Marion County girls basketball defeats Keith in AHSAA semifinals

BIRMINGHAM — Marion County girls basketball defeated Keith 63-37 in the AHSAA basketball girls Class 1A state semifinals on Monday morning.

Marion County forced 20 Keith turnovers and scored 24 points off of them. Marion County's Jasmine Wilson finished with a game-high 16 points, while Alecia Donaldson scored 14 and Bekah Junkin scored 11. Keith's Adasia Atkins and Shania Moore each finished with a team-high eight points.

Marion County built a 12-3 lead in the first quarter, but behind three 3-pointers, Keith pulled itself back in it, tying the game at 16 with 4:21 remaining in the second quarter. Marion County closed out the period on an 8-4 run, holding a 24-20 lead over Keith at the break.

The Red Raiders outscored the Bears 39-17 in the second half as they claimed the victory and advance to the state championship game.

Marion County advances to play the winner between Spring Garden and Elba in the Class 1A state championship game at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 29. The Red Raiders will be making their fourth-straight appearance in the state championship game, winning the state title in 2022, but losing 62-39 to Spring Garden in last year's state title game.

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Anna Snyder covers high school sports and University of Alabama softball and football recruiting for The Tuscaloosa News. Reach her at asnyder@gannett.com . Follow her on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, @annaesnyder2

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Marion County girls basketball defeats Keith in AHSAA semifinals