Rylie Edlefsen leads Snake River to Idaho 3A girls basketball state championship

Edlefsen drilled five 3-pointers in the Panthers' 49-36 win over Timberline

NAMPA, Idaho — In a rematch of the 2020 state title game, Rylie Edlefsen and company had a fourth quarter to remember Saturday afternoon at Ford Idaho Center.

Top-seeded Snake River outscored No. 2 Timberlake 15-6 in the final period to claim the Class 3A IDHSAA girls basketball state championship, 49-36. The Panthers, who fell to perennial power Timberlake in the 2020 finals, ratcheted up the defense late to seal the program’s first state title since 2013.

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“We knew that they loved to drive and kick and we were going to be very concerned about the 3-point line,” Edlefsen said. “We knew that that’s what most of their offense was, what their players’ tendencies were and how we were supposed to adjust to that.”

The Tigers shot just 14 of 48 (29 percent) overall and missed all 12 of their long-range attempts. Snake River also struggled from the floor, but Edlefsen made five 3-pointers en route to a game-high 19 points. The junior added six rebounds and six assists.

“This is something we’ve wanted for such a long time,” Edlefsen said. “We’ve come close lots of times, and this is when we were able to finally get it.”

Freshman point guard Malia Miller had 15 points and eight boards to lead the Tigers (22-3), who captured back-to-back state titles in 2020-21. Miller scored Timberlake’s first eight points as the teams played to an 11-all tie after one period. Snake River (23-3) was whistled for seven first-quarter fouls to the Tigers’ zero.

The fouls began to even out in the second, and Snake River closed the period on a 10-2 run — getting six points from reserve big Taylee Carlson — to go up 21-17 at the break.

“We gave them a lot of free throws, and that was tough,” Edlefsen said of the early fouls. “It was putting a lot of points on the board. We just talked about getting two hands up and moving our feet.”

Edlefsen canned three consecutive triples early in the third to put the Panthers up 30-19. She hit another big one in the fourth that made it 39-32 with five minutes to play.

“Rylie is a great player,” Snake River coach Jeff Steadman said. “She lives for basketball. That’s her passion, her love. She’s capable of (scoring) at any time, but she’s just very generous.”

Timberlake continued to miss shot after shot as the Panthers, who knocked off defending champion Sugar-Salem in the semis, slowly pulled away.

“It’s really awesome to have all the long, hard hours with your team and on your own pay off like that,” Edlefsen said. “It’s a great feeling.”

PHOTO GALLERY: SNAKE RIVER 49, TIMBERLINE 36

(All photos by Loren Orr)