Auburn 59, Jefferson 50: A 10-point Auburn lead in the second quarter meant nothing.

Neither did a 12-point Jefferson lead in the fourth.

In a game between two teams known for making big runs, the only lead that mattered was Auburn’s nine-point advantage at the end.

“It was a game of runs, and unfortunately Auburn had one more than us,” said Jefferson coach Todd Brannan after his team’s 59-50 loss to Auburn Wednesday.

Auburn used an 18-1 run to finish the fourth quarter and advanced to the finals of the Class 4A Guilford Regional. The Knights (20-8) will play Hononegah (26-3) at 7:30 p.m. Friday for the title.

Auburn won the game in an uncharacteristic fashion — on the free-throw line.

The Knights went 8 for 8 in free throws in the final 1:18.

“That’s been coming on for us lately,” said Auburn coach Bryan Ott, whose team has struggled at the line in close games in the past.

The Knights started the game with the momentum, pulling ahead 20-10 on a Kashif Maxwell 3-pointer early in the second quarter.

But Jefferson forced six Auburn turnovers in the second quarter and finished the half with a 10-0 run.

The J-Hawks stayed ahead for the entire third, and a layup by Thaddeus Perry with 7:16 left in the fourth gave them their largest lead, 46-34.

“All we kept saying to each other was ‘Keep believing, keep believing,’” Auburn senior Eddie Cade said. “Just go out there and get it done.”

The Knights made their final push starting when Jefferson senior Jordan Kerley fouled out with 4:01 remaining. A few minutes later, Perry fouled out, and Auburn regained the momentum and went on a 10-0 run.

The Knights tied the game at 49 apiece on a 3-pointer from Darnell VanVleet with 2:15 left and free throws from Maxwell, J.D. Danforth and Xavier Pittman finished the scoring.

“I am so proud of my kids for continuing to play through adversity. Again.” Ott said. “I’m proud that they found it in themselves to get the stops when they needed to, and to hit the shots when they needed to.”

Maxwell led all scorers with 16 points. Pittman and VanVleet added 10 apiece, and Cade finished with nine points and nine rebounds.

Mario Manns and Perry each scored 10 points for Jefferson, who finished 9-19 a year ago. First-year coach Brannan led the J-Hawks to a 20-8 finish this season.

“Coming in, I didn’t know what to expect,” Brannan said. “But they bought into everything I asked them to, and I’m so proud of them.”

Auburn will face Hononegah for the second time this season. The Indians beat the Knights 47-42 in overtime on Jan. 24. Auburn is chasing its first sectional title since 1978-1979.

-Emily Tropp, rrstar.com