Alcoa overcomes Brainerd late, books ticket to state championship

MURFREESBORO — Alcoa has learned lesson by lesson down the stretch of this season. It mastered another course Friday in its most critical situation yet.

“Really, it all doesn’t matter whether you struggle at the end or not,” Alcoa coach Ryan Collins said, “as long as you overcome.”

The Tornadoes led by six points with the final moments of the Class 2A state semifinals creeping up, but two straight turnovers and a Dennis Lewis Jr. 3-pointer later, it was suddenly a three-point game with just 35 seconds remaining.

In order to reach the championship game, Alcoa had to stay composed, make free throws and limit turnovers across the final stanza. Jahvin Carter nailed two free throws with 17 seconds left, and despite a 3-pointer by Brainerd’s Boo Carter shortly afterward, making it a two-point game, Alcoa’s junior standout went 1-for-2 from the line with just seven seconds remaining.

Brainerd’s last-second heave missed, and Alcoa’s bench and fans celebrated as the Tornadoes won, 71-68, and booked a state title game berth for the first time since 1992.

Alcoa (29-8) will face Frederick Douglass (28-8) at 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. CT) today at the Murphy Center in the state championship.

Collins readily took the blame for Alcoa’s struggles late, and readily praised his players for their work in getting the Tornadoes out of the wilderness.

“I’ll take responsibility for all of that,” Collins said. “I think at times, I didn’t trust them enough. I’ve got really good basketball players across the board, kids I trust, and I don’t know if my game management there kind of showed it. So I’ll take the blame on all of it. I thought we were able to overcome because they did stay together. The message was heard. That’s, at the end of the day, all that matters.

“I thought there was a couple times on the passes, they were kind of going for the kill and the knockout punch, and that’s who we are, and I didn’t let that kind of come into fruition. So I’ll take the blame on all of that. We’re just fortunate to win, and I’m fortunate to have two good players (Carter and Winton) sitting beside me that kind of just got us to the other side of it.”

Carter led all scorers with a whopping 32 points, and Brandon Winton added 14. Collins also praised Elijah Cannon, who scored seven points and made several crucial plays to help keep the Tornadoes ahead.

“I thought Elijah Cannon was phenomenal,” Collins said. “He’s a guy that doesn’t show up or get many accolades, so I want to make sure I point him out. He made a couple of just big-time swing plays … And that’s who we’ve become. I don’t know how we’re doing it, maybe it’s magic in a bottle or whatever you want to call it, but for a long stretch now, a long stretch, we’re just finding a way to win games.”

Alcoa led by just a point, 14-13, to end the first quarter, but behind 13 straight points from Carter in the second quarter, extended its advantage to 37-25 by halftime. Brainerd (25-8) roared back in the third period, using its size and skill inside to make it a one-point game, and Alcoa led by six points to start the final quarter, thanks in part to a layup by Cannon and a last-second jumper by Carter.

“I thought (Brainerd) did a great job of going inside in the second half,” Collins said. “And they tried to big-boy us a little bit. We have good physicality; we don’t necessarily have the size to match them. We came in really concentrating on their guard play … Fortunately, just like our quarterfinal game, we just never wavered. We never lost the lead. When it required a big play, somehow we just delivered.”

Alcoa’s final learning session, and final chance to prove its mastery, tips off today in the biggest stage the Tornadoes have encountered yet.

“It’s crazy,” Carter said. “A lot of great teams have been through Alcoa, and we’re up there with them now. We can say that. To get to this game tomorrow, it’s just an unbelievable feeling.”