Aliceville boys basketball's series with an area rival has it one win shy of Final Four
BIRMINGHAM − Aliceville boys basketball is no stranger to this checkpoint. It has now reached the 2A regional finals for the second consecutive season and the fifth time in seven years.
Only once has Aliceville broken into the Final Four though, but it has the makeup to do so this season, coach Christopher Walker said. A three-game series with an area rival helped the one-loss Yellow Jackets get here.
No. 9 Aliceville defeated Vincent 42-40 in the Sweet 16 on Monday in the AHSAA regional semifinals at Bill Harris Arena. It was the third game in the last five decided by fewer than 10 points for Aliceville, which started the season with an 18-game winning streak.
Aliceville's only loss came at Tuscaloosa Academy by five points in the regular-season finale. Aliceville (22-2) is since on a four-game winning streak and one win away from the Final Four.
"We weathered the storm," Walker said. "I'm sure they’re saying the same thing in the locker room, that they could have done a lot of things better. We just have to have a more solid performance. It wasn’t pretty, but all in all when one man lets down, the next did come in and not make the same mistakes."
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Aliceville would avenge the loss to Tuscaloosa Academy 57-41in the Area 5 tournament championship to win the season series 2-1. The Yellow Jackets beat Tuscaloosa Academy by five points in their first meeting.
The battles with its area runner-up, especially the loss, showed Aliceville "you are human," Walker said. Aliceville also learned from one-point wins over Greene County and Hale County in the first half of the season.
The Yellow Jackets were led by senior Jatavius Colvin's 12 points and six rebounds against Vincent.
"Tuscaloosa Academy helped us for this game because they run off screens and stuff like that," Colvin said. "We know we had a chip on our shoulder after that loss, so we know we have to come in as a team and work."
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Aliceville's toughest challenge was finishing its latest win against Vincent. Entering the fourth quarter tied, the Yellow Jackets lost its longtime lead early in the period. It would string together a stretch of game-changing possessions to win the quarter 12-10.
Aliceville looks to improve its free throw shooting, help defense and rebounding before its regional final game against Cornerstone at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 22.
"My second year (as head coach here) was the Final Four," Walker said. "We have the players for the most part. We’re just as good. I like to say any given day. I don’t care if you’re the (Los Angeles) Lakers, you’ve got to show up and play. You’ve got to show up every night. Of course, we have similarities. This team is just as good, but we have to show up and prove it."
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: One-loss Aliceville boys basketball's moves onto AHSAA regional finals
