The fans of the Brantley Bulldogs are accustomed to winning, no matter the sport. So, when they missed the state football playoffs last season, it was a shock to the system. But it came with the added benefit of starting basketball practice earlier than normal.

The extra preparation is paying dividends this week in Birmingham, where the Bulldogs advanced to the Class 1A state championship game with a 78-67 win over Hubbertville on Monday at the BJCC Legacy Arena.

The Bulldogs (23-4) will now face either Oakwood Adventist or R.C. Hatch in Thursday’s state championship game.

“We have a town of 800 people, and I think all 800 were here cheering for us,” Brantley coach Andre Parks said after the win. “Our motto this year has been ‘For the City.’ We’re playing for everybody in Brantley.”

The program’s family connection was in full view during the critical stretch of Monday’s semifinals.

With one minute left in the first half, Brantley held a 30-29 lead in a back-and-forth game. Then the Bulldogs exploded to take control. Jayden Parks (the coach’s son) hit two free throws and a deep 3-pointer. Then senior forward Jon Harper Kilcrease came to life, hitting two 3-pointers in the final 12 seconds to increase the halftime lead to 41-29. Kilcrease had been 0-for-7 from the field before the late burst.

“We started out slow, but I thought that stretch won the game for us,” Kilcrease said.

Hubbertville, making its first appearance in the final four, led 17-10 in the first minute of the second quarter. The Lions (24-6) still led 27-25 with 2:45 left in the second period after Cole Brand scored 5 points in a 30-second span. It was a 16-2 run the rest of the half for Brantley.

In the third quarter, Hubbertville’s Tracee Cowan III hit two 3-pointers to close the gap to 41-35. It was still a 6-point game after Brand hit another 3-pointer two minutes later. But then the Bulldogs extending the lead again with a 9-0 run, culminating with a Parks 3 with 1:50 left in the third quarter.

The fourth-quarter lead ballooned to 64-46 and the game was never closer than 8 points the rest of the way.

Star of the game: Parks, a 6-foot senior guard, finished with 34 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals. Parks, who is second in the state in scoring at 30 points per game, has six scholarship offers from the likes of Alabama State and McNeese State. He has been dealing with a hip injury in recent weeks. “My adrenaline is kicking in right now, so I’m good,” he said.

Stat sheet: Brantley had four players in double-figure scoring. In addition to Parks’ 34 and Kilcrease’s 13, the Bulldogs also got 15 points from Julius Sylvester and 10 from Michael Thompson. Hubbertville had a balanced scoring attack. Blaize Wakefield and Cowan had 15 each, while Kane Rushing and Brand each had 14. All four of those leading scorers for the Lions are sophomores.

By the numbers: Brantley shot 44.8 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3. Hubbertville made 41.4. percent from the field and 32 percent from 3.

Did you know? Brantley star senior forward Kilcrease is the brother of Tucker Kilcrease, who started two games at quarterback last year for Troy University. Tucker was a star in basketball, baseball and golf in addition to football. He is also a multi-sport star for Brantley. He scored 13 points with 8 rebounds and four assists in Monday’s semifinal win.

Did you know? Hubbertville’s official nickname is the Lions, but their football is referred to as the Iron Bunch.

They said it: “We’ve definitely got something to look forward to next few years.” – Hubbertville’s Brand