SACRAMENTO — In an era when the talent level in high school girls’ basketball in Southern California has seen the likes of All-Americans JuJu Watkins, Kennedy Smith and Gabriela Jaquez become national figures, the game’s newest star, junior guard Kaleena Smith of Ontario Christian, put on a dazzling show of skills and instincts on Saturday night in the state Open Division championship game.
Smith scored 24 points, had five assists and kept delivering clutch baskets in a game filled with emotion and drama to help Ontario Christian come away with a 56-49 win over Archbishop Mitty at Golden 1 Center. It’s the fifth consecutive season Mitty has been forced to settle for runner-up honors as Southern California powers Sierra Canyon, Etiwanda and now Ontario Christian stepped forward to leave the Monarchs one win short of a state title.
“She’s so incredibly shifty,” Mitty coach Sue Phillips said of Smith. “She’s really dynamic. She’s one of the most talented scorers and makes big shots at critical moments.”
Skylah Archer, filling in for injured freshman Chloe Jenkins, contributed a career-high 14 points and Tatianna Griffin had 12 points for an Ontario Christian team that was upset in the Southern Section Open Division final by Sierra Canyon but regrouped to finish the season at 34-2.
Mitty (33-3) hung tough for three quarters, led by Iowa-bound McKenna Waliczko, who had 19 points and 10 rebounds. At one point, Waliczko and Smith were exchanging baskets, answering each other as the crowd became even more engaged knowing these were two future WNBA players doing battle.
Then the Knights pulled away in the fourth quarter with Smith and Griffin stepping up. Smith made a three with 5:56 left and Griffin powered her way for a layup and a 46-41 lead. Then Archer scored for a 48-41 advantage.
“I definitely thought it was a hard-fought game.” Smith said. “We had adversity, they had adversity. They went on runs, we went on runs. We came through and stayed together.”
Smith said the 69-62 loss to Sierra Canyon was a wake-up call for the Knights.
“I felt we went into that game expecting to win,” she said. “And a win is never expected. We changed our mindset.”
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