It was the largest crowd ever at Landrum High School, Head Coach Lyn Smith said. There was standing room only on the home side and McCormick brought three buses full of fans to the game.

Those two crowds were heard in the final three minutes. Landrum controlled the game for three quarters hovering around a double-digit lead, but with 3:15 left on the clock, the Chiefs pulled to within five points at 78-73.

After the Bridges charge in the waning seconds of the game, the game broke out into a few minutes of chaos. McCormick drew two technical fouls. Landrum’s Mark Wilson stepped up to the line and hit four free throws to ice the game for the Cardinals. Wilson finished the game with 24 points. The junior guard hit six 3-pointers.  Bridges finished with a game-high 27 points.

The Chiefs were led by Toronce Bryant with 18 points and Aaron Aiken with 13.

This will be Landrum’s second trip to the Upper State finals in the last four years. Senior point guard Cole McDowell was a freshman on the 2009 team that made it to the Bilo Center.

He will obviously have more of an impact this time around. The senior scored 12 points on Tuesday night.

“I can do more for my team this year,” he said. “I’m ready for it.”

And as for Landrum’s coach, Smith could hardly hide his smile when he emerged from the locker rooms after the game.

“To win it in front of a crowd like this, the biggest crowd ever at Landrum, is fantastic,” he said.

Smith is now 70-9 at home as the Cardinals’ coach.