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Freshman's 3 Pushes BCS to Regional Hoops Final

Austin Walker's late 3-pointer helps Bradenton Christian stop a late Seffner Christian rally Tuesday as the Panthers advance to Saturday's Class 1A-Region 2 final

Posted Wed, Feb 23, 2011 at 3:01 am ET|Updated Thu, Feb 24, 2011 at 5:01 pm ET

Heads froze on the court Tuesday as Austin Walker's 3-pointer ricocheted off the rim.

As it lifted to the top of the backboard with three minutes remaining in the Class 1A-Region 2 semifinal, Walker charged to rebound his own shot.

But the ball dropped through the net.

A few Seffner Christian heads dropped as well.

The shot helped host Bradenton Christian halt a late Seffner rally as the Panthers won 73-62.

BCS (19-11) will play either Orlando Christian Prep or Faith Christian in Saturday's final.

The Panthers had a 13-point third quarter lead slip to one before Walker's rim-teasing 3.

"I felt like if I could hit that one," Walker said,"I could hit the next two."

Indeed, Walker buried two jump shots — scoring seven points in 30 seconds — to put the Panthers ahead 67-59.

Walker finished with 24 points.

Daniel Magley, a senior who sat out much of the fourth quarter with four fouls, had 16 points for the Panthers.

Also for Bradenton Christian, Raleigh Alexander had eight points and Nick Scheimann had six off two 3-pointers.