Montgomery, Ala. — William Carey earned its first trip to the SSAC Championship Game since 2017 with an 84-80 victory over Life University on Friday night.
The Crusaders opened with energy, jumping ahead 5-2 behind a layup from Randarius Hughes and a three-pointer from Makeem Roberts, assisted by Anthony Robinson. Life responded quickly, led by Shane Stevensen’s inside presence, which helped the Running Eagles trim the deficit to one. Hughes answered with back-to-back layups, and Jamar Jenkins hit a three to put Carey ahead 14-8 with five minutes remaining in the first half.
The momentum shifted as Troy Dunn caught fire, knocking down consecutive threes and adding a mid-range jumper. The run pushed Carey’s lead to 28-16 with 10 minutes left in the half. Life fought back, attacking the paint and drawing fouls, with Stevensen and Maurice Wright making inside looks and trips to the free-throw line. A late surge led by Calvin Payton and Stevensen briefly gave Life the lead, with Payton hitting a go-ahead three to make it 36-35 with 2:31 remaining.
Carey closed the half strong. Malik Franklin scored six straight points, including four free throws and a contested jumper, to give the Crusaders a 42-36 halftime lead. In the second half, Life came out aggressive. Stevensen scored immediately, followed by Wright’s transition layup and Josh Baugher’s put-back, trimming the deficit to one.
Carey responded quickly, with Franklin, Roberts, and Dunn stabilizing the offense. A sequence of free throws from Roberts, a Dunn jumper, and another Roberts three extended the lead to 52-45 with 14 minutes remaining. Life continued to push, eventually closing to 68-64 with five minutes left.
Calvin Payton made three straight free throws to give Life a 71-70 lead with three minutes remaining. Robinson answered with a crucial three-pointer at the 2:47 mark, restoring a four-point cushion for Carey. Layups from Dunn and Roberts pushed the lead to eight.
Life made one final push. Stevensen’s layup with 1:42 remaining sparked a 10-4 run, and a bucket from Hall made it 82-80 in the final seconds. Franklin sealed the game by knocking down two free throws, finishing with 30 points after a 35-point effort Thursday.
Roberts and Dunn added 14 points each, while Hughes contributed 11 for Carey. The Crusaders will face Dalton State in Saturday’s SSAC Championship Game, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl.
