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Kyle Green | The Roanoke Times

Radford's Dontae Carter shoots the game-winning field goal over James River's Chris Ware (24) with .3 seconds remaining to give the Bobcats a 54-52 win over James River in the Group A Division 2 semifinals Thursday night at the Siegel Center.

RICHMOND -- If cats really have nine lives, how many did Radford's basketball team use up Thursday night?

"Ten of 'em," senior Allen Dickerson said.

Nearly counted out for dead with a 10-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter, Radford resurrected its hopes for a VHSL Group A Division 2 state title with a stunning 54-52 victory over James River at VCU's Siegel Center.

Radford won the game on a spectacularly dramatic play.

With the score tied at 52, sophomore guard Dontae Carter stole a pass from Chris Ware on James River's end of the floor and covered the distance in less than four seconds for a layup at the buzzer. Carter's play sparked a wild celebration by the Bobcats as the black-clad James River team and coaching staff watched in stunned disbelief.

"When I got at halfcourt I glanced at the clock and knew I had three seconds left," Carter said. "I knew I had to get it there fast and just put it up."

Ware's game-high 21 points were a huge reason why James River owned a 49-39 lead midway through the fourth quarter and still led 50-43 with 3:22 remaining.

On the final play, the sophomore forward spun into the key and looked for point guard Ethan Humphries on the right wing.

Radford's Jon Thompson slightly deflected the pass, Carter scooped it up and laid it in as Ware nearly sprinted back in time to make a defensive play.

"Somebody cut him off at the top, and I was trying to deny the ball to Humphries," Thompson said. "I was trying not to let him have the ball in the last seconds. I got a piece of the ball and Dontae got the steal."

Radford (25-4) will play for the Division 2 championship at 5 p.m. Saturday against Dan River. It almost seemed like a footnote after the thrilling end to the semifinal between two Timesland teams that had meet just two weeks ago when the Knights edged the Bobcats 74-72 for the Region C title.

"The feeling that Radford has is what we were feeling a couple weeks ago when we beat them," James River coach Mike Goad said. "We have their feeling of losing a game. It's a humble game."

Goad said it was the toughest loss of his career.

"Yeah, you know, but I'm proud of the fact we were in a situation to win or lose the game," the James River coach said. "A break of the game cost us, not because we didn't work hard."

James River had the upper hand almost all night. Ware and Andrew Tucker combined for 27 points in the first half as the Knights led 33-28 at the break.

The twosome continued to torch Radford's defense and when Ware drove the lane with just over four minutes to play, James River owned a 49-39 bulge.

It was the Knights' last field goal of the game.

"They just basically dominated us most of that game until about the last three minutes," Radford coach Rick Cormany said.

"I felt that once we got it into a fast-paced game ... maybe we should have been pressing earlier. And that was out of desperation. We knew we had to go to our fullcourt press and create trapping situations. I think that was the turning point."

Dickerson was a major cog in Radford's comeback.

The 6-foot-2 forward rebounded his own missed 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 50-45. Dickerson then fed DeAndre Thompson for a layup to cut it to 50-47.

James River then missed three point-blank shots at the other end, leading to a breakaway by Jon Thompson and the Bobcats had the lead to 50-49 with 1:32 to play.

Humphries hit two free throws to put James River back up 52-49, but Dickerson nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the key on a feed from Jon Thompson to tie the game for the final time.

"You can't say enough about these guys," Cormany said. "This whole team. They've been resilient all year long. These guys just gutted it out."

Dickerson and DeAndre Thompson each finished with 14 points for Radford as leading scorer Jon Thompson was held to eight points.

James River got a combined five points from its two leading scorers -- Patrick Bennett and Davon Ross.

"We missed a lot of shots inside we should have converted," Goad said.

Radford is looking for its first state title since 1949. The Bobcats last reached the final in 2003, losing to Nandua 64-56.

James River played at VCU two years ago and was drubbed 86-52 in the semis by eventual champ Clarke County.

Humphries, a freshman starter on that team, was asked which loss was worse.

"It's this one, definitely," Humphries said. "A couple plays here, a couple plays there we would have won that game."

JAMES RIVER (24-5)

Ross 1-7 1-2 3, Humphries 1-4 6-6 8, Ware 8-13 3-4 21, Bennett 1-6 0-0 2, Tucker 5-9 2-4 14, Sandidge 0-1 0-0 0, Talbott 2-2 0-0 4. Totals: 18-42 12-16 52.

RADFORD (25-4)

Hendricks 1-6 0-0 2, Dickerson 6-8 1-2 14, Giesen 3-5 0-0 6, D. Thompson 5-10 4-6 14, J. Thompson 3-9 2-2 8, Carter 3-7 0-0 8, Alexander 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 22-46 7-10 54

James River 15 18 10 9--52

Radford 12 16 9 17--54

3-point goals -- James River 4-6 (Ware 2-4, Tucker 2-2), Radford 3-15 (Dickerson 1-3, Giesen 0-1. D. Thompson 0-2, J. Thompson 0-3, Carter 2-6). Total fouls -- James River 10, Radford 11. Rebounds -- James River 26 (Ross, Tucker 7), Radford 22 (J. Thompson 6). Assists -- James River 7 (Humphries 5), Radford 11 (Dickerson 5. Turnovers -- James River 16 (Humphries 5), Radford 13 (Hendricks 4. Blocks -- James River 1 (Tucker), Radford 1 (Alexander. Steals -- James River 8 (Humphries, Ware 3), Radford 6 (Hendricks, Dickerson 2).