Second-ranked Hoover punched its ticket to the Class 7A championship game by beating Dothan 53-41 on Thursday morning at Birmingham’s BJCC Legacy Arena – and Bucs head coach Scott Ware said being able to respond to the Wolves’ best punch was the difference.

“Got to give them credit. They got here for a reason. They’re punching now,” Ware said of Dothan’s effort. “This is their time to punch. Are we going to take the punch or are we going to punch back? I thought we came out and punched back.”

Hoover (30-4) used its depth and versatility to overwhelm No. 10 Dothan (26-5) early. Seven of the 10 Bucs who played made it into the scoring column.

Sophomore guard Jarett Fairley scored a team-high 17 points for Hoover, hitting 5-of-10 of his shots from the floor. Senior Elijah Herron scored 10 and knocked down a couple of critical 3-pointer.

“My teammates were doing a good job of getting me the ball, and we were spacing (our offense) real good, so it was easy getting to the rim,” Fairley said. “That’s what opened it up for everybody.”

The Buccaneers held Dothan to 23.1 percent shooting from the floor in the first half, including just 8.3 percent from behind the 3-point arc, and 29.1 percent on its field goals for the game. The Wolves finished hitting 13.1 percent on 3-pointers.

“This is our first time being on this kind of stage,” Dothan’s first-year head coach Jeremy Bynum said. “I think our guys kind of got, not necessarily, shell-shocked. They were playing very hesitant, not wanting to make a mistake. Every time we would make a run, they would hit a big shot.”

Hoover jumped to a 13-5 first-quarter lead and extended the margin to 27-16 at the half. The Bucs carried a 40-30 lead into the final period.

Star of the Game: Along with his 17 points, Fairley registered two assists, two blocks and one rebound.

Stat sheet: Hoover – Bucs senior Jonathan Caicedo finished with eight points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Sophomore guard Salim London finished with eight points, eight rebounds and four assists. Sophomore DeWayne Brown led Hoover with nine rebounds and three blocked shots. Dothan – Senior Thomas Dowd led the Wolves with 17 points. The Troy signed pulled down nine rebounds. Junior Mehkai Menefee finished the game with 13 points, shooting 50 percent from the floor.

By the numbers: The Buccaneers led for 31:15 of the game and held an 18-6 advantage on fast break points. Hoover outscored Dothan 18-6 in the paint, but the Wolves had a 12-6 margin in points off turnovers.

They said it: “Any time you play in the championship game, it’s incredible. It can’t do anything but build confidence in your younger guys in the program. They know they are in a championship program.” – Ware

“Just looking at those guys crushed like that, it’s tough to see them feel like all the work they put in has gone down the drain. But that’s not the case.” – Bynum

Next up: Hoover will play the winner of the Central-Phenix City vs. Spain Park game on Saturday at 5:45 p.m. for the 7A title.