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Aaliyah Chavez named finals MVP, Lubbock Monterey wins Texas UIL 5A-II state championship; live updates, recap

Nation's No. 1 uncommitted recruit leads No. 5 Monterey to Class 5A Division II state championship in final varsity game

Levi Payton

Lubbock Monterey, including guard Aaliyah Chavez (2), center, celebrate the team's 64-35 Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship victory over Liberty Hill at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025.
Lubbock Monterey, including guard Aaliyah Chavez (2), center, celebrate the team's 64-35 Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship victory over Liberty Hill at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It all comes down to this for the (5) Lubbock Monterey Lady Plainsmen and the (11) Liberty Hill Lady Panthers, as they are set to battle in the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL) Class 5A Division II girls state championship.

The game tips Saturday, March 1, at 11 a.m. at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

Liberty Hill (36-4) got here with a 43-33 victory over Mt. Belvieu Barbers Hill in their state semifinal on Feb. 24. Perhaps the Lady Panthers got a bit of a wakeup call in the first round of the tournament, as they escaped Kerrville Tivy 41-36 in the Bi-District showdown.

Since then, they’ve rolled. They beat San Antonio Southside 70-43 for the Area championship, Corpus Christi Moody 66-32 in the regional semifinals and Cedar Park 58-40 in the regional finals. They had previously suffered one of their four losses this season to Cedar Park, 55-44 on Feb. 4.

Potent on offense, the Lady Panthers also have a strong defense. They’ve scored 2,245 points this season and surrendered only 1,376.

They’ll certainly have their hands full in this one, as they’ll be up against the nation’s No. 1 recruit, Aaliyah Chavez. One of the most prolific scorers in girls high school basketball history, Chavez is coming off a 20-point performance against Frisco Memorial on Feb. 25.

Fighting a defense that was solely focused on slowing her, Chavez scored the go-ahead basket with 41 seconds to go and quietly moved into 15th-place all-time on MaxPreps' career scoring list in the game - surpassing Jacksonville, Florida's Antoinette Bannister (Potter's House Christian, 2008-2012), who had 4,758 points during her career.

Chavez now has 4,777 career points, just 13 behind Lindsay Roy (Delta Academy, Marks, Mississippi) for 14th. Her career-high 1,432 points this season is currently good for 11th all-time, just 17 points outside of 10th place, 34 shy of ninth and 38 away from eighth.

She already knocked herself from 15th all-time in that category to 16th this season after surpassing her own high mark of 1,324 points a year ago.

Slowing Chavez certainly helps, but doing so poses other problems. Junior combo guard Ambrosia “Bro Bro” Cole is an outstanding player in her own right. The 5-8 standout enters the game averaging 18.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

Ambrosia Cole
Monterey's Ambrosia Cole shoots against Frisco Memorial in a Class 5A Division II state semifinal girls basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, at the Mabee Athletic Complex in Abilene. / Stephen Garcia/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Fellow junior Ari Johnson, a 6-3 post, averages 11.9 points and 8.2 rebounds for the Lady Plainsmen.

On the season, the Lady Plainsmen have scored 3,087 points and surrendered 1,907.

The top uncommitted recruit, Chavez announced plans to announce her commitment on March 25, when she’ll decide between Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma or South Carolina.

Check back often for constant live updates once the game starts. You can also follow along on NFHS Network.

(5) Monterey vs. (11) Liberty Hill: Texas UIL 5A-II state championship; live updates, recap

We're almost set for action. Here are today's starting lineups:

Liberty Hill: Gabriella Mundy, Reagan Robbins, Lyndsey Bullock, Evelyn Bruce, Renee Stemmons

Monterey: Aaliyah Chavez, Shamari Wilkerson, Ambrosia Cole, Ari Johnson

Note: Shamari Wilkerson draws the start for Monterey in place of Zaniyah Wilkerson, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the state semifinal. Zaniyah was one of Monterey's best defenders, so that is something to keep an eye on as today's game progresses.

Aaliyah Chavez
Lubbock Monterey, including guard Aaliyah Chavez (2) stand for the National Anthem as they prepare to take on Liberty Hill in the battle for the Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

FIRST PERIOD

Chavez gets the opening tip but misses a floater. We're off and running.

Mundy scores on a layup and Liberty Hill has an early 6-5 lead.

Chavez gets on the board on a jumper with 4:36 left in the first to give Monterey a 9-8 lead.

Mundy's shot is blocked by Chavez, but Robbins gets the ball and drains a 3-pointer to give Liberty Hill an 11-9 lead with 3:41 left in the first.

Chavez scores on a layup to tie it back up at 11-all.

This game has been clean so far. We've only had one foul in the entire first quarter.

Jinxed that. Now we get immediate back-to-back fouls on Liberty Hill. My bad.

Liberty Hill calls a timeout with 50 seconds left in the first period. Monterey leads 13-11.

