Pilgrims are 1-2 this year against Melba, including a loss in the district semifinals.
Grangeville 37, Cole Valley Christian 29: Grangeville was the only team to beat the No. 1-ranked Chargers all year. And it proved that was no fluke with a second victory to open the state tournament at Bishop Kelly High.
Only four players scored for the No. 3-ranked Bulldogs (17-4), but they got balanced production from Macy Smith (11 points), Talia Brown (nine points), Bailey Vanderwall (nine points) and Camden Barger (eight points).
Zoe Lutz also added 16 rebounds without scoring.
Anna Veeck led Cole Valley (17-2) with 10 points, and Desirae Kingery added eight points and nine rebounds. The Chargers face No. 2-ranked Ririe (22-3) in a consolation game at noon Friday at Bishop Kelly.
1A DIVISION I STATE TOURNAMENT
Grace (20-3) knocked off defending state champ Lapwai (21-2). The Grizzlies will face Prairie (22-3), a 50-32 winner over Lighthouse Christian, for the title at 2 p.m. Friday at the Idaho Center.
In the losers’ bracket, Treasure Valley locals Liberty Charter and Rimrock advanced to the consolation final.
1A DIVISION II STATE TOURNAMENT
Tri-Valley 45, Rockland 26: The Titans (19-3) advanced to the finals for the first time since Cambridge and Midvale joined to form the program in 2005-06.
Tri-Valley senior Josey Jones scored a game-high 15 points and added five rebounds. Lauryn Mitchell chipped in nine points and six rebounds, and Emma Hollon finished with seven points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Kendrick topped Carey 52-40 in the other semifinal behind Erin Morgan’s 23 points.
This story was originally published February 18, 2021 at 4:30 PM.
