High School Sports

JACKSONVILLE — Talladega's girls kept their hopes for a state championship alive on Friday, defeating Scottsboro, 59-41 to advance to the Final Four for the second time in school history.

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Video: Talladega vs. Scottsboro Slideshow: NE Regional B'ball Tournament Day 4

Talladega (29-2) trailed only once in the contest, and it wasn't for long.

The Lady Tigers opened the scoring with a layup by Jessica Merritt 23 in, but then Scottsboro took a 5-4 lead with 5:37 to go in the quarter.

Merritt, who scored Talladega's first six points, put the Lady Tigers back in the lead for good just a few seconds later. The sophomore had 11 points in the opening quarter and was named tournament MVP.

Talladega's solid defense shut down all but one player for Scottsboro (26-4) — Nelson, who finished with 23 points — on the way to victory. Head coach Jannie Keith said the outside shooters were her biggest concern.

"We knew coming into this it was going to be a hard one to take down," Keith said. "We knew Scottsboro was a three-point shooting team and they had a great post player. So we just concentrated on trying to shut down the threes. We might could allow 42 to make those shots in the post, but we tried to maintain everybody else. I think the girls did a fantastic job on defense doing that."

Talladega held a 23-9 lead at the end of the opening quarter, something Keith said gave her team confidence.

"When (Scottsboro coach Jerry Kirkland) called the time out (with 6:15 to go in the first quarter) I told my girls just keep the pressure going," Keith said. "We knew that we had to hit Scottsboro quick and hard. Because if we gave them any inch of a little breath there they were going to be coming back on us.

"Even when we went into halftime I told my girls, we've got to keep the pressure on 'em. It felt good. It built my girls' confidence a whole lot."

The Lady Tigers will face four-time defending 5A champ Ramsay on Wednesday in the Class 5A semifinals at the BJCC. The game tips off at 9 a.m.

Merritt led the Lady Tigers in scoring with 19 points. The junior also pulled down seven rebounds, had six steals and six assists. Jameica Rivers had 15 points and four rebounds, while Jamie Keith added 10 points. All three players were named to the all-tournament team.

Talladega's game against Ramsay on Wednesday will be a rematch of the 2006 semifinal game, a 55-37 Talladega loss.