Overlooked? Not now. Junior carries Eagle girls basketball to state title game
Taya Nelson often flies under the radar on a team with two Division I prospects. But the Eagle junior guard took her turn in the spotlight Friday.
Nelson erupted for a career-high 33 points to carry the Mustangs to their latest blowout victory, a 76-47 win over Coeur d’Alene in the 6A girls basketball state tournament semifinals.
“We call her the Swiss Army knife because she can do so many things for us in so many ways in every game,” Eagle coach Jeremy Munroe said. “But she’s always got that ability to go off and have that type of night.”
Eagle (24-2) will face the winner of Middleton vs. Rigby for the state championship at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.
[Related: State tournament scoreboard | Title predictions | Scouting reports on all 48 teams]
Nelson started the night with a milestone, sinking the game’s first basket to surpass 1,000 career points. She was only getting started.
She racked up 23 points in the first half and finished the night 14-for-19 from the field. She actually missed her final three field-goal attempts with Eagle holding a 29-point lead, dragging her shooting percentage down to 74% for the night.
Nelson said nothing felt out of the ordinary during warmups, and she didn’t exactly set the scoreboard on fire in the first quarter, getting seven points. But after banking in a desperation 3-pointer at the first-quarter buzzer, she realized it was her night.
“I just needed to see that one go through,” Nelson said. “That’s kind of where it started.”
She made her presence felt all over the floor, adding six rebounds, five assists and five steals before taking a seat with 2:59 left in the fourth quarter. Her hustle on the defense end created fast-break opportunities. Her smooth shot allowed her to drain 3-of-5 3-pointers. And her instincts led to a series of backdoor cuts and layups.
“Her IQ is off the charts,” Munroe said. “As you watch her play, you see her feeling the room, seeing what’s going on and just understanding movements.
“It’s impressive. It’s a fun thing to watch.”
Nelson began her high school in Oregon, helping Crane capture a 1A state title as a freshman. She moved to Eagle as a sophomore looking for a challenge and a chance to get noticed by college recruiters. She quickly became an indispensable part of the Mustangs’ back-to-back trips to the state tournament, entering this year’s tournament as Eagle’s second-leading scorer (12.3 ppg).
Coeur d’Alene coach Stacy Boyd said the Vikings entered Friday focused on slowing Berkley Jones, who holds 30 Division I offers, and Trinity Holsinger, a Liberty signee.
Boyd said players like Nelson are what make Eagle so dangerous.
“We didn’t think she would do that because she’s more of a role player,” Boyd said. “But that’s the difference with that team because they’re so deep. So if one person ain’t scoring, the other one picks up the slack.”
Jones added another double-double of 20 points and 12 rebounds, and Holsinger chipped in nine points as Eagle continued to run roughshod over another Idaho opponent.
The Mustangs led by as many as 33 points Friday, but Idaho does not use the running-clock mercy rule at the state tournament. That only extended the blowout, as Eagle won its sixth straight game by 20 or more points, including all five district and state tournament matchups thus far.
“I think we really did hit our high note here in February,” Nelson said. “A lot of teams, they have, like, these small looks (where), ‘Oh, they’re a great team. They’re this.’
“We really did prove that, and I think we’re going to carry that through. We peaked at the right time.”
Coeur d’Alene junior guard Brookeslee Colvin finished with 21 points and seven rebounds. But the Mustangs made her work for every point as juniors Isabelle Elitharp and Ryann Elssworth harassed her around the court all night, holding her to a 5-for-17 shooting performance.
BOISE 42, TIMBERLINE 34: The Brave drained 7-of-14 3-pointers to keep their chances for a trophy alive. Seventh-seeded Boise (17-10) will face Madison at 10 a.m. Saturday for the consolation title, where a win would give Boise its seventh straight state tournament trophy.
Ashlyn Waldram led the Boise assault with 15 points and three assists, and Scarlett Meyer added eight points off the bench for the season-extending win over a crosstown rival.
Timberline (20-7) struggled offensively all afternoon, shooting 19% from the floor. Lexi Moore scored 11 points, and Reese Vachek added eight points.
MADISON 38, BORAH 30: The Bobcats prevailed in a defensive battle in the consolation bracket, holding Borah to 25% shooting to advance to Saturday’s consolation championship
Senior guard Mia Walsh put up 12 points and eight rebounds for eighth-seeded Madison (17-10), while Aspen Boice added nine points.
Abi Howington led fifth-seeded Borah (20-7) with eight points, and Kya Davis added six points and three steals in the season-ending loss.
This story was originally published February 20, 2026 at 8:20 PM.
