Watford, Spartans soar to state
HANCEVILLE — If even a modicum of hope remained for the Vestavia Hills High School boys basketball team, Trendon Watford squashed it upon takeoff.
Watford, Mountain Brook’s 6-foot-9 senior forward, caught a pass in midair from teammate Colby Jones as he sprang toward the basket at Tom Drake Coliseum.
His two-handed, alley-oop dunk extended the Spartans’ lead back to 20 points in the third quarter of Tuesday’s Class 7A Northwest Regional final, which Mountain Brook won in overwhelming fashion, 57-36.
The victory sends the Spartans (29-3) to their third consecutive state final four — and sixth in seven years.
“We wanted to come out and just keep our foot on them,” said Watford, who finished with a game-high 21 points and nine rebounds. “I feel like that’s what we did.”
Mountain Brook will play Lee-Montgomery on Thursday, Feb. 28, at the BJCC’s Legacy Arena in the state semifinals. The Spartans are shooting to secure their third straight 7A title.
“I think a major factor in this is past teams who have gotten us here,” Mountain Brook head coach Bucky McMillan said. “These players are comfortable being here, and I think that will carry over to the Civic Center as well.”
This season Mountain Brook has not faced Lee, which will present a new set of challenges. But lack of familiarity did not factor into the equation against Vestavia Hills (22-11).
Tuesday marked the fourth meeting of the year between the neighboring rivals, with Mountain Brook winning the first three by margins of 11, 26 and 27 points.
The Spartans left no doubt that the fourth matchup would yield an identical outcome. Playing with their backs to a Mountain Brook student section clad in neon T-shirts, they bolted out to a 21-4 first-quarter lead.
Lior Berman, who finished with 11 points, began the first quarter by swishing a 3 from the left wing. Watford, who was named regional tournament MVP, closed the quarter by canning another 3, this time atop the key.
“I felt like we were ready for anything,” said Berman, a senior. “We had been practicing hard, preparing, and I knew that we were going to play good regardless.”
Mountain Brook ceded no ground in the second quarter. It played tight interior defense and forced Vestavia Hills to shoot from the perimeter.
The Rebels sank only 25 percent of their field-goal attempts, including a single 3, in the opening half. They trailed 32-11 at the break.
“I thought we played really well defensively,” McMillan said. “There was a time there where I thought we had a good chance to...maybe hold them to 30 or something. It’s a great job by our guys in that game.”
Vestavia Hills surged slightly to begin the third quarter. It made three consecutive stops on defense, and Michael Vice connected from beyond the arc.
Then came Watford’s aerial acrobatics, which quieted the Rebels’ sprawling student section while evoking a roar from the Spartans’. Watford pointed to his classmates as he backpedaled down the court next to Jones, who notched 11 points and seven rebounds.
“Obviously, today didn’t go the way we wanted it to go,” Vestavia Hills head coach Patrick Davis said. “We got kicked. That happens.”
Luke Couch recorded a team-high nine points for the Rebels. They trailed by 31 points, 48-17, entering the final frame.
Mountain Brook played its reserves for much of the fourth quarter. By then, the Spartans had sealed their fate.
On to state they go.
“We’ve just got to continue what got us here,” McMillan said, “and that’s focusing on every day being the best we can in practice moving forward.”