Sacred Heart makes fifth consecutive state title game after handling Danville Christian

In the second Semifinals game of the KHSAA Girls’ Sweet 16, we saw a star-studded matchup between Sacred Heart and Danville Christian. Louisville commit Grace Mbugua against LSU commit ZaKiyah Johnson — who would prevail in the end?

As it turned out, the Valkyries were too much to handle for the Lady Warriors, and Sacred Heart would come away with the 60-44 win to advance to their fifth-straight state championship game. The Valkyries are the first team in Kentucky boys or girls basketball history to make five state championship game appearances in a row.

Unlike the first game of the day, this one wasn’t immediately blown open. While Sacred Heart boasted the 13-9 lead following the first quarter, Danville Christian was showing that they belonged on the same court as the four-time defending state champs.

Or, that was the case until reality set in when the second quarter got going.

A 15-2 Sacred Heart run would create some separation on the scoreboard, and at the half, it was 35-18 Valkyries. Donna Moir’s squad was smothering on the defensive end, holding Danville Christian to just 22% (7-32) from the field and 8% (1-12) from three-point range.

The second half was more of the same — the Lady Warriors struggling to score while the Valkyries continued to pour it on. Sacred Heart has been a heavy favorite to win the state title all season long, and it’s clear why that is.

Neither Johnson or Mbugua had their best games per se, but both still put out rather solid efforts all things considered. Johnson had 15 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks, while Mbugua recorded 17 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks of her own.

Sacred Heart will take on George Rogers Clark at 7:30 p.m. ET in the state championship game. They have secured two victories over the Lady Cardinals already this season — can they make it a third and keep their record-breaking dynasty alive?