Scottsboro’s Isabella Nelson had just pulled her team within a bucket on the opening series of the final period when teammate Morgan Perkins intercepted a pass on the ensuing in-bounds play.

Without hesitation, Perkins flipped the ball to Bree Sexton for an easy layup and a tie game.

“You look up and see that you have 8 more minutes left of high school ball,” Sexton said. “Give it your all because you have nothing to lose.”

The Big 3 for Scottsboro would all force at least one more steal in the waning minutes and the second-ranked Wildcats took advantage of each turnover to rally for a 54-53 victory over No. 1 Ramsay in Saturday’s Class 5A state championship game at the Birmingham’s BJCC Legacy Arena.

“I’m just so proud of these of girls,” Scottsboro coach Brandon Childers said. “We worked so hard for this, came so close last year, and got an opportunity to come back. Everything has to fall into place. Just a roller-coaster game and couldn’t be more proud of our effort.”

Ramsay battled back to retake the lead at 47-43 on consecutive baskets after Sexton had knotted the score, but Scottboro (29-5) held the Rams to only one made field goal in the final 6:26 of the game.

Sexton forced a steal after a tip-in by Camilyah Rowe and Perkins knocked home a triple to cut the advantage to a single point. Nelson scored the go-ahead layup on the next Scottsboro possession and turned her own steal into a made field goal to give the Wildcats a 50-47 lead with 5:09 remaining.

“We got into a rut, offensively, in the third quarter, and we had to take some chances,” Childers said. “Zone-press like crazy, take some chances, and it worked out. Got us some steals and pick-2s, got the energy and the lead back.”

Rowe cut the lead back down to a single point on the final made field goal by Ramsay, but Perkins and Sexton pushed the Scottsboro advantage to 54-49 with a little more than a minute to play.

Ramsay’s Nayla Wesley and Mayliyah Green went a combined 3-of-4 on free throws in the final minutes, trimming the deficit to 2 points, and Nelson fouled out with 5 seconds left to give Breonna Williams an opportunity to tie the game at the free-throw line.

“That was my main concern, was overtime,” Nelson said. “I trusted the team and knew they could do anything. I just put all my trust in them.”

Williams converted her second attempt to cut the lead to 54-53, but the made free throw allowed Scottsboro to take possession and clinch its first state championship in program history.

Ramsay (29-8) trailed for most of the first half, as Sexton and Perkins combined to score 17 of the 24 points through the 5:33 mark of the second period, but Kayden May nailed a 3-pointer, followed by a pair of free throws, to pull the Rams within 6 points midway through the quarter. McKenzie Davis sparked an 8-0 run to close out the half and Ramsay cut the lead to 30-28 at the halftime break.

The Rams slowly built a 33-30 lead in third period and did not allow a field goal from Scottsboro until there was 2:56 remaining in the quarter. Ramsay countered with a 6-0 run, powering ahead to a 39-33 advantage, but Nelson knocked down a last-second 3-pointer as the Wildcats cut the lead to 43-39 at the end of the third.

Star of the Game: Nelson. The senior forward posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. She added 5 assists, 4 blocks and 3 steals. Nelson also knocked down a 3-pointer at the end of the third period, pulling Scottsboro within a couple of possessions, and scored the go-ahead layup after rallying the Wildcats in the final period.

Stat sheet: Scottsboro – Sexton finished tied for a game-high 15 points and had 4 rebounds and 4 steals. Perkins had 11 points, 4 assists and 4 steals and Caroline Dawkins added 4 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists. Abigail and Tatum Shelton combined for 8 points and Mia Martin had 3 points and 2 rebounds. Ramsay – Wesley produced a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and added 4 assists, 5 blocks and 2 steals. Davis had 14 points, followed by Rowe with 9 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals. May had 7 points and Green contributed 5 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.

By the numbers: Scottsboro shot 37.9 percent overall, 24.1 percent from the beyond the 3-point arc, and outscored the Rams 30-22 in the paint. Ramsay was 41.3 percent overall and 50 percent from 3-point range, but committed 20 turnovers that resulted in 15 points for the Wildcats.

All-Tournament Team: Nelson was named Class 5A tournament MVP and teammates Sexton and Perkins were named to the all-tournament team, along with Ramsay’s Wesley, Davis and Green.

Did you know? Scottsboro won its first state title in program history after falling 48-44 to Jasper in last year’s 5A championship game.

Coachspeak: “There was definitely a lot of pressure. There was a lot of pressure, ups and downs, and we tried to play a really tough schedule to prepare us. Mentally, we were a lot more prepared. Normally, you’d give a Rocky speech, try to get them up, but they go so hard we tried to relax it some. They’re going to bring it no matter what.” – Scottsboro’s Brandon Childers

“These young ladies, this season, have done a wonderful job. We came in this season, first year here, and our motto was to bring back a resurgence of excellence. Maybe a couple more wins than last year maybe advance a little further, but the grind and grit of these young ladies placed us in the final four and the state championship game for the first time since 2016. Ladies, do not hold your head down. Very, very proud of them.” – Ramsay’s Jarvis Wilson

They said it: “Very different. We won this time. My three (point shot) last year, I felt like it hit every inch of the rim and didn’t go in. When it came out, your heart just sunk. But this year, we were up when time ran out so it’s different this year. Definitely better.” – Sexton

“Being a senior, I wanted to put it all out there on the floor and leave it there. We’ve been saying 32 minutes and that’s what we put together.” – Perkins

“It got a little bit slow. We shot pretty God-awful, but you have to keep your head up and trust if you hard that it’s going to work out.” – Scottsboro’s Caroline Dawson

“Everybody doesn’t expect to lose on a big stage like this, but I know those coming back will keep going for us. We know we’re a part of it and it was big. I’m very grateful to be here and very appreciative to be here.” – Ramsay’s Wesley