Hamilton's girls baskeball team finished last season a hard-luck loser on a long buzzer-beater to Westview in the Division I state semifinals.

It didn't take long for the Lady Huskies to land on the winning end of such a finish. Post Maya Banks hit a turn-around 12 foot jumper as time expired Tuesday night to give Hamilton a 51-50 victory over host Dobson High.

Hamilton, which waited more than a week longer than most teams to open its season this night, had to wait an extra 40 minutes as the preliminary freshman and junior varsity games pushed back the varsity start. Oddly enough, Hamilton won the junior varsity game on a five-footer as time expired.

"Just like we drew it up," Hamilton coach Jeff Kain joked. "I told the girls in the huddle the JV won just won on a last shot, then why can't we. We were trying to work the ball opposite of (Dobson post) Monay (Mariscal). Get something for Courtney (Colleary), Maddie (Fredricks) or Makayla (Filiere). It wasn't the shot we wanted, but we'll take it."

Hamilton had the game's final possession with 20,5 seconds left. When the options Kain wanted didn't materialze, it as up to the 6-foot-3 transfer  from Verrado, to make the best of things. Banks corraled the ball heading toward the right baseline and let fly an off-balance, turnaround shot. It caromed off the rim, took a soft bounce and fell through.

Dobson, which was playing its seventh game of the young season after winning the first six and the title at Highland's Thanksgiving Invitational last week, battled back from a 47-43 deficit with 2:48 to play with a 7-0 run. After Hamilton's Payton Whitmore scored vis a strong drive to the basket, Dobson's KK Griffin answered with a transition bucket. The teams exchanged possessions and Dobson got a extra chance on its. Leading scorer Alexis Todd didn't waste it. Todd sank her second 3 of the quarter to put Dobson back ahed 48-47 with 2:10 left. Two free throws by Dysesha Stahley with 45 seconds left made it 50-47.

Stahley fouled out one second later pressuring Whitmore and Whitmore sank both ends of a one-and-one to bring Hamilton within 50-49. Griffin got fouled with 34 seconds left, but missed two attempts on the front-end of one-and-ones. Hamilton gained possession and ran the clock down to 20.5 for the final play and ultimately Banks' game-winner.

"I wasn't disappointed with the shot they got at the end," Dobson coach Tyler Dumas said. "....This was great competition. These are games you learn from, maybe win and grow from. I'm happy with the way we played. We overcame some adversity in the first half with Alexis on the bench in foul trouble. Other players stepped in and stepped up."

Both teams displayed a strength not many others will have -- depth. Dumas played 10 players (all seniors). Kain used nine. Neither suffered much with substitutions that helped offset foul trouble. Griffin led Dobson with 11 points. Todd added 10, Stahley eight and Mariscal and Kayla Clark seven apiece. Colleeary paced Hamilton with 12, followed by Whitmore with 11, Banks(8) and Fredricks, Bauman and Filiere five points each.

Hamilton's new-found height of Banks and 6-3 Canada transfer Zayn Dornstauder was a team-tag approach in the opener. They combined for nine points. Dobson was able to match up well in the post with the likes of 6-0 Mariscal and 6-3 Sara Nichols.

Kain opted to use four guards and alternate his posts to matchup up with Dobson and the pressure its guards present. The teams traded runs and showed throughout the game with Dobson leading by as many as seven and Hamilton leading in the opening quarter at one point by six. They are likely final four-caliber squads again.

Dobson survived the opening half and actually went to intermission tied thanks to 14-of-18 shooting from the free-throw line. Hamilton was 8-of-19 from the line in the opening half.