Caldwell three-ball in late going sends Redbirds to Centralia semifinal

CENTRALIA – Kevin Caldwell hit a three-point shot in the dying seconds of the game to give Alton a 62-61 win over Carmel Catholic of the Chicago suburb of Mundelein in a Friday quarterfinal game of the 75^th Centralia Holiday Tournament Friday afternoon.

The win sent the Redbirds to a 12:30 p.m. Saturday semifinal game against Southwestern Conference rival Belleville West, who defeated St. Louis Confluence Prep in a quarterfinal game Friday by a 65-63 count; the winner plays either Champaign Central or Chicago Marist in the final, set for 9 p.m. Saturday. The win put Alton at 9-1 on the season.

The Redbirds got 15 points from Caldwell, including his game-winning three, as well as 13 points from Josh Rivers and 12 from Malik Smith; Darrell Smith and Ahmad Sanders both contributed nine points each; Kimahri Wilson led the Corsairs with 18 points on the day, with Evan Meyer adding 16 on the day.