Huntington 47, Columbus 33
Kyra Anderson has been the key for the Devilettes in their historic playoff run.
The senior power forward tallied a game high 28 points, 11 coming from the third quarter, to give Huntington a 47-33 victory over Columbus.
With the victory, Huntington will look to win their first state title in program history.
The Devilette defense was also key in the third quarter, only allowing five points in the frame, recording 11 rebounds and nine second chance points.
The Lady Cardinals would cut the deficit down as low as seven at the 6:26 mark with a Karly Mathis three and gave hope for a Columbus comeback.
Another opportunity for a run came at the 4:58 mark from a three from freshman Anaya Gardner.
Anderson would guide Huntington in a key spurt in the middle of the quarter with a basket down low with 2:18 left for the Devilettes to pull away in the victory.
Shallowater 59, Rains 47
In basketball, size matters.
The Fillie size inside would be key, collecting 40 rebounds, 15 on the offensive end, as Shallowater topped Rains, 59-47 to advance to their second state title game appearance in four years.
“I thought the offensive rebounding was huge for us,” Shallowater head coach Kurt Richardson said. “Our first shots were not falling a whole lot but we knew by just crashing on offense that maybe we can get some fouls.”
With the extra possessions coming from the offensive glass, the Fillies scored 10 second chance points and shot 46 percent from behind the arc.
Rains cut the game as close as six at the 4:59 mark in the fourth quarter until Addison Pitts converted a basket in the paint to extend the lead to eight.
Buckley hit a three from the wing that extended the Fillie lead to 11 with four minutes left in the game that proved to be the needle in the ballon for Rains’ state title hopes.
“I’m proud of these kids,” Shallowater head coach Kurt Richardson said. “They’ve continued what we’ve been doing the last several weeks and they just went to battle. We knew Rains was really good and we knew we’re going to have to deal with their press that they do such a good job of.”
