Caruthers and Sierra Pacific, both recent state champs, stage epic section title duel
It came down to the final play between Caruthers and Sierra Pacific.
Just as you probably should expect in a game between recent state high school girls basketball champions.
Caruthers’ Krisalynn Turman tipped an inbounds pass with 3..5 seconds left and the Blue Raiders gained possession to secure a 60-58 victory in the Central Section Division IV championship game at Selland Arena on Saturday.
It is back-to-back section titles for Caruthers under coach Anna Almeida and its fourth section title, according to section historian Bob Barnett. The Blue Raiders won the D-V title last year en route to the state championship.
Sierra Pacific under coach Amy Bush won the state D-V title in 2018. Sierra Pacific jumped up to D-IV last season and made the Southen California Regional final.
Just how did the matchup of titans go? There were seven lead changes and four ties.
Caruthers got the edge on second-chance points and bench scoring.. The Blue Raiders outscored the Golden Bears 22-9 on putbacks, and Caruthers’ reserves outscored the Sierra Pacific second unit 28-2.
Turman led Caruthers with 14 points and Celeste Lewis had game-high honors for Sierra Pacific with 19 points.
Both teams will go to the state playoffs and will find out their opponents when the brackets are released by the California Interscholastic Federation on Sunday.
This story was originally published February 29, 2020 at 3:09 PM.
