DENVER | With the way it played Friday night, the Grandview girls basketball team doesn’t mind that the rest of the Class 5A state tournament is set at the Denver Coliseum instead of the Coors Events Center.
Junior Jaiden Galloway certainly doesn’t want a change of venue, as she poured in a season-high 29 points to help spark the second-seeded Wolves to an 88-46 Great 8 victory over No. 7 Doherty.
With a lot of help from Galloway and senior Michaela Onyenwere, Grandview shook off a sluggish start in the first quarter to overwhelm the Spartans in the final three periods. Galloway and Onyenwere had big first halves on their way to 29 and 24 points, respectively, as coach Josh Ulitzky’s team made the Final Four for the second year in a row and fourth in the last five.
Grandview (25-1) has an all-Aurora matchup with Regis Jesuit (20-6) in the semifinals after the 11th-seeded Raiders knocked off third-seeded Horizon 55-46. The teams met on Dec. 9, 2016, with the Wolves running away with a 58-30 victory.
The Aurora foes play March 9 on the same floor at Denver Coliseum at 7 p.m. while No. 12 Cherry Creek and No. 9 Lakewood meet in the other semifinal at 8:30 p.m.
To make it back to the Final Four, the Wolves had to withstand the early intensity of a Doherty team that came into the Great 8 game with the same 24-1 record as Grandview.
The Spartans certainly came out swinging, racing out to an early 11-5 edge.
But the Wolves responded the way they had every time a team took an early lead against them: with overwhelming force.
Grandview went on a 27-0 run in its Sweet 16 game against Arapahoe and this time it was a 31-5 burst that put them in full command.
Galloway’s season high in points was 14 back on Jan. 6 against Arapahoe, but she already surpassed it in a first half in which she knocked down five 3-pointers.
Onyenwere went on a 10-point scoring binge of her own in the opening half to send the Wolves into halftime up 46-20.
Grandview was well on its way to matching its season-high in points — registered previously against Dakota Ridge on Dec. 15, 2016, and on Feb. 24 in the second round as well as Jan. 4 against Smoky Hill — and 10 different players got into the scoring column.
Next up is a rematch with Regis Jesuit, with a win sending the Wolves into their first-ever state championship game.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
(2) GRANDVIEW 88, (7) DOHERTY 46
Score by quarters:
Doherty 14 6 14 12 — 46
Grandview 17 29 21 21 — 88
GRANDVIEW (88)
Jaiden Galloway 9 5-6 29, Alisha Davis 0 2-4 2, Michaela Onyenwere 9 5-5 24, Kennede Brown 1 3-4 5, Leilah Vigil 5 4-6 14, Lenzi Hudson 1 0-0 2, Allyah Marlett 1 0-0 2, Lexi Kelly 2 0-0 4, Kamryn Brown 1 0-0 3, Landri Hudson 1 0-0 3, Sariah Serrano 0 0-0 0. Totals 30 19-25 88.
3-point field goals — Grandview (9): Jaiden Galloway 6, Kameryn Brown, Landri Hudson, Michaela Onyenwere.
