Continued: Osseo stuns No. 1, unbeaten Centennial

Osseo's clutch free-throw shooting ensured that nobody's perfect.

Losers of both of their regular-season meetings against previously undefeated Centennial, the Orioles girls' basketball team earned a trip to state with a stunning 62-56 victory Thursday in the Class 4A, Section 5 championship game at Anoka High School.

Jennie Sunnarborg and Amy Hildebrand hit all four of their combined free-throw attempts with less than 30 seconds remaining, maintaining the lead as Osseo bent late in the second half but never broke.

Osseo led 28-20 at halftime and saw its lead grow to as many as 12 points. Led by Megan Nipe's 29 points, the No. 1-ranked Cougars (27-1) cut Osseo's lead to 57-56 with 1 minute to play. But Nipe's two free throws were the Cougars' final points.

Sunnarborg led the Orioles (24-5) with 22 points, including 4-for-6 free-throw shooting in the second half.

"We felt the first two times we played them were not our best games," Hildebrand said. "We knew we couldn't come in tonight like we were already defeated."

Centennial coach Jill Becken was left to console a team that has lost a combined four games the past two seasons yet has missed out on state twice.

"I felt early on we were pressing and forcing things," she said. "It's tough because we weren't ready in any way, shape or form to be done tonight."

DAVID LA VAQUE

CLASS 4A, SECTION 6

Minneapolis South 51, Hopkins 42: The smallest player on the court made the biggest impact.

Sophomore Tyisha Smith jump-started Minneapolis South's offense in the first half and provided savvy in the second half. The heady play of the 5-3 guard helped the Tigers avenge their only loss of the season in a victory over Hopkins for the Class 4A, Section 6 championship at Osseo High School.

"She brings so much energy to the court, it's ridiculous," Tigers coach Ahmil Jihad said. "Before we even take the court she is bouncing around the locker room."

Tayler Hill (14) and Smith (10) combined for 24 first-half points as the Tigers held a 30-29 lead at halftime. Hill finished with a game-high 22 points.

RON HAGGSTROM

CLASS 3A, SECTION 4

Minnehaha Academy 80, St. Paul Johnson 69: Minnehaha Academy coaches Josh Thurow and Scott Scholl were honored as Class 3A, Section 4 coach and assistant coach of the year, respectively, before their section final against St. Paul Johnson. But neither can coach height.

Freshman center Katelyn Adams, averaging 6.6 points per game this season, came up big with 18 points and senior guard Megan Erlandson poured in a game-high 22 as the Redhawks advanced to their first state tournament in three years with an 80-69 victory over the Governors.

"Katelyn is the next big thing," Thurow said. "She's big, she's a great player, great touch with her shot, really fundamentally sound. You wouldn't believe how much she's improved in a single year's time."

Erlandson scored 13 of Minnehaha's final 17 points while handling Johnson's suffocating defense.

The Governors were led by seniors Carolyn Blair-Mobley and Alex Moore, who scored 18 points apiece.

ANTHONY MAGGIO

CLASS 3A, SECTION 3

Totino-Grace 59, Fridley 40: Though a little surprised to be trailing Fridley 26-20 at halftime, Totino-Grace's players knew if they could better control themselves, mastery of the Tigers would follow.

"We just talked about how we could not go out and play another half like the first one," senior Caroline Haik said. "We were arguing on the court, and that's not something we normally do."

Pressure defense and more consistent shooting allowed the Eagles to fight back for a 35-32 lead they never relinquished. Their victory in the Class 3A, Section 3 championship game sends them back to the state tournament.

Junior forward Liz Naumann scored 12 of her team-leading 16 points in the second half.

The Eagles led 18-9 in the first half until poor shooting stalled their offense. They missed a number of layup and put-back attempts and went 5-for-15 from the free throw line.

DAVID LAVAQUE

CLASS 4A, SECTION 4

St. Paul Central 60, Woodbury 30: The difference was vertical.

Woodbury was an even match for Central in nearly everything horizontal, two teams utilizing their quickness to get up and down the court at the Concordia University's Gangelhoff Center.

But the game was won when feet left the floor and the ball was in the air.

With center Georgie Jones controlling the boards on both ends of the court and forward Kiara Buford deftly cleaving wedges of space in which to rise up and drop in an array of soft shots, the Minutemen (24-4) earned the chance to defend their 2008 Class 4A state championship with a convincing performance in the Section 4 championship game.

No question that Woodbury was prepared for Central's aggressive style. The Royals (21-8) were mostly successful solving Central's press and did manage a few easy baskets.

But Central's board work was just too much. The Minutemen continuously limited Woodbury to just one shot on the defensive end while getting multiple shots on offense.

"Our rebounding was huge tonight," Central coach Willie Taylor said. "We rebounded, we blocked shots, we had energy."

The Minutemen were led by Buford, who scored 20 points, and Jones, who had 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Jim Paulsen