Girls’ basketball: Windward is headed to Sacramento after Charisma Osborne scores 35 points

It’s supposed to be a little more challenging shooting in an arena setting than a regular gym, but sophomore Charisma Osborne of Windward was anything but intimidated on Saturday in the Southern California Division I girls’ regional final at The Pyramid.

She scored 35 points and made five threes in an exceptional individual performance while also contributing to a strong defensive effort as Windward defeated Ventura, 61-43, to earn a spot in next Friday’s state championship game at 6 p.m. at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

“Osborne’s a beast,” Ventura Coach Ann Larson said.

It wasn’t only Osborne’s offense that was impressive. Her pressure defense helped hold Ventura’s Savannah Page to 10 points.

“The adjustments they made affected us a lot,” Larson said.

Kaiyah Corona added 12 points for Windward (29-4), which will face hometown team McClatchy in Sacramento.

“I just think she’s a limitless player,” Windward Coach Vanessa Nygaard said. “She has so much potential. I believe she’s the best player in the state of California, and she’s only a sophomore.”

Windward went on a 12-0 run to start the third quarter, and Ventura never recovered.

In the Open Division final, Clovis West took charge in the fourth quarter and defeated Long Beach Poly, 53-44. Sarah Bates and Megan Anderson each scored 10 points. Jasmine Jones scored 13 points and had 17 rebounds for Poly.

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