AUSTIN — Sisters Chiney and Nneka Ogwumike combined for 36 points and 19 rebounds and Cypress Fairbanks overwhelmed Converse Wagner 60-41 to return to the Class 5A state championship game.

Chiney Ogwumike had game highs in points (20) and rebounds (12) for Cypress Fairbanks (38-2) on Friday, which lost last season’s state final to Rockwall in overtime.

Sajoyia Griffin scored 11 points to lead Wagner (36-2), which advanced to the state tournament in just its second year of varsity competition.

Dickinson gets second shot at a 4A title

-- Cory Roepken / Galveston County Daily News 

AUSTIN — At this point in the high school basketball season, beautiful doesn’t count for much.
The Dickinson Lady Gators were happy to ignore the lack of elegance in their performance Thursday night. They defeated Plainview, 51-42, in a Class 4A state semifinal at the University of Texas’ Erwin Center to advance to the state championship game for the second consecutive season.
Dickinson (35-4) will play Dallas Lincoln (28-4) for the state championship at 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Lincoln defeated Cibolo Steele, 73-63, in Thursday’s first semifinal.
Used to flying up and down the court and scoring point after point in transition, the Lady Gators fell victim to Plainview’s command of the tempo. The Lady Bulldogs (33-4) used a pick-heavy offense and strong passing to keep the ball for nearly 30 seconds on most possessions.
Dickinson stuck with its game plan as much as possible — something Dickinson coach Darrin Samuels said Plainview’s previous opponents, including reigning state champion Fort Worth Dunbar, didn’t do.
“There are a lot of teams that didn’t make it here because they didn’t show that patience,” Samuels said. “There are a lot of teams that did not learn their lesson. We were not going to be one of them. I told our kids if we have to win ugly, let’s win ugly.”
Dickinson led by two points at halftime but Plainview had the upper hand thanks to the tempo going its way. The Lady Bulldogs led 23-21 early in the third quarter, but a 10-3 run gave Dickinson the lead for good. Audrianna Garcia, who scored a team-high 13 points, converted a conventional three-point play to give the Lady Gators a 24-23 lead with 5:43 to go in the third.
Brianna Hypolite made a deep 3-pointer on the next possession to answer Plainview’s basket. Hypolite scored again one minute later, and soon after that Delanah Samuels scored off a steal to give Dickinson a 31-26 lead midway through the quarter.
Dickinson extended its lead thanks to Plainview’s poor shooting. The Lady Bulldogs made 2-of-20 shots from 3-point range despite consistently finding open shots. Hypolite said the main reason for so many open shots in the first half was Dickinson’s lack of communication on defense.
Darrin Samuels said his players had something to do with all the misses.
“Having an open shot you have to rush is not so open,” he said. “They got the ball in their hands, but I don’t think they got their feet set. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be 2-for-20.”
Plainview may have threatened more in the fourth quarter had it not been for poor free-throw shooting. The Lady Bulldogs made 3-of-8 from the foul line in the last eight minutes. They did, however, have a chance to cut the deficit to five points on several occasions in the final four minutes. They never did.
“Our kids did a good job slowing the tempo down and keeping a high-octane offense in check for a long, long time,” Plainview coach Danny Wrenn said. “Bottom line is we missed some open shots. You have to make those against a team like (Dickinson).”
The Lady Gators had their own misfortune on offense, especially in the first half. They shot 33 percent from the field and had nearly as many turnovers (seven) as made field goals (nine). They averaged 74 points per game through the regional tournament. They scored fewer than 51 points four other times this season, but they all came against ranked 5A teams. Their lowest output against a fellow 4A team was 59 points against Angleton in the district opener.
“(Struggling on offense) is disheartening,” Hypolite said. “You have to fight through it. You always have to plan on something not going your way and adjust to it.”
Hypolite had a game-high 12 rebounds to go with her seven points. Morgan Williams had 12 points, four steals and four assists. Marissa Ashton had nine points and six rebounds, LaChandra Johnson six points and three steals and Delanah Samuels four points and three steals.
Dickinson began this season with no intentions ending their season before the final night. The Lady Gators have accomplished that goal. Now they’ll have a chance to end this season on a high note.
“You’re going to see a lot of heart Saturday,” Hypolite said. “We’re going to leave it all on the floor. For four of us, it’s our last game in this uniform. We’re really focused on winning.”