THOMASVILLE — On Tuesday, Brookwood’s boys basketball team extended their season by way of the thinnest margin possible.

With the No. 5 seeded Warriors edging Tiftarea Acedemy 35-34 in a play-in game on Tuesday, they’ll enter the GISA Region 3-3A tournament, and will play No. 1 Valwood tonight in Albany. They will be hoping to ride on the backs of their seniors like they have all season — and to eliminate late mistakes that have been their downfall all year.

Last week, the Warriors had an 18-point lead over Southland headed into the fourth quarter, but a 32-13 run from Southland handed Brookwood a 52-49 loss. After that kind of defeat, the win on Tuesday was needed, and for more than just keeping the season alive.

“We’ve kind of handed some games over late, and to get over that hump felt pretty good,” Brookwood coach Brad Piazza said. “Sometimes those things can affect you mentally, and we were able to execute at the end when we needed to.”

While the method in which Brookwood entered the tournament was not the most ideal, the seniors that have done a lot to carry the team see their circumstances as a potential strong point.

“Coming off such a close win and only having one region win, we kind of have a chip on our shoulder compared to the other teams,” Christian Bell said. “They’re playing to hold their position and we don’t have much to lose, so I think that’ll be an important factor in our mentality.”

“We’ve come up short time after time,” Christopher Watt added. “Now we’re ready to get it done.”

This season, Brookwood dropped both of their regular season games to Valwood, which it will face for a third time. The second matchup inspired some hope, with the Warriors only losing to the Valiants by five. By watching tons of film, the team hopes to exploit some weaknesses, but they also have to stop hurting themselves. It will also help that Eli Miller, another senior, will be playing in tonight’s game after missing the last matchup against the Valiants due to injury.

“We had the lead with two minutes to go in the game,” Piazza said. “We turned it over twice and didn’t block out on free throws that they missed and gave them second chances. Those are things we really have to eliminate.”

Last season, the Warriors were in a similar position — a five seed that won the play-in game. They are determined to make it even farther than that tonight.

“The more I watch the film, the more I am convinced that we can beat these guys,” Piazza said. “Our kids are doing the things that we ask them to do. We just don’t have a high basketball IQ sometimes, but they’re really intelligent kids. We just have to eliminate those mental mistakes.”