HANCEVILLE — Matthew Hancock wasn’t about to let Good Hope lose on Wednesday.

No way, no how.

The guard made sure his No. 3 Raiders advanced to the ninth-grade boys championship game on Saturday by turning in an incredible performance against second-seeded West Point in a thrilling 47-44 overtime victory at the 2016 Cullman County Basketball Tournament.

Hancock scored four of his team-high 18 points in the extra period, contributed assists on two other baskets and tallied a huge steal in the waning seconds — allowing him to turn a slim one-point lead into a three-point cushion and eventual win from the free throw line.

“We just wanted to stay calm and play our game like we usually do,” Hancock said. “They outplayed us the first time this season. They’re a great team, but that motivated us to go big tonight. We had nothing to lose.”

The defending-champion Warriors raced out to an 18-13 first quarter lead before the Raiders fought back to trail by two at halftime.

Good Hope’s Matthew Dixon single-handedly kept his team in the contest in the second half by scoring the final seven points of regulation, including a game-tying free throw with 19 seconds left.

West Point, which fought tooth-and-nail every step of the way, had a good look to win the game outright, but a Kolton Sapp 3-pointer clanged off the rim as time expired.

Enter overtime.

Hancock gave the Red and White a 41-40 lead on a layup, but the Warriors’ Rylan Jones answered right back with a jumper of his own.

The teams traded baskets once again on back-to-back possessions before coach Brandon Talley’s team grabbed a 45-44 advantage on a wide-open layup from Peyton Hill following a drive to the basket by Hancock.

With eight seconds left, West Point attempted to roll the ball up-court to save time.

Hancock had other plans, however, diving on the floor and deflecting the ball to a teammate that ultimately sealed the deal in the county clash.

“Nothing really changed with me, with us,” he said. “We just played our game. That’s what we do.”

Added Talley: “It helped tonight that we got a shot attempt on just about every trip down the floor. We didn’t turn the ball over. We played half-court and slowed it down. That was the gameplan. These guys won county last year in eighth grade. They want to do it again on Saturday.

Dixon complemented Hancock’s 18 with 14 of his own. Landyn Freeman (five), Hill (four) and Noah Fendly (three) also contributed.

For West Point, Jones (18 points), Noah Allison (11), and Aldridge and Sapp (six apiece) spearheaded the offense. The loss ends the Warriors’ run of four straight county ninth-grade titles.

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Fairview 46, Hanceville 42

Coach Jason Smith and the Aggies only had one goal entering Wednesday’s second semi.

Get to the finals.

Mission accomplished.

Luke Yarbrough lit up the scoreboard for 18 points, Fairview dominated the boards on both sides and the top seed narrowly avoided an upset by the No. 5 Bulldogs to earn a shot at redemption on Championship Saturday.

Fairview took the lead for good on a Caleb White 3-pointer in the third quarter but couldn’t truly relax until the waning seconds. Yarbrough’s two makes on a trip to the charity stripe gave the Aggies a late 45-42 advantage, and Hanceville’s misses on a couple of decent looks ensured it stuck.

Connor Tipton capped off the victory with a free throw inside the final second.

“Same way it was the first time we played ’em,” Smith said. “It came down to the wire.”

Yarbrough was a major catalyst for Fairview in the third quarter, piling on nine of the team’s 14 points. Three came on a loud three-point play that halted the latest — but not the last — rally by the Bulldogs.

“He’s big for us every night,” Smith said of Yarbrough. “Defensively, offensively, he gives 110 percent.”

White (nine points), Brady Brooks (eight) and Tipton (seven) also came up with big-time contributions for the winners. Zane Miller rounded out the Aggies’ scoring with four points.

“I’m glad to play with this team,” Yarbrough said. “They come out and work as hard as I do every night.”

Alex Campbell put on a show for Hanceville, which held a 19-13 lead after the first quarter, with 18 points. Damien Johnson, the overtime hero in the Dawgs’ first-round triumph, added 14. Fred Ellis and Romael Simmons had seven and three points, respectively.

Hanceville led 19-13 after the first quarter.

Fairview will face Good Hope for the title Saturday at 2 p.m. with a chance to put a loss in last year’s middle school championship firmly in the past.

Yarbrough doesn’t plan to waste the opportunity.

“I think it drives the team to push harder this year,” he said of the 2014 defeat. “We’re going to give 110 percent and lay it all out of the floor.”

Smith’s gameplan for beating the Raiders a second time this season — the first was a close win on the road — is far simpler.

“Just outscore ’em,” he said with a laugh.