Ari Johnson and Ambrosia Cole with quick baskets off the timeout and Monterey leads 17-11. Cole's shot was a buzzer-beater.

End 1: Lubbock Monterey 17, Liberty Hill 11

SECOND PERIOD

Ambrosia Cole scores again to push Monterey's lead to 19-11. Monterey's unsung star. The Pippen to Chavez's Jordan, if you will.

Chavez buries a 3-pointer with 6:06 remiaining in the second and Monterey's lead swells to 22-11. Chavez has seven points.

Cole hits a jumper. Monterey is opening it up now. It's 24-11.

Ambrosia Cole
Monterey guard Ambrosia Cole (22) grabs the rebound over Liberty Hill center Audrey Richardson in the second quarter as the Liberty Hill Panthers take on Lubbock Monterey in the battle for the Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jasmine Holloway gets in on the action, draining a 3-pointer to answer a Liberty Hill basket. It's 27-13 with 3:43 left in the half. Monterey is currently on a 16-2 run.

Liberty Hill seems to be pressing right now. Its offense is just 5-of-27 from the field today.

Chavez goes to the rack and scores, and Ambrosia Cole follows with an and-1 after taking it the lengthy of the floor and laying it in while getting fouled. It had been nearly 3 minutes since Monterey had any points. It's now 32-13.

Halftime: Lubbock Monterey 34, Liberty Hill 13

Halftime notes: Ambrosia Cole and Aaliyah Chavez lead the Lady Plainsmen with nine points apiece, while Ari Johnson has eight, Jasmine Holloway three and Khloei Serna two. ... Gabriella Mundy leads the Lady Panthers with four points, while Reagan Robbins and Lyndsey Bullock have three apiece, Renee Stemmons has two and Evelyn Bruce has one. ... The Lady Panthers are shooting just 15.2 percent from the floor (5-for-33). ... They shot only five percent from the floor in the second period. ... Monterey has outscored Liberty Hill 22-4 on points in the paint and 11-0 on fastbreak points.

THIRD PERIOD

Ari Johnson kicks off the second half scoring for Monterey. It's 36-13.

Chavez hits a jumper. She's got 11 now and it's 40-15.

Cole buries a 3-pointer for Monterey. She now leads all scorers with 12 points.

Robbins buries a 3-pointer for Liberty Hill. The Lady Panthers needed that. They scored only two in the entire second period.

Stemmons scores on a layup and Robbins hits another jumper. Liberty Hill is starting to find its shot again. It's hit five shots in a row now.

Liberty Hill
Liberty Hill forward Renee Stemmons (23) grab the rebound over Lubbock Monterey forward Khloei Serna (11) in the third quarter of the Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Chavez drains a 3-pointer to snap a 10-0 run for Liberty Hill and Ambrosia Cole follows with another 3. Shamari Wilkerson then gets in on the action and Chavez scores on a layin just before the end of the period.

Monterey effectively erased Liberty Hill's 10-0 run with a 10-0 run of their own to close the period.

End 3: Lubbock Monterey 53, Liberty Hill 27

FOURTH PERIOD

The race for game MVP is on. Chavez currently has 16 points and seven boards. Cole just scored again and has 14 points and eight boards.

Monterey calls timeout with 4:32 left, leading 59-31.

Cole grabs three quick rebounds and now has a double double with 14 points and 11 boards.

Chavez drains a 3-pointer and Cole immediately follows with a jumper. It's 64-31 and the race for MVP continues.

Final: Lubbock Monterey 64, Liberty Hill 35

Lubbock Monterey outscored Liberty Hill 17-2 in the second period and never looked back. Aaliyah Chavez was named finals MVP with a game-high 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Aaliyah Chavez
Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez is named MVP after the Class 5A Division II state championship girls basketball game on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Monterey defeated Liberty Hill 64-35. / Angela Piazza/USA Today Network via Caller-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ambrosia Cole could have easily won the award, as the junior combo guard had a double double with 16 points, 12 boards and two assists. Fellow junior Ari Johnson was one rebound shy of a double double, finishing with 12 points and nine boards.

Lubbock Monterey
Lubbock Monterey guard Aaliyah Chavez (2), left, center Ari Johnson, guard Shamari Wilkerson, forward Khloei Serna and center Tri'onna Richardson celebrate the team's 64-35 Texas UIL 5A Division 2 State Championship victory over Liberty Hill at the Alamodome in San Antonio, March 1, 2025. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The state title is Monterey's second in program history. They also won in 1981.

Reagan Robbins led Liberty Hill with nine points and three rebounds. Evelyn Bruce had seven points and 11 rebounds.

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Levi Payton
LEVI PAYTON

Levi’s sports journalism career began in 2005. A Missouri native, he’s won multiple Press Association awards for feature writing and has served as a writer and editor covering high school sports as well as working beats in professional baseball, NCAA football, basketball, baseball and soccer. If you have a good story, he’d love to tell it.

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