M’Kiyiah Olivier exploded for 21 points in Highland Baptist’s 46-31 victory over District 8-A rival Hanson Memorial Tuesday.

The freshman hit three 3-pointers in the first half and helped the Lady Bears (15-4, 4-0) hold off Hanson with four fourth-quarter free throws.

“Olivier scored well,” HBCS head coach Carol Sensley said. “Just her presence on the floor … she played very savvy today. She played very controlled basketball. She got the ball where it needed to be.

“She stepped up and absolutely made the big plays. You can tell that the more she plays, the more comfortable she gets with the system. She’s getting more confidence in herself.”

Highland led by as many as 15 points, but the Lady Tigers (11-4, 3-1) refused to go away quietly.

Hanson, which got 13 points from A’myrie Foulcard, went on an 8-3 run in the fourth quarter before Bri Sensley scored five straight points to push the margin to 42-27.

“Hanson was able to hit some key shots and score some in transition to start that run, but I thought we responded,” Sensley said. “I thought we were putting a little too much pressure on ourselves.

“Credit them, because they got physical with us. It took us a little while to adjust. Hanson is a good team. They have an inside presence and an outside presence with guards that can shoot it. They’re a solid team.”

Marin Barras and Foulcard waged a fierce battle in the lane on both sides of the court.

“It was a very physical game,” Sensley said. “The officials let us play.”

Barras finished with 14 points for the Lady Bears and Bri Sensley added 11.

“We didn’t finish a lot on the inside,” Carol Sensley said. “For the entire game, I thought we defended extremely well. I thought we took good, open shots.”

On one possession in the first half, Highland grabbed seven offensive rebounds before finally getting a basket.

“We talked about being relentless on the boards with rebounding,” Sensley said. “A couple of times, Marin’s shot fell short but she stayed with it and stayed with it. That’s one thing she will do is stay with it.

“I thought our guards rebounded well underneath the basket to get us some second-chance shots. We talked about the fact that teams are going to make runs. We have to sustain those runs and keep scoring.”

Highland was without senior guard Dusti Abshire, who could return Friday at Central Catholic.

“Dusti tweaked her ankle a week and a half ago,” Sensley said. “It was hard to see her sit the bench, especially on senior night, because she’s been such an intricate part of why this program has grown and where it is today.

“She tried to get me to substitute her in a couple of times, but she’s not ready. It’s like I told her, ‘This game tonight is important, but her health and safety is important,’ and we know how much we’re going to need her down the road, as well, and we’re going to have to have her healthy.”