Defense wins championships.

It’s cliché. It’s old school.

But isn’t it the truth?

The Oaks Christian girls’ basketball team lost by nine points in last year’s CIF-Southern Section Division 4A title game.

It wasn’t like the Lions played terribly, but they allowed St. Anthony’s to score 53 points.

When acting assistant coach Kenneth Plummer was hired as O.C.’s head coach during the offseason, he immediately turned the team’s primary focus toward better protecting its basket.

With the program having been elevated to Division 4AA status, Plummer knew Oaks Christian’s playoff competition would only get tougher. Improved team defense, the first-year head coach said, would keep the Lions in the hunt for a section crown.

“This year our motto is, ‘Defense first,’” Plummer said. “We’ve challenged ourselves individually and team-wise to play better defense than last year.

“ We pride ourselves on taking charges. We pride ourselves on deflections, on loose balls. We want everybody on the team to be on the same page defensively.”

Utilizing an assortment of presses, traps, zones and man schemes, Oaks Christian’s active, tall athletes—six girls on the roster are listed at 5-foot-10 or above— have proved to be major matchup problems for opposing players looking to stuff the stat sheet.

Entering tonight’s Tri-Valley League showdown at Santa Clara, the Lions’ record stands at 16-3 overall, 7-0 in league.

Oaks Christian, which allows fewer than 40 points per contest, is ranked No. 2 in the CIF-SS Division 4AA coaches’ poll.

Senior point guard Brianna Barrett serves as O.C.’s igniter.

Barrett is a four-year varsity member who will play college hoops at USC.

According to Plummer, the 5-foot-8 dynamo is a McDonald’s All-American nominee.

“Bri is one of those special players that come around once in a lifetime,” the coach said.

“She makes everyone around her better. She’s a pass-first player, but at the same time she can take over a game offensively and defensively when she wants to. She thrives on watching her teammates get better.”

The point guard ranks first on the team in steals (57) and assists (110). She’s scoring an average of 11.5 points per game—good for third on the squad—while hauling in 4.2 rebounds an outing.

Barrett says the Lions have bought into the defensive-heavy philosophy.

“We stress defense in practice,” Barrett said. “We stress it and stress it and stress it. We take a lot of charges and get a lot of steals. It’s just intense defense.”

Junior shooting guard Meghan McIntyre and sophomore forward Kailee Severt are the Lions’ top two scorers.

McIntyre, a three-year varsity standout, leads the squad with 15.9 points per game. She’s a 3-point assassin who converts close to 40 percent of her longrange attempts.

Always a premier sharpshooter, the 5-foot-10 McIntyre dedicated herself to becoming a more complete offensive threat.

“I’ve been working on my jump shot and getting to the basket more and not being so one-dimensional,” McIntyre said.

Severt is the team’s most physical, dominant post presence.

The 6-foot sophomore leads O.C. in rebounds (152) and is second in points per game (13.3).

With a slew of shooters to contend with on the outside and Barrett breaking down defenses from midcourt, Severt is finding room to operate down on the block and doing major damage.

“It’s great for me and great for our shooters,” Severt said.

“When teams go inside to defend me, I kick (the ball) back out to them and they hit their shots. It really helps our team.”

Junior guard Beth Mounier and junior forward Jackie Cabrera round out the Lions’ starting five.

Mounier is a versatile 5-foot-10 playmaker who scores (8.8 ppg) and rebounds (4.9 rpg) with consistency.

Cabrera is one of the squad’s top rebounders.

Junior guard Xayna Anderson is an unsung hero, according to her coach.

Anderson has been used as a starter and has come off the bench. She has a motor that doesn’t quit, particularly near the iron, where Anderson has become a rebounding machine.

Senior guard Nicole McAmis, junior forward Kayla Buckner, sophomore guard Jessi Bierling and freshman forward Sarah Johnson are other key contributors for Oaks Christian.

The Lions lost talented junior forward Ayzha Aupiu to a knee injury while Aupiu was in the starting lineup. According to Plummer, Aupiu’s return this season is questionable.

Oaks Christian plays a nonleague game Saturday at Mater Dei.