Fit for the finals

Alonzo Robertson received the outlet pass, dribbled twice and then soared toward the basket, intent on embarrassing a plucky Berkeley Prep player who went for the block.

One defiant dunk later, Robertson was engulfed by his teammates - and, strangely enough, a few Avon Park fans - underneath the basket.

Seems everybody wanted in on this celebration.

Avon Park took down another higher-seeded opponent on its home floor Tuesday, beating Berkeley Prep 71-57 to advance to the Class 3A regional finals for the first time in a decade.

"This team has surpassed so many things this year," Avon Park coach Luther Clemons said. "It has just blown me away. I'm just kind of along for the ride right now."

One victory from its first state Final Four appearance since 1996, Avon Park (25-3) will travel to play Bishop Verot (19-10) in the region championship Saturday night.

"We haven't been here in a while," said Robertson, who scored a team-high 17 points, "and it feels real good."

For the second game in a row, the Red Devils surged ahead in the third quarter, opening the period on an 11-4 run. They led by as many as 19 in the fourth, when Clemons emptied the bench in the final few minutes.

During last week's regional quarterfinal win over Tampa Catholic, the Red Devils built a double-digit lead but frittered away the advantage with head-scratching turnovers.

They didn't have the chance Tuesday. They were more cautious, controlling the clock and working the ball inside and out, until they settled on a high-percentage shot.

Or, in some cases, a breakaway.

With about 2 minutes left, the Red Devils stole the ball and lobbed it ahead to Robertson, who was streaking down the court a few steps ahead of a Berkeley Prep player. Having dunked on the previous possession, Robertson prepared for a hard foul from the Buccaneers defender, who literally clung to Robertson as he stretched toward the rim.

No matter. He slammed it down, one-handed, rousing an ardent crowd that, at this juncture, already had much to celebrate. Somehow, a handful of Red Devils fans got onto the court to mob Robertson, and Clemons could only smile from his seat at the end of the bench.

Surely, he had no qualms about this technical foul.

"That felt good right there," Robertson said, breaking into a smile.

And it was a stark departure from the first half, in which Avon Park could hardly establish a presence in the post, instead settling for rushed 3-point attempts that didn't fall. Still, guards Van'Derkel Clayton and Reggie Baker combined for 15 first-half points, giving Avon Park a 30-26 lead at halftime.

The Red Devils went back to their initial game plan - getting the ball inside to their two big men, Robertson and Cleveland Nobles - in the third quarter. This time, they broke through.

"It just took us a little while to get going," Clemons said.

Avon Park improved to 13-1 on the road this season, its lone loss coming in the regular-season finale at Auburndale, a non-district game that had little significance. After a humbling home loss to Mulberry in the District 9 finals, which forced the Red Devils to play their first two playoff games on the road, assistant coach Alvin Conner said it was "the best thing that could have happened to us."

The rationale: Fewer distractions. Better focus. More discipline.

"It was more of a blessing than a curse," Conner said. "That experience as a road warrior has given us so much confidence."

They'll play one more true road game Saturday against Bishop Verot, which defeated Dunbar 55-53 in the other semifinal game Tuesday. Win that one, and the Red Devils will play in the Lakeland Center, a neutral site.

"We just want to get to Lakeland," Clemons said. "That'd be nice. Just to walk around and say, 'Wow, we're playing in here.'"