ALTON – When it comes to the postseason – especially basketball – one saying proves to be more true than anything else.
It's simple:
Survive and Advance.
Alton did just that in their IHSA Class 4A Alton Regional semifinal match against Chatham GlenwoodWednesday night, despite holding a 12-9 lead at quarter time; the Titans took advantage of some Redbird miscues and built a small lead that lasted almost the rest of the way.
Operative word: almost.
That was because Maurice Edwards stepped up and made a play down the stretch – like at the buzzer, lifting a floater from the paint that went right through the basket as the buzzer sounded, giving the Redbirds a 46-45 win over the Titans that advanced them into Friday night's title contest against Quincy; that game begins at 7 p.m., with the winner taking on the Edwardsville-Belleville East winner from Friday's East St. Louis Regional final in a Collinsville Sectional semifinal clash, set for 7 p.m. Tuesday.