The Andalusia Bulldogs earned a spot in tonight’s 51st Annual Christmas Tournament championship after hammering the Opp Bobcats 69-44 on Friday night.

“We really overcame some adversity tonight after getting into foul trouble early,” Andalusia head coach Anthony Clark said. “I’m proud that we were able to get back to the finals. Now we just have to come out here tomorrow and play with intensity.”

Keaun Samuel got the Bulldogs on the board first with a quick layup. Samuel was fouled on the play and knocked down a free throw to put Andalusia up 3-0.

Big 3-pointers from Opp’s Reggie Thompson kept things close as the Bulldogs were up just 13-10 at the end of the first period.

The Bulldogs turned up the pressure in the second period behind strong plays from B.J. Anderson, Trey Wilkerson and R.J. Drish.

Anderson started the period with offensive board and put back and then a few plays later he buried a 3-pointer to give the Bulldogs a 20-12 advantage.

Javonte Crittenden then knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the Andalusia lead to 23-15, but Wilkerson answered back with 3-pointer of his own to push the Bulldog lead back to 11 points.

Andalusia got a basket from Drish and two more from Wilkerson to take a 36-16 lead into halftime.

The Bulldogs continued to stretch the lead and went into to the final period holding a 54-26 advantage.

Andalusia finished off the game with a strong fourth period to give them a 69-44 win.

The Bulldogs had four players reach double-digits in scoring. Anderson lead the team with 18 points, Drish had 16, Samuel finished with 15 and Wilkerson tacked on 12 points.

“Drish played really well tonight,” Clark said. “He really provided a spark for us coming off the bench. Overall, I thought we played well. If we can keep those four guys in double-digits, we will be a good team in January.”

Andalusia will play Greenville tonight at 7:30.