The Enterprise boys basketball team is headed back to the Class 7A final four for the second time in three years.

Eric Winters scored 18 of his game-high 22 points in the second half as the Wildcats upset No. 6 Baker 69-52 to win the South Regional final Tuesday at Montgomery’s Garrett Coliseum.

“It’s hard to process right now,” Enterprise coach Rhett Harrelson said.

The Wildcats (28-6) will play top-ranked Huntsville at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 29 at Birmingham’s Legacy Arena in the state semifinals. The Panthers beat rival Grissom 39-31 in the Northeast Regional semifinal. Enterprise won the state title in 2022.

RELATED: See Tuesday’s statewide scores, highlights

On Tuesday, the Wildcats bolted out to a 10-0 lead and led 14-2 on Tucker Wadsworth’s jumper with 2:22 left in the period. Baker’s Derrick Florence banked in a 3-pointer in the final seconds of the quarter to close to within 16-7 and give his team some needed momentum.

However, the Hornets suffered a critical blow to their hopes when point guard Desmond Williams went down on the baseline with an injury at the 1:59 mark of the first quarter. He didn’t return to the game.

“It hurt to lose him obviously,” Baker coach David Armstrong said immediately after the game. “As far as I know, he’s at the hospital. They sent him straight along. They said his eye was so swollen he couldn’t get it open. It felt kind of hard underneath so they took him to the hospital.”

Despite losing a key starter, the Hornets (25-8) rallied in the second quarter behind Florence (13 first-half points) and Dashawn Thomas (10). The two combined for five 3-pointers as Baker outscored Enterprise 21-10 in the period and led 28-26 at the half.

“We made a really nice run in the second quarter and played well,” Armstrong said. “I thought we did a really nice job knocking down some shots. Just the pressure in the third quarter with our key ball handler not being here was big. That really does make it hard on you. The guys played their hearts out, played as hard as they could.”

Baker took a 35-32 lead early in the third on Florence’s three-point play and Thomas’ layup, but that is when Enterprise took over behind Winters. The four-star football prospect scored eight straight points, sparking a 14-1 run to end the third. The Wildcats led 46-36 entering the final eight minutes.

Harrelson said his team didn’t change much in the third quarter but did try to wear down the Hornets.

“We knew they didn’t have as much depth, only played about eight guys, and felt like we could wear them down with full-court pressure,” he said. “We were able to do that.”

Armstrong didn’t fault his players at all.

“The guys played their hearts out, played as hard as they could,” he said. “Hats off to Enterprise. They recognized the weakness we had and exploited it, and it helped them win the game.”

Baker’s Braylin Taylor opened the fourth with a 3, cutting the lead to 46-39, but Enterprise responded with a 10-2 run to increase the lead to 15 and didn’t look back.

Game ball: Winters was the different in the second half. He hit 9-of-11 shots overall and finished with 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.

“He’s tough in that open court,” Harrelson said. “If he gets a step on you, he’s getting ready to hammer it.”

Stat sheet: Enterprise – Malachi Reed and Keondre Matthews each finished with 11 points in a balanced Wildcat effort. Andrew Purcell had 9 points, 3 steals and 2 assists. Wadsworth had 8 points and 3 assists. Baker – Thomas and Florence each finished with 21 points. Florence also had five rebounds.

By the numbers: Enterprise shot 60.5 percent from the floor (26-of-43), 36.4 percent from the 3-point line (4-of-11) and 61.9 percent from the free throw line (13-of-21). Baker shot 38.3 percent from the field (18-of-47), 36.4 percent from 3 (8-of-22) and 75 percent from the free throw line (9-of-12).

Did you know? Baker reached the Elite 8 again despite losing reigning Mr. Basketball Labaron Philon in June. Philon, now a Kansas signee, transferred to Link Academy, Mo., for his final year.

“This group was counted out in June,” Armstrong said. “The moment Labaron decided to leave Baker, everyone decided Baker is not there anymore. We are right back where we were last year, and I feel like we could have gone farther. They worked their tails off all season to get to this point. I hate it for them. I am going to hate going into that lockerroom in just a minute, but I’m incredibly proud of who they are and what they’ve done.”

Coachspeak:

“I’m just so proud of our guys and the different guys who come into the game and made plays for us. It’s been like that for us, especially late during January, and it held true into the Elite 8. Different guys stepping up and contributing and making plays for us.” – Harrelson.

They said it:

“He’s a really good player, primary ball handler for them, so it probably was a little different for them.” – Harrelson on the injury to Desmond Williams.

“God works in mysterious ways. I feel like these guys are good enough to have won that game at full strength. I feel like my team is a really, really good basketball team. I feel like we can beat anyone in the state of Alabama. God decided that wasn’t it today. We had to fight some adversity. Unfortunately, we didn’t win it this time. We will be better for it next year.” – Armstrong.

The next matchup: Huntsville beat Enterprise 59-39 in a pre-Christmas tournament on Dec. 22.

“They are extremely skilled,” Harrelson said of the Panthers. “They are skilled in post. They have guards all over the place. They don’t’ have a single person they put on floor that can’t shoot it. They are very talented. They have good size. They have guys about 6-11 and 6-10 that they play at the same time and guards who shoot the lights out. They are really good team, well coached. It’s going to be the tough test.”