With the game and a berth in the Lanierland finals on the line, West Hall answered the call.

Leading by just four points midway through the fourth quarter, the Spartans went on a 7-0 run to build a large enough lead to hold off North Hall and escape with a 53-49 win to advance to the Lanierland Tournament championship game.

The Spartans (7-0) will take on Johnson (4-3) in the finals at 7:30 tonight at Gainesville High. That game will be preceded by the girl’s championship game between Gainesville (4-1) and East Hall (4-1), which advanced to the finals with wins over Flowery Branch and North Hall respectively.

“We thought if we played well we’d have a chance to be in the finals,” West Hall coach Warren Sellers said. “We’ve beaten two good teams and we’re happy to be in the finals.”

For the first 20 minutes against North Hall (3-2) it appeared as if the Spartans undefeated season and journey to the championship game was going to end.

Stuck in a defensive battle with the Trojans, West Hall was forced to stray away from its up-tempo style of play and play more of a half-court style of offense. This played right in to the hands of North Hall, which used a tight zone to stall the Spartans’ offense.

“That was just the flow of the game,” said Sellers, who watched his starting point guard Kavon Williams exit the game with two fouls early in the first quarter.

Williams’ absence forced Rashad Thomas into the game, and although the junior guard filled in admirably, the loss of Williams hindered the Spartans. But despite the altered lineup, the Spartans got a big lift from Shunquez Stephens and Kyle Weatherly, who ended the first half by blocking a shot, sending the ball into the stands and West Hall into the locker room with a 25-24 lead.

“To have any kind of lead without Kavon was great,” Sellers said. “Kyle came in and played big minutes for us.”

None as big as in the final four minutes when Weatherly grabbed a rebound, put up a shot and was fouled as the ball fell through the hoop. A made free throw later increased West Hall’s lead to seven points.

After a North Hall turnover, Weatherly was again in on the action, when the senior post player took a nice feed from Stephens in the lane to increase the lead to nine. And while Stephens’ assist to Weatherly was one of many highlights delivered by the sophomore, his biggest play came on the ensuing Trojans’ possession when he stole the ball, flipped it to Williams, raced down the court and was on the receiving end of a behind the back pass from Terrell Penland.

“Shunquez just has a nose for the ball,” Sellers said. “It’s something you can’t teach.”

Stephens finished the game with a game-high 13 points, five steals and five rebounds, while Weatherly finished with 10 points, four steals and two blocks. Williams finished with 10 points.

North Hall’s comeback effort was led by freshman Kanler Coker, who finished the game with eight points, all in the second half. Ethan Satterfield was North Hall’s leading scorer with 10.

Johnson boys 56, Lakeview Academy 41

Behind a tough full-court press and a rotation of 12 players, the Johnson Knights outlasted the Lakeview Academy Lions on Thursday night during the semifinals of the Lanierland Tournament at Gainesville High.

The win puts Johnson in the finals for the first time since 2005.

The Knights were led by Devaris Finch, who scored a game-high 19 points with five assists and five rebounds. Chris Henry was the only other Johnson player in double figures with 12 points.

Lakeview Academy (2-3) was led by Jordan Chastain’s 12 points.

“Johnson hasn’t won this tournament in about 20 years, before these kids were born,” Knights coach Jeff Steele said. “It’s kind of overwhelming for them, but winning it can make such a huge statement for our school and our community.”

East Hall girls 62, North Hall 44

Symone Hampton and Morgan Jackson combined for 12 fourth-quarter points as the Lady Vikings held off North Hall on Thursday in the semifinals of the Lanierland Tournament at Gainesville High.

Hampton finished with 11 points, one shy of the team’s leading scorer Jasmine Jenkins.

Jenkins and Hampton also played a key role in East Hall’s defense, as the Lady Vikings held North Hall without a point for the first four minutes of the third quarter.

When they finally did score, the Lady Trojans went on a 9-2 run to get back in the game. But East Hall would not be denied a trip to the Lanierland finals, and the Lady Vikings closed out with a 22-point fourth quarter to hold on for the win.

Freshman McKenna Rushton led North Hall with 13 points.

Gainesville girls 60, Flowery Branch 23

Jaymee Carnes scored a game-high 19 points and pulled down seven rebounds to lead the Lady Red Elephants past Flowery Branch on Thursday in the semifinals of the Lanierland Tournament at Gainesville High.

Gainesville showed early that it was ready to contend for its first Lanierland title since 2005, as the Lady Red Elephants jumped out to a 13-3 lead after the first quarter and never looked back.

That lead was built on the solid play of Hailey Solomon, who scored all six of her points in the first quarter.

Gainesville’s defense limited Flowery Branch to single-digit points in every quarter but the third when the Lady Falcons scored 11.

Flowery Branch was led by Kayla Smith, who scored nine points.