High school girls basketball: No. 5 Sierra Canyon outlasts No. 4 Etiwanda 66-62 to advance to Southern Section Open Division final

No. 5 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) survived a second-half comeback attempt from No. 4 Etiwanda, advancing to California's Southern Section Open Division title game Tuesday with a 66-62 win.

The Trailblazers meet No. 2 Ontario Christian at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Toyota Center in Ontario in another MaxPreps Top 25 showdown.

On Tuesday, Sierra Canyon (29-2) snapped a three-game losing streak to Etiwanda (30-3) using smothering defense, a rough shooting night by the Eagles and 24 points from South Carolina commit Jerzy Robinson. The Trailblazers opened a a 36-17 halftime lead and looked to be cruising to a meeting with the Knights in the final.

But Etiwanda, the three-time reigning state Open Division champion, wasn't going away quietly. The Eagles used their own trap defense to steal possessions and slowly trim the lead. 

Trailing 51-40 entering the fourth, Etiwanda got 11 in the period from junior Chasity Rice to cut the deficit to 62-59 with 1:46 left. The Eagles, however, couldn't hit the equalizer as Sierra Canyon converted 4 of 6 free throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.

Florida commit Arynn Finley, who left the game twice with a leg injury, pulled a Willis Reed and repeatedly returned to the floor and finished with a team-high 17 for Etiwanda. Rice added 15 and Tess Oldenburg chipped in 13.

Rosie Oladokun had 14 for Sierra Canyon as Oregon commit Emilia Krstevski added nine.

Kaleena Smith scored 20 of her game-high 33 points in the first half Tuesday as the Knights continued their quest for a second straight section title. 

The meeting with Sierra Canyon on Saturday in the title game will be the fifth meeting between the programs with each team owning two victories. Last season, Ontario Christian (31-1) beat the Trailblazers 69-57 in overtime in the Southern California regional semifinals.

On Tuesday, the Knights opened a 44-30 halftime lead behind Smith's outburst as Tatianna Griffin and Dani Robinson both were hampered with three fouls in the opening half.

Amalia Holguin had 13 in the opening period for the Lightning (27-5).

After intermission, the Knights steadily increased their advantage with leads of 59-40, 67-43 and 75-48 as the Knights had four players in double figures. In addition to Smith's 33, Griffin poured in 21, freshman Chloe Jenkins added 14 and Robinson chipped in 10.