After falling to Central Christian Academy at home on Jan. 31, the Cornerstone Chargers’ hold on the top spot in AISA’s West Area 3 was beginning to look a little more in question.

The Chargers jumped out to a 29-24 lead in the game, but then went 11 minutes and 15 seconds without a basket on their way to a 51-38 loss.

&uot;It was one of those nights,&uot; said CCS coach Tim Smith. &uot;We just couldn’t score.&uot;

Cornerstone (17-3) got another shot at its area foe last weekend, and – when it mattered most – made good on the opportunity, downing Central 81-74 on the road to claim the area championship. It was Cornerstone’s first area title in boys basketball.

&uot;It was a thriller, a real fast-paced game,&uot; Smith said. &uot;The boys have played well the past couple of nights.&uot;

Tournament MVP Jamal Prentice led Cornerstone with 25 points followed by Ty Youngblood, who was named to the all-tournament team, with 20. Jonathan McKinney scored 17 points while Dustin Shears had 14 for the Chargers.

Cornerstone set up the meeting with Central by defeating Prattville Christian on Friday night, 74-47.

Prentice had 23 points in that contest.

The Chargers’ tournament victory gave them a No. 1 seed in this weekend’s AISA State Basketball Tournament, where they’ll face Dixie Academy Thursday night at 4:30 p.m. at Huntindgon College in Montgomery.

A win would put Cornerstone in the Final Four.

Shelby Academy and Kingwood Christian both won area titles in girls basketball