High school girls basketball: Green Canyon rallies in second half to beat Dixie in 4A state championship

It’s been a rare occurrence this season for No. 2 Green Canyon to be trailing at halftime, but that’s the situation the Wolves found themselves in Saturday’s 4A championship game against top-seeded Dixie.

Even though it was only a four-point halftime deficit, it was the first time this season Green Canyon had trailed by more than two at the break.

But the Wolves opened the second half with focus on attacking the rim, and that earned them a 59-53 win for their first-ever state championship.

“Just offensively, we got a little cold in the first half,” said Green Canyon head coach Kara Foster. “We just knew if we kept attacking and attacking, sooner or later the shots would fall.”

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Despite the halftime deficit, Green Canyon was defending well and making sure it got plenty of possessions. In the first half, it forced Dixie to turn the ball over nine times and got up 10 more shots.

However, the Wolves were also losing the rebounding battle, and the Flyers were more efficient with their shots. Dixie shot 60% from three in the half while Green Canyon shot only 17%.

The shooting was Green Canyon’s biggest struggle early, which resulted in the 26-22 halftime deficit, but Foster made sure that didn’t deter her team from continuing to get shots up.

“I felt like our defense was pretty solid, our rotations were good, our outside was fantastic, but if we could just keep attacking, eventually the shots would fall,” Foster said. “I felt like they did in the second half for sure.”

Green Canyon focused on getting to the rim out of the half, and it paid off as the Wolves outscored the Flyers 19-13 in the third quarter to take the lead heading into the final period.

Despite struggling with her shot in the first half, Kloey Tensmeyer got to the rim, facilitated and hit a big 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter.

“What I’m most proud of her for this year is if she’s missing shots, last year she would have been more frustrated,” Foster said.

“This year, it doesn’t bother her. She keeps trying, keeps shooting, and eventually she starts hitting, which is fantastic for us.”

The Wolves remained in control for the remainder of the game. However, Dixie’s Izzy Hollinghead gave it her best effort. Hollinghead was in foul trouble all game, but scored nine points in the fourth while having four fouls.

Luckily for Green Canyon, Talyssa Nelson and freshman Halle Hunter helped keep it ahead with their scoring.

Hunter usually isn’t toward the top of the scoresheet for the Wolves, but she often makes big impact plays that help winning. On Saturday, Hunter was a perfect 6 of 6 from the field for 12 points off the bench while adding six rebounds.

“You just got to treat it like any other game,” Hunter said. “I don’t need to be the lead scorer because we have so many amazing people on our team, but when I get the opportunity, I want to make it count.”

Nelson led Green Canyon offensively with 20 points and had the shot of the game. Green Canyon had a four-point lead with just under a minute left, but Nelson hit a dagger 3-pointer to put Dixie away.

“I just shot it, and I said, ‘I really hope this goes in,’” said Nelson. “I think we played a really good game all the way around, but I think our shots started falling in the second half.

“I think the key was confidence in the second half, just not giving up, knowing that our shots would fall and keep on pushing hard.”

Mya Hinds had a strong tournament for Green Canyon and added nine points, nine rebounds and eight assists in Saturday’s win. Hinds also had a monster performance in Friday’s semifinal with 22 points.

Saturday was Green Canyon’s first-ever state championship appearance after going 0-3 in semifinal games previously. It made sure to capitalize on its opportunity.

“This is huge for us,” Foster said. “I think this has just been a great group of girls. They bought in from the beginning, which I think is rare.

“They set the standard high now for Green Canyon girls basketball and I’m so proud of them.”

Deseret News 4A All-Tournament Team

MVP — Talyssa Nelson, Green Canyon

Mya Hinds, Green Canyon

Kloey Tensmeyer, Green Canyon

Izzy Hollinghead, Dixie

Addison Winters, Dixie

Reese Gustin, Pine View