Covenant Christian basketball coach Bret Waldrep could only describe it as “nerves of steel.”

His Eagles built a 15-point first-half lead on Oakwood Academy on Thursday night and then had to weather rally after rally by the Mustangs before hanging on for a gutsy 50-46 victory in the Class 1A state championship game at Legacy Arena in Birmingham.

“When you get to this level it is not a matter of if adversity is going to come but when,” Waldrep said. “When that happens the only way you are going to get through it is by looking at your brother next to you and pulling together.”

The Eagles finished 31-3 and won their second straight state title, but nothing about this one was easy. Though Covenant led 18-3 in the first quarter and never trailed, Oakwood Academy also never gave in.

The Mustangs (28-9) rallied to within one point on multiple occasions in the second half and had a chance to tie the game and send it to overtime in the final seconds.

“We did start slow,” Oakwood coach Melvin Allen said. “That’s a credit to Covenant. They were well prepared, and we dug ourselves a hole. But we made a commitment to play each game to the fullest, and they’ve done that all year. We wanted to win this game, but the big picture is we are 28-9 and not 9-28. The final game won’t determine the success of this team. They fought hard, and I’m proud of that.”

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Covenant let Oakwood hang around with several missed free throws in the final minute. The Mustangs cut the lead to 47-46 on Jayden Nesbitt’s basket with 20 seconds left. Junior Trey Kellogg, who came up big down the stretch after MVP Jalen Chandler fouled out, gave Covenant a 49-46 lead with two free throws with 14.2 seconds remaining.

“Me and my teammates just stepped up knowing that losing Jalen was big,” Kellogg said. “We got it done.”

Covenant fouled Oakwood’s Jonathan Walden on the other end before he could get off a possible tying 3-pointer. He missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and Kellogg rebounded to secure the win for Covenant.

“I don’t know what to say, “Waldrep said. “I really hate cliches, but now I understand why they exist. I’m just really proud of this team.

“This was such a good basketball game overall. Oakwood is such a tough team. They are so athletic, have good shooters, a big guy in the middle. We knew it would be a tough game.”

The game ended one chapter of a memorable journey for Oakwood Academy that started when the team forfeited its 2022 Northeast Regional semifinal game because of religious reasons. A year later, the Mustangs came up just five points shy of a state title.

“We truly believe we are part of God’s plan,” Allen said. “We were hoping getting that blue map was part of God’s plan, but I think there are nearly 80 schools in Class 1A. To be No. 2 is an honor, and we want to cherish that. We will use that red map as motivation to get back next year.”

Star of the game: Chandler was the MVP, but it was Kellogg who made the biggest plays in his absence. His pull-up jumper gave Covenant a 46-39 lead with under two minutes left. He added three free throws and two key defensive rebounds down the stretch. He finished with 13 points, five rebounds and three assists.

Stat game: Covenant – Chandler fouled out with 3:13 left and his team winning 44-37 but not before he had 16 points and seven rebounds. Andrew Brackin followed with 10 points, four assists, four steals and three rebounds. Oakwood – Nesbitt kept his team in contention with 17 points and 13 rebounds.

This story will be updated