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Sarah Finnegan
Sean Elmore (23) hugs a teammate after Mountain Brook's win over McGill-Toolen during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook celebrates after the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook celebrates after the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook celebrates after the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook celebrates after the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook poses after the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Lior Berman (32) attempts a basket during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Lior Berman (32) dribbles the ball during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Lior Berman (32) reaches for the ball during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
William Lineberry (44) attempts a basket during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore (23) reacts after a play during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Trendon Watford (2) looks to the basket during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore (23) reaches for a rebound during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Paulie Stramaglia (13) passes the ball during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Trendon Watford (2) takes a shot during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore (23) takes a 3-point shot during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Paulie Stramaglia (13) makes a basket during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
William Lineberry (44) looks to the basket during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Paulie Stramaglia (13) drives the ball forward during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore (23) takes a 3-point shot during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Trendon Watford (2) takes a shot during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Hamp Sission (22) drives the ball during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Alex Washington (4) dribbles the ball during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Trendon Watford (2) moves past a defender during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore (23) tosses the ball back into play during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook plays hug as they leave the court during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Mountain Brook players celebrate during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Sean Elmore and Trendon Watford hug during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
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Sarah Finnegan
MBHS boys basketball VS McGill Toolen state championship
Trendon Watford and William Lineberry celebrate during the AHSAA Class 7A State Championship game against McGill-Toolen on March 3, 2018 at the Legacy Arena. The Spartans won 73-49 to take home the state title.
BIRMINGHAM – The show on display inside Legacy Arena on Saturday evening felt like a re-run.
It consisted of the Mountain Brook boys basketball team strolling into the BJCC for the state final for the fifth time in the last six years, and walking out with the blue trophy for the fourth time in that span.
The Spartans are no stranger to the big stage, and they played like it on Saturday, as they cruised to a 73-49 victory over McGill-Toolen in the Class 7A state championship game.
“I couldn’t have imagined the story ending any different for this team,” said head coach Bucky McMillan following the game. “Incredibly special team. When I thought of this day at the beginning of the season, I thought we would be here.”
Mountain Brook (34-4) scored the first seven points of the game and never looked back. After McGill scored its first bucket, the Spartans scored the next 10 to go up 17-2 within the first five minutes of the game.
McGill-Toolen never got the deficit under double digits the rest of the way. The second half was no contest.
“We wanted to play as hard as we could the whole game,” said Lior Berman. “Once we got that lead, we knew we couldn’t take our foot off the gas.”
With the win, the Spartans successfully repeated as state champs, just like they did in 2013 and 2014.
Trendon Watford put forth a typical dazzling effort on Saturday, adding another double-double to his card and finishing with 26 points and 12 rebounds to go along with five blocks and three assists. The junior will have his chance to make it a three-peat before his career is in the books.
But four seniors went out with a bang on Saturday, as Sean Elmore, William Lineberry, Britton Johnson and Hamp Sisson will leave the program with a pair of rings to show for their careers.
Elmore had a terrific game, knocking down 6-of-10 3-point attempts and scoring 20 points in his final high school game. He will head to the University of North Alabama after spending his final three years at Mountain Brook.
“It’s been a good journey, a long process, really worth it,” he said. “I love my team. It’s just pretty fun.”
Lineberry got significant playing time all season in his only season as a key cog to the varsity team. He scored six points and pulled down five boards on Saturday. Johnson knocked down a pair of 3s in his final high school game as well and took at least three charges.
“It’s mixed emotions being here, because that’s the last time anybody will get to this team play. What an amazing team,” McMillan said.
The Spartans routed Central-Phenix City on Thursday to reach the state final a week after winning a pair of games at the Class 7A Northeast Regional. Huffman proved their toughest opponent all season, and Mountain Brook survived the Vikings, 77-71, in the regional final on Feb. 20.
Matthew Russ led McGill-Toolen (25-7) with 14 points.
