With freshman stars Love Lei Best and Kendall Dawkins, 2025 title could be first of many for Tualatin

“They’re going to do so many amazing things in their future, and I can’t wait to see it”

Tualatin freshman Love Lei Best goes up for a jump shot in the Class 6A state championship game against Clackamas. Best scored a game-high 26 points in the Timberwolves’ 63-58 victory. / Dan Brood

PORTLAND — They’re young.

They’re talented.

They’re energetic.

They’re enthusiastic.

And they’re already champions — state champions.

The Tualatin girls basketball team claimed its first state crown, rallying past highly regarded Clackamas 63-58 in the Class 6A state title game at the University of Portland’s Chiles Center, and one of the big reasons the Timberwolves were cutting down the nets that night — two fabulous freshmen.

Tualatin freshmen Love Lei Best and Kendall Dawkins took the state by storm, and they helped take the Timberwolves to championship glory in their first high school campaign.

“Oh man, Love and Kendall, they’re amazing — and everybody knows that,” Tualatin senior Jordyn Smith said. “They’re going to do so many amazing things in their future, and I can’t wait to see it.”

“They’ve been incredible all season,” Tualatin junior Ries Miadich said. “We couldn’t have done it without them.”

“They’re amazing,” Timberwolves junior Maaya Lucas said. “It’s great that they came in and were able to help us so much. They added so much to the team, both personality-wise and also player-wise.”

And the dynamic duo has been having all sorts of enjoyment.

“It’s really fun, as our first time, in our freshmen year,” Dawkins said. “We just play together; we come in and we bring the energy.”

Tualatin freshman Kendall Dawkins drives against Clackamas senior Reyce Mogel during the Class 6A state championship game. / Dan Brood

They’ve brought the energy right from the start. Best and Dawkins, both guards, earned first-team all-Three Rivers League honors. (Another freshman, Bella Amens, was an honorable mention all-league pick.)

But that was just for regular-season play. The pressure of the state tournament is something different, and it very well could take its toll on young freshmen.

Uh, no — at least not when it comes to Best and Dawkins.

“We can’t think about it,” Dawkins said of any possible nervousness at the tournament. “We just have to go out and play our hearts out together.”

“We just did our thing out there,” Best said.

Their thing was pretty impressive.

In Tualatin’s tournament-opening 47-37 quarterfinal win over defending state champion South Medford, Best had a team-high 15 points, five assists and a steal. Dawkins contributed eight points, seven rebounds, two assists and a steal.

In a 65-40 win over Willamette in the semifinals, Best had a game-high 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting with five assists, three rebounds and a steal. Dawkins had another solid all-around performance with 11 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a steal.

That win put the Timberwolves in the state championship game for the first time.

In Tualatin’s first title game, Best was nothing short of spectacular. She had a game-high 26 points, making all four of her 3-point attempts. She added four rebounds, an assist, a steal and a block.

“There were times when we were so flustered out there, but Love was just this point of composure, and she kept fighting,” Tualatin coach Wes Pappas said. “She’s tough as nails.”

Tualatin freshman Love Lei Best gets the ball up court quickly for the Timberwolves in their 63-58 win over Clackamas in the Class 6A state title game. / Dan Brood

Dawkins had five rebounds and four assists in the championship game, and she was at her best during crunch time. In the fourth quarter, when Tualatin rallied to take the lead and pull away, Dawkins went a clutch 6 for 6 from the free throw line.

“I was just so excited,” Dawkins said. “It was the last game of the season, and we just really wanted to win this. We wanted this.”

“Kendall has a motor like no other,” Pappas said. “She is just 100 percent heart, that kid. And she just fought and fought and fought. Love and Kendall are special, special kids.”

Tualatin freshman Kendall Dawkins puts pressure on Clackamas’ Reyce Mogel during the Class 6A state championship game. / Dan Brood

And Best had a special, special state tournament. She averaged 20.7 points per game, third-most of any tournament player. She was 8 for 12 from 3-point range, sank all 10 of her free throw attempts and averaged 3.7 assists per game on her way to being a unanimous first-team all-tournament selection.

“We’ve played a lot for the last two or three years. We were just doing what we know,” Best said.

What they know seemed to fit right in with the other Tualatin players.

“They meant everything,” Smith said. “There’s so much talent on this team, and everyone brings something to the table. They brought what they brought, and we brought what we brought, and it just meshed so well together.”

Tualatin freshmen Love Lei Best (1) and Kendall Dawkins (23) celebrate with their teammates after winning the Class 6A state championship. / Dan Brood

There could be much more success for Tualatin in the future, as the Timberwolves will lose only Smith to graduation.

“We have a great chance for next year, too,” Dawkins said. “Me and Love are trying to go 4 for 4. That’s our goal.”

“Yeah, we’d love to do that,” Best said with a smile.

More girls basketball

feed

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App