LAKELAND — Eleven seconds were the difference between a trip home and another game today for Port St. Joe.

A final defensive stand by Tampa Prep enabled the Terrapins to survive a pulsating Tiger Sharks’ rally for a 49-48 victory Friday in a state Class 2A boys basketball semifinal.

Port St. Joe, facing almost hopeless odds on several occasions, bowed out at 26-5, while Tampa Prep (25-4) moved into today’s championship game against Jacksonville Providence.

Port St. Joe roared back from a nine-point deficit with just under two minutes left in the game, It used three 3-pointers, one each from Calvin Pryor, Willie Quinn and Raheem Clemons, to pull within 49-48 with 11 seconds left.

Forced to foul since early in the final quarter, the Tiger Sharks got a break when Jay Bowie missed two free throws. Bowie scored a team-high 13 points, but just one in the second half and the Tiger Sharks charged downcourt with a chance to win.

A screen at the top of the key freed Roman Quinn (seven points) for a tear-drop in the lane, but the ball clanged off the backboard and into the hands of the Terrapins. The game, and the Tiger Sharks’ season were over.

“It was a great game for the fans,” said Port St. Joe coach Derek Kurnitsky, whose team had ousted Tampa Prep from the state semifinals three years ago in the final seconds. “If you are a fan of basketball, this was a great game.

“We fought our guts out. We kept attacking the rim and hitting 3s. Every chance we had to extend the game was a glimmer of hope for us. We had what we wanted at the end; we just didn’t hit the shot.”

Tampa Prep coach Joe Fenlon could only express pride in his players and relief for having finally conquered a semifinal jinx. The Terrapins were eliminated twice in the semifinals during the past three years by five points combined, and both losses were in overtime.

“We are really a fortunate bunch,” Fenlon said. “On a day that we shoot 51 percent from the foul line and give up nine 3-pointers in a low-scoring game, those are the sort of things that can mean the difference between winning and losing.

“The game ultimately came down to the last 11 seconds and the kids played tremendous defense. I told the kids all we have to do is D-up one more time. And we did. My main concern was them taking it to the basket and they tried, but we were fortunate to stop them.”

The opening quarter set a tone for much of the first three as the taller Terrapins forced Port St. Joe deeper and deeper out onto the floor. Bowie dominated offensively and center Quincy Mitchell blocked four shots.

“We had trouble inside because (Mitchell) was altering almost every shot in the paint,” Kurnitsky said. “Our defense kept us in it.”

The bright spot for the Tiger Sharks was they were finding the range on 3-pointers, Clemons and Roman Quinn both hit deep shots to keep the Tiger Sharks within 14-9 after one quarter.

A 3-pointer by Clemons made it 22-22 at intermission after a back-and-forth second quarter.

The Tiger Sharks also demonstrated early strength on the boards, out-rebounding Tampa Prep 29-27 for the game, including 15 offensive rebounds. Port St. Joe had four players with at least five total.

The downside was that Port St. Joe shot just 31 percent from the floor while Tampa Prep exceeded 50 percent.

“If we could have made more shots it would have made a difference,” Kurnitsky said.

The Tiger Sharks used a 6-0 tear to open the second half while having Willie Quinn front Bowie. Terrapins’ Devontae Morgan (11 points) and Jamal Cherry (10) picked up the scoring slack inside.

“They did their best to take away Jay, they did their best to take away Jamal, but we have more than two players who can score and it is tough to guard and shut down more than two players,” Fenlon said.

“This is the style of game we’ve played all year. We’ve played close games and we understand what we need to do.”

Tampa Prep answered St. Joe’s spurt with a 13-2 run bracketing the third and fourth quarters, and its lead grew to nine after five straight points late in the final quarter.

“It really hurt us that we did not score for awhile,” Kurnitsky said. “We were loose all week and to get here is a special accomplishment. It came down to those final seconds.”

With Port St. Joe forced to foul, Pryor (game-high 20 points) hit a 3-pointer that was offset by three free throws by Tampa Prep. Willie Quinn hit another 3-pointer against only one free throw.

“They did a great job, they did everything they could to get in position to win,” Fenlon said of the Tiger Sharks.

Pryor’s fourth 3-pointer, from the top of the arc, made it 48-45. Another Terrapin free throw preceded what may have been the shot of the game, a 3-pointer by Clemons with Mitchell draped over him along the sideline.

That effort set up the break-neck finish when Bowie missed two free throws.

“We worked on defense, on boxing out all week,” Cherry said. “Sometimes we got caught looking at the wrong man, but we did alright at the end.”

• Tampa Prep 14 8 11 16 — 49
• Port St. Joe 12 10 6 20 — 48
• TP (49)
• Bowie 6 1-3 13, Jor. Heath 1 3-6 5, Fletcher 1 0-0 2, Morgan 3 5-8 11, Cherry 3 4-8 10, Jos. Heath 0 2-2 2, Mitchell 2 2-2 6. Totals: 16 17-29 49.
• PSJ (48)
• Roman Quinn 2 2-4 7, Clemons 3 0-0 9, Smith 1 0-0 2, Willie Quinn 4 0-0 9, Pryor 7 2-2 20. Totals:17 5-8 48.