West Point's Will Wrenn shoots a trey.

HANCEVILLE — Drew Jones and Holly Pond’s talented sophomore class know a thing or two about winning a Cullman County Basketball Tournament championship.

Austin Smith and the Broncos’ seniors would love to learn their secret.

After Friday’s ho-hum 69-49 semifinal victory over third-seeded West Point, Holly Pond’s roster of young and old will put their heads together and try to come up with a plan to end the program’s championship woes.

Jones and last year’s junior varsity squad know no such anguish. They took the county by storm en route to the 2014 crown and have a good idea what’ll be needed Saturday to repeat the feat at the varsity level against a “really good Cold Springs team.”

“To be honest, we’ve just got to go out there and play defense,” Jones said. “If we do what we do, I’m very positive that we can have a good shot at winning the title.”

The Broncos have claimed a regional championship, advanced as far as the state semifinal and won their own Thanksgiving tournament while Smith’s been in green and white. The only thing that’s missing for the forward — and all Holly Pond players since 2002 — is a county championship.

Smith wants nothing more than for that drought to end versus the very team that squashed the Broncos’ title aspirations a season ago. Doing so alongside his little brother, Bailey — and Jones with his older sibling, Cody — would just be icing on the cake.

“This year, I’m looking for revenge,” the senior Smith said. “Our whole team is.”

Holly Pond jumped out on West Point Friday behind Jones’ mind-boggling accuracy from long range. The sharpshooter sank a trio of treys before three minutes had even been played, went on to drain two others and eventually wound up with 17 points.

As usual, Jones deflected the credit from himself to his assist-happy teammates.

“Cody and Bailey were finding me in the corners,” he said. “They’d penetrate, kick out and, fortunately, I hit the shots so everything worked out.”

Combined with Jones’ dead aim from downtown, the Broncos’ mean defense stifled the Warriors in a 25-4 first quarter. West Point woke up in the second stanza — especially big man Ryder Jones, who showed his range with a 3 — but by then, it was already too late.

Smith snagged the offensive baton with 12 of his team-high 19 points in the third quarter, allowing Holly Pond to send out its reserves for the majority of the final eight minutes.

“I thought our guys did a really good job starting the ballgame, getting some good 3’s and getting some stuff inside,” Green and White coach Mitch Morris said. “Now, the rest of the game, it was kind of rocky. I think everybody on both sides, (shrugs), whatever you call that, it just wasn’t real good basketball.

“We had moments here or there and they had a few moments here or there, but for this game, the damage was done in the first quarter.”

Cody Jones cracked double digits with 11 points for the Broncos, who improved to 23-3 with their ninth straight win. Landen Walker came off the bench for a smooth eight points, Bailey Smith and Matt Cahoon both tacked on five, and Nathan Duke converted two well-placed assists for four points.

Jones led West Point with 19 points, while Will Wrenn notched three treys and 13 points. Fellow senior Bryant Farley finished with eight points. Blake Yearwood knocked down a late 3, and Kobe Smith, Riley Voce and Tanner Rusk all made a basket in the fourth quarter.

Holly Pond wasn’t interested in celebrating Friday’s triumph, instead turning its attention to Saturday’s showdown between state No. 1s. The Broncos haven’t forgotten their devastaing 66-63 defeat to Cold Springs in last year’s final and expect another shootout in Part II.

Opposite Holly Pond’s Joneses and Smiths will be Eagle juniors Triston Chambers and Josh Freeman, who Morris claimed can both “shoot from anywhere in the gym.” He also has extreme respect for Cold Springs’ supporting cast of role players, who excel when needed on offense and defense.

“Playing here in the big coliseum, it’s going to be a good game,” Morris said. “I think both teams are going to come out focused and we’re going to play hard. If we do what we’re supposed to for four quarters, I think we’ll be OK.”

The Broncos have been in the county championship game plenty since securing their last crown in 2002 but “haven’t won a lick,” a fact Morris and Co. obviously want to alter when the teams tip off around 7 p.m. Saturday.

“We’ve been there coming from the seventh seed and been there at the one seed,” Morris said. “But for whatever reason, we can’t take that big gold ball home.”

Maybe the second seed will do the trick.

“We’ll try it,” he said with a laugh.