CINCINNATI — This season's first Division I girls basketball regional semifinal may very well be decided in the final seconds Tuesday night.
For Mason coach Rob Matula and Princeton coach Dee Davis, that outcome wouldn't be surprising in yet another highly-anticipated matchup between the Greater Miami Conference programs. The first two meetings were decided by a combined seven points.
"You just have to be prepared," Matula said. "At this point there is not a whole lot of new stuff that you're going to do. You're pretty much in the fourth full month of basketball. We're going to try to stay healthy and try to be fresh and do everything we can to hold them down and hopefully score one more point than they do."
This is the third meeting between the programs after Mason won both regular-season games including a buzzer-beater Jan. 11 at Princeton. This time the game is on a neutral court.
"It's a game where our seniors don't want to go home," Davis said. "So they're going to be fired up. So my message to them is just play your best, do the best you can and let everything take care of itself."
Mason (25-1), which won its 16th district title this past weekend, is ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press Division I state poll, while Princeton (24-2) is No. 3. The Vikings' only losses this season came to the Comets.
Davis said the Vikings have grown as a team since earlier this season and are prepared for Tuesday night.
"As long as we do the things necessary to put ourselves in a position to be victorious — that's what I care about," Davis said. "You know I'm proud of these young ladies to overcome a lot of adversity that we've had this season. They've played so hard and we've managed to have a really good season."
Both teams are led by several players. For Princeton, senior point guard Solè Williams, a Texas A&M signee, averages 20.9 points, 3.9 steals, 3.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
"The countless amount of hours that she puts into her craft," Davis said. "The work ethic that that young lady has is just amazing. I'm so proud of where she is in her game and in her development, her leadership — all those things have been great attributes to this program here at Princeton."
Princeton is also led by sophomore Mari Gerton (12.7 points per game, 3.4 rebounds per game), senior La'Sonja Hill (9.8 ppg.), senior Dede Carter-Hartley (9.6 ppg., 7.2 rpg.) and sophomore Kali Fortson (7.1 ppg., 8.0 rpg.).
Davis, a 2003 Princeton graduate, said it's been a "joy" to coach the Vikings this season.
"It's been a great journey to see these young women mature in the course of a year, year and a half," said Davis, who was a McDonald's All-American at the school. "To be where they are right now - it's been light years of joy in my life. I've been very fortunate and blessed to have this opportunity to impact their lives in this manner."
Mason, the 2022 Division I state runner-up, has several talented players including sophomore point guard Madison Parrish (13.8 ppg., 3.5 rpg., 2.8 apg.), senior Carly Prows (12.5 ppg., 4.9 rpg.) along with freshman Anna Habra (7.1 ppg.) and senior Gabby Razzano (7.0 ppg., 5.2 rpg.).
Matula said he's enjoyed helping the Comets grow throughout this winter and the past few seasons. He said the fact that three of the four regional teams are from the GMC shows the strength of the conference. Mason's only loss came to Lakota East.
Now, the Comets have an opportunity to be in a regional final for a second straight season.
"I say that they're awesome and they are," Matula said. "But, I've been pretty lucky to have some not only good players but people in our program and parents. And when you can make that combination you're going to have an opportunity to be successful. This group - they're real special because they came in as freshmen and really had to play a lot."
Mason or Princeton will play Kings (21-5) or Lakota East (22-3) in a Division I regional final at 7 p.m. Saturday at Lakota West. Kings and Lakota East play in a regional semifinal at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Lakota West.
Kings is making its first regional tournament appearance while Lakota East is in its second regional tournament. The Thunderhawks were a regional runner-up in 2011.
