Springwood’s boys basketball team punched their ticket to the state championship on Thursday night. The Wildcats beat Evangel, 54-53, for a spot in the finals. They will play Valiant Cross on Friday at 6 p.m. CT at the Cramton Multiplex in Montgomery.

It was a back-and-forth first quarter. Springwood’s shots weren’t dropping and they ended the quarter down 10-6.

“ [Evangel was] making threes. Normally in this building, you don’t make that many threes, but they were great, so we had to adjust what we were doing defensively. The kids bought in, played by the rules, and got the ball inside offensively, which helped us,” said head coach Lisa Sampson.

A run by Clarence Moore to start the half put Springwood back up. But Evangel made it tough for the Wildcats. They went into the second half up 21-20.

Evangel couldn’t miss behind the three-point line. Springwood stopped the bleeding with a couple of runs inside and free throws.

A pair of clutch threes by Moore and a layup by Kori Key put the Wildcats up 44-41 going into the final period.

The fourth was classic playoff basketball. Both sides played with their hair of fire. Springwood did well to move the ball around and manage the clock. A very long three made it one-pointer with seconds left, cutting the Springwood up by only one point. Sampson’s game plan held the just at bay.

The Wildcats punched their ticket to the finals against Valient Cross, beating Evangel 54-53.

Moore had an exceptional night with 18 points.

“Clarence is a gamer, and just his toughness and resilience and understanding playing within the game what they were giving him, super proud of him, “Sampson said.

Kori Key had 13 points on the night.

“Kori, just his ability to get to the hole tonight was huge for us,” Sampson said.

The Wildcats play at the Camton Multiplex at 6 p.m. CT for a shot at a championship.