Kaia Kesler drives Hillcrest past Twin Falls in TitleOne opening round

IDAHO FALLS — Hillcrest entered the 2025-26 season with heightened expectations. However, things didn’t get off to the most promising start when the Knights lost their first five games.

After a dominant victory over the Twin Falls Bruins in the opening round of the inaugural TitleOne Tip-Off Classic, though, Hillcrest (3-5, 1-1) has won three straight. Head coach Ryan Taylor said that the shaky start could be at least partially credited to the roster turnover following a 14-10 season.

“We’ve got a lot of new pieces this year, and we’re trying to put those all together,” he said, noting that they have lost some winnable games through the first few weeks of the season. “That’s why we try to face a challenging schedule early on, to make sure we’re prepared for later on. We want to be playing our best basketball in early February.”

Hillcrest appeared to be the better team from the start, but their ever-present advantage never ballooned in the first half, as Twin Falls (2-5) hung around and trailed just 29-23 at halftime.

But, as Taylor explained after the game, the Knights’ offense was without its engine through much of the first two quarters.

“Kaia (Kesler) is, kind of, our motor, she makes us go, and she got in foul trouble early and had to sit in the first half. We’re not the same team without her on the court,” he said.

Kesler returned to the fray in the second half, refrained from further foul issues, and led the Knights to a 23-8 third quarter.

After the game, and after receiving the East Idaho Sports Game Ball, Kesler said that she takes the role of offensive engine very seriously.

“I love this game, and I love to win so much,” she said, adding that she is happy to put all the energy she has every night into her team.

In addition to Kesler’s return to the floor, Taylor said he challenged his team to make up ground on the rebounding edge Twin Falls grabbed in the first half.

“I was proud of the way we came out in the second half,” he said. “We’re not the tallest team out there, so we have to make up for that by playing harder than the other team. We’ve got to be gritty and grind out wins. … They stepped up and did what we asked of them, and that was the difference in the second half for us.”

Kesler, who finished with 17 points to lead the way for the Knights, said it felt great to get a win to open the tournament, adding that the change of emotion in the locker room has been palpable.

“It’s so cool. Awesome. It’s a different environment,” she said shortly after screaming along to the song “Every Time We Touch,” by Cascada with her teammates.

The song has been adopted as the team’s win song, the celebration tune they will jam to in the locker room after every win this season.

Joining Kesler in double-figures were Reece Sessions, Camryn Taylor and McKenzie Gatluak, with 11 apiece.

Hillcrest advances into the semifinals, where they will meet Bishop Kelly at 6:30 p.m. Friday night.