Coaches often worry about their shooters adjusting to a different background in a large building like Legacy Arena. But there was no reason for concern for coach Lee Riley and his Vigor Wolves.

Vigor came out blazing against Guntersville, hitting eight of its first 16 3-pointers to open a big lead and cruise to a 71-53 win in Wednesday’s Class 5A semifinal.

The Wolves, who have now reached the state championship game for a second straight year, will face either Wenonah or Sylacauga for the title Saturday at 10:45 a.m.

Riley and Guntersville coach Brett Self both had the same reaction to the blistering start for the Wolves.

“We have never shot 3s so well,” Riley said. “I told them to not fall in love with it. But they were going in.”

Said Self: “They hit shots we had not seen them hit before, and we didn’t hit them. I think when they started so hot we got a little rattled.”

The shooting barrage started early. Parker Holley Jr. nailed a 3-pointer 33 seconds into the game. Soon after, Jermaine Tate connected on three shots from long range, then Aslan Jones completed the first-quarter onslaught with another 3 in the final minutes of the quarter.

Vigor led 17-6 after one quarter while connecting on 5-of-11 3-pointers, 2-of-4 free throws and no made 2-pointers.

The Wolves made three more 3-pointers in the second quarter to lead 34-12 at the half. Jones had a breakaway dunk just before the break to put an exclamation point on the dizzying half.

Any doubt about the outcome was put to rest late in the third quarter. In a span of 49 seconds, Jones converted an old-fashioned three-point play, then had a steal that led to a dunk and a 3-pointer to spark a 10-0 run. When it was done, the Wolves had their largest lead at 44-16.

“We came out on fire because we had to redeem ourselves from last year,” Tate said.

Star of the game: It was everyone who attempted a 3-point shot for Vigor. The Wolves finished with 10 makes from long range.

Stat sheet: Tate (21), Jones (19), Ke’Viasz Malone (13) and Holley (10) led Vigor in scoring. Guntersville got 16 from senior point guard CJ Scott. Dadrien Waller scored 10. Guntersville was 1-of-15 from 3-point range, meaning the Wolves outscored them by 27 points from behind the arc.

They said it: “We just never got into a rhythm in this game. But this senior class built a foundation for Guntersville basketball.” — Guntersville coach Brett Self

Did you know? Vigor is one of only six schools to send its boys and girls teams to the Final Four. The Wolves are joined by R.C. Hatch, Decatur Heritage, Plainview, Hoover and Central-Phenix City.

Did you know 2? Vigor’s tradition-rich athletic program has never won a state championship in boys basketball. The Wolves, who reached the state championship game last year against Fairfield, have a chance to change that Saturday morning.