Central-Phenix City’s performance in the second half of Thursday’s Class 7A state semifinal basketball game certainly didn’t surprise coach Charles Burkett.

“A lot has been made about us having four sophomore starters and five on the team,” Burkett said. “As I prepare them, I tell them we are built for this, and they respond. It’s as simple as that. It’s a unique bunch. Teams that haven’t played us haven’t played anyone like us.”

Jacoby Hill – one of Burkett’s sophomore starters – scored 32 points Thursday, fueling a second-half rally that propelled the Red Devils to a dramatic 61-58 victory over Spain Park at the BJCC’s Legacy Arena.

RELATED: Live updates from Thursday’s games

The win sends Central (24-9) into Saturday’s 5:45 p.m. final against No. 2 Hoover, Burkett’s former team. The Bucs defeated Dothan in the first semifinal of the day.

“What a grand stage to talk about the good news,” Burkett said. “Just to be on this stage with these young men – and they are young – is just pure grace. We are highly favored to be here.”

Central-Phenix City trailed by as many as nine points early in the second half and trailed 33-25 after Jared Smith scored inside for Spain Park with 4:34 left in the third.

“If you think you are going to waltz through this tournament and hold that blue map, it’s not going to happen,” Burkett said of his team’s deficit. “Why would you want it to happen? We embraced the adversity. We came out of the half with passion and energy that depicts who we are.”

The Red Devils made just two 3-pointers through the first 20 minutes of the game, but they made seven more the rest of the way. Six of those came in the final four minutes of the third. Hill’s one-handed, banked-in 3 at the buzzer gave the Red Devils a 45-41 lead at the break.

“I see it every day,” Burkett said. “You guys might not know who Jacoby is, but everyone knows, and I’ve grown to expect that. He is just a kid who hates to lose. We hate to lose.”

Hill made four straight free throws in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, boosting the Central lead to 49-43 with 5:32 left. He was a perfect 6-of-6 on the line for the day. Spain Park (25-7) scored nine of the next 12 points with Zach Gray’s two free throws tying it at 52-52 with 1:49 remaining.

Hill’s backdoor layup with 1:17 left gave Central a 54-52 lead.

The Red Devils didn’t trail again.

“At halftime, everyone was down,” Hill said. “We were going through some adversity. I just talked to them and told them to step up, and we got right from there.”

Spain Park cut the lead to 59-58 on Gray’s three-point play with 13.9 seconds but was forced to foul Hill. He hit both free throws for a 61-58 lead. That left the Jaguars a chance to tie with 12.9 seconds left. Chris Laatsch’s team got an open corner 3 from Korbin Long, but it bounced off the rim and time ran out.

“We wanted to spread it out,” Laatsch said of the final play. “We ran a go screen with Zach. We missed that screen but found Korbin wide open in the corner. We have confidence he will knock that down. It just didn’t go. Hunter (Herritt) made a great pass to find him.”

Star of the game: Hill willed his team to the win. He was 11-of-17 from the field and 4-of-7 from 3-point range. He also had eight rebounds and three assists.

“Jacoby Hill is an unbelievable player,” Laatsch said. “He’s a special talent.”

Stat game: Central-Phenix City – Ty Morgan went 3-for-4 from 3-point range and finished with nine points. Que Billingsley followed with eight points, five assists and two steals. Spain Park – Sam Wright had 25 points and six rebounds. Gray finished with 15 points. Jared Smith had 10 points and five rebounds. Herritt had eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.

By the numbers: The lead changed hands 12 times and there were five ties. Spain Park dominated inside, winning the rebounding battle 31-20. The Jaguars had a 32-20 edge in points in the paint and a 10-5 edge in second-chance points. Central-Phenix City had an 11-2 edge in fast break points and hit seven more 3-pointers than Spain Park.

They said it:

“They made a lot of plays when they had to make plays. They just made a few more than us. It leaves you heartbroken and disappointed. In a game like this, you have to make plays. What makes it hard is that I just love my boys so much. They’ve given me everything they have for four straight years. I hurt for them because I wanted them to reach their goal because of how much I care about them and love them.” – Laatsch.

“We’ve been playing together since middle school. We worked really hard after losing last year. We got back in the weight room. Getting this far is a blessing. Even though it didn’t go our way today, I wouldn’t trade the experience with these guys for anything.” – Gray.

Next up: Central-Phenix City will face Hoover in the week’s final game on Saturday. Burkett coached Hoover for 14 seasons until leaving following the 2020 season. The Bucs won 313 games and the 2015 state title under Burkett.

“I think they still have the same DNA, so hey, Let’s go,” he said.