AUSTIN – The second day of the Texas girls state basketball tournament witnessed a single-game scoring record and tight contests in the lower classifications at the Erwin Center on the University of Texas campus.
Championship Saturday promises more of the same with six state titles on the line.
Class 5A: Mansfield Summit 49, Cypress Fairbanks 39
Mansfield Summit dominated the first half and refused to fold en route to a 49-39 triumph over defending champion Cypress Fairbanks in the 5A semifinals.
Over the first 16 minutes, the Jaguars (33-4) blindsided Cy-Fair (35-4) with a 29-12 outburst, and the Bobcats couldn’t overcome the 17-point deficit.
Amy Moody and Starr Crawford carried Summit’s offensive load with 15 and 12 points. Crawford also brought down 10 rebounds, eight of them on the defensive end.
The Jaguars limited Cy-Fair’s Chiney Ogwumike to three points in the first half. But the junior post scored 27, the entire Bobcat total, in the final two quarters, and finished with a game-high 30.
5A: Houston Nimitz 74, Pflugerville 47
Brittney Griner, Nimitz
File Photo By Jim Redman
Brittney Griner broke the Texas state tournament single-game scoring record with 44 points and took Houston Nimitz to a 74-47 win over Pflugerville in Friday night’s 5A semifinal.
The previous record of 43 points was set in 1979, the final year girls played 3-on-3 basketball in Texas.
Griner, who shot 19 of 21 from the field including a dunk, almost posted a triple-double, yanking down 18 rebounds and blocking eight shots. Alicia Seay also added 11 points for the Cougars (37-1).
Pflugerville (32-6) trailed by only 10 points at halftime, 38-28. But Panther post Nneka Enemkpali suffered a knee injury 10 seconds into the third quarter, and Pflugerville had no weapon to stop Griner. Kaylan Martin paced the Panther scoring with 10 points.
Nimitz and Summit will engage in the 5A championship contest on Saturday evening.
Class 2A
2A: Woodville 61, Salado 50
Woodville survived a late rally and held on for a 61-50 win over Salado in the 2A semifinals on Friday morning.
The Eagles (32-4) led 47-31 with under six minutes remaining but Salado (27-10) erupted for a 15-4 run over the next four minutes, cutting the margin to 51-48 on Hadley Joiner’s 3-point play at the 1:37 mark.
Woodville limited the Eagles to two points the rest of the way closed out the contest by connecting on 6 of 8 free throw and two fastbreak layups.
Four Eagles reached double figures paced by Brooke Taylor with 17 points. Meisha McNeal scored 12, while Samantha Gilder and Kayla Humprey contributed 10 apiece.
Joiner topped all scorers with 19 points, and Brennan Boydstun added 15 for Salado.
2A: Brock 46, Bowie 42
Brock kept Bowie at bay and advanced to the 2A title game with a 46-42 victory over the Rabbits.
The Eagles (31-8) threatened to put Bowie (36-3) away early, leading by 10 points twice in the first quarter. But the Rabbits surged back and trailed by only three points at end of three quarters, 25-22.
Brock never relinquished the lead and nailed 3 of 4 free throws in the final 22 seconds to clinch the win.
Freshman Kamy Cole scored 13 points, all of them in the second half, for the Eagles, while Paige Parliament and Kenisha Harris aided the offense with 12 and 10, respectively. Bowie’s Megan Workman topped the scoring with 21 points.
Cole’s three older sisters, Kaycie, Kenzie, and Krystal, brought Brock three state titles in 2002, 2003, and 2005.
"It helped a lot growing up playing against them," Cole told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "I’ve always watched their games and tried learning from their mistakes. Now it’s my time to shine."
Woodville and Brock tangle for the 2A state title on Saturday afternoon.
Class A Division II: Roby 43, Vega 39
Roby trailed until the waning minutes and walked away with a 43-39 semifinal win over Vega.
Tara Schroedter’s layup put the Lions (33-3) in front for good with 2:51 left on the third-quarter clock.
In the final 36 seconds, Schroedter, who scored 16 points, nailed 4 of 6 free throws to deliver Roby a berth in the championship contest. Teammates Kim Williams and Kendra Pace contributed 11 and 10, respectively.
Vega’s (26-10) Teysha Matthews led the scoring with 19 points.
Class A Division II: Neches 71, Leggett 60
Neches bolted in front 61-39 after three quarters and coasted to a 71-60 win over Leggett in the second game of the Class A-Division II semifinals. Four Tigers (35-3) reached double figures led by Roddricka Patton with 17 points. Dianna Patton and Kristen Green contributed 16 each, and Neshiyer Lichon added 10.
Leggett’s (29-7) Brittney Jefferson poured in 22 points, while Jennifer Petties and Brianna Barlow netted 12 and 11.
Roby and Neches meet in the Class A–Division II title match on Saturday night.
