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Scrantons Blake Carlton breaks out of a double team with crestwoods Lance Bass and Kevin Klusewitz.cv25crest4DAVE SCHERBENCO/CITIZENS VOICE

DAVE SCHERBENCO / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER West Scrantons Josh Hart holds the ball after colliding with Crestwoods Kyle Richards during Fridays game at Berwick.

BERWICK Four quarters and 32 minutes of regulation were not sufficient in deciding Friday nights District 2 Class 5A boys basketball semifinal at Berwick.

In fact, neither were the first two overtimes; nor the first 3:59 of the third overtime.

But finally, in a game where, all along, it felt like the team that last had the ball would win, West Scranton senior Blake Carlton beat the buzzer by draining a 3-pointer from the right wing, giving the Invaders a thrilling 41-38 win against Crestwood.

The shot ended second-seeded Crestwoods season, while third-seeded West Scranton (14-10) clinched a spot in the state tournament, as well as a date with No. 1 Abington Heights in the district final 8 p.m. Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Forty-five years of coaching, Ive been on the good part and the bad part, said West Scranton head coach Jack Lyons. But this is tremendous for these kids. Its one of the best games Ive ever been in. Both teams had a chance to win. It was just an unbelievable game.

The teams traded leads all night and went into overtime tied at 28.

West Scrantons Austin Lipowitch gave his team a 32-31 lead with 30 seconds left in the first overtime.

But on the ensuing Crestwood possession, Noah Jackson drew a foul while trying to put back a basket with 0.8 seconds left. Jackson made 1 of 2 and the teams advanced to a second overtime.

Only four points were scored in the second overtime, as Crestwood had the ball at the end.

Lance Blass missed a contested layup, while Kyle Richards tip-in on the miss also missed, sending the game into a third overtime.

Blass started the third overtime with a pair of free throws, giving Crestwood a 36-34 lead. However, West Scrantons Josh Hart answered with a score in the paint to tie the game.

Hart delivered again at 1:20, pump-faking a layup. He waited for the defender to jump up and come down, as Hart laid it in for the 38-36 lead.

While Kyle Gegaris tied the game with a layup at 0:25, West Scrantons Shayne Merrifield tossed a perfect pass from the left wing to the right wing on the games final possession.

Carlton received the pass, drained the shot and left no time for Crestwood to react.

We had the opportunities and they knocked it down, give the kid a lot of credit, said Crestwood head coach Mark Atherton. It was a battle. Both teams were good defensive teams and it was a battle right down to the end.

Crestwoods Gegaris did an excellent job covering West Scranton leading scorer Cole Stetzar, who was scoreless at halftime. Help defense from Crestwoods bigs played a big part in that, too.

At the end, however, it was Carlton who made the unforgettable game-winner.

I want to first congratulate Crestwood and coach Atherton, Lyons said. Hes a tremendous coach. Those kids played a heck of game. That was just a game that whoevers going to make the last shot is going to win the game.

Contact the writer: mbufano@citizensvoice.com

West Scranton (14-10) J. Hart 6 1-2 13, M. Williams 4 1-2 9, B. Carlton 2 0-0 6, A. Lipowitch 2 2-2 6, C. Stetzar 1 1-1 3, S. Merrifield 1 0-0 3, S. Fanning 0 1-2 1, B. Harrington 0 0-0 0. Totals: 16 6-9 41.

Crestwood (16-8) K. Gegaris 7 3-4 20, E. Knapp 2 0-0 5, L. Blass 1 2-2 4, C. Boris 2 0-0 4, N. Jackson 1 1-1 3, K. Richards 0 2-2 2, K. Klusewitz 0 0-0 0, M. Ayala 0 0-0 0. Totals: 13 8-9 38.

West Scranton 11 4 4 9 4 2 7 41

Crestwood 9 12 5 2 4 2 4 38

3-point goals: B. Carlton (WS) 2, S. Merrifield (WS), K. Gegaris (CRE) 3, E. Knapp (CRE).

Abington Heights 61, Dallas 42

At Scranton, George Tinsley had 15 points and 14 rebounds to lead No. 1 Abington Heights.

Seth Maxwell had 15 points and eight blocks for the Comets and Trey Koehler had 14 points and seven assists.

Nick Kocher had 10 points for No. 5 Dallas.

Dallas (12-12) N. Kocher 4 0-0 10, M. Mathers 4 0-0 8, A. Charlton 2 2-2 7, J. Parsons 2 2-5 6, B. Donahue 2 0-0 5, J. Bittner 1 1-4 4, E. Szczencinski 1 0-2 2, B. OConnell 0 0-0 0, C. Pertl 0 0-0 0, M. Farrell 0 0-0 0, Z. Charlton 0 0-0 0, J. Serafin 0 0-2 0. Totals: 16 5-15 42.

Abington Heights (21-3) S. Maxwell 7 0-1 15, G. Tinsley 6 2-8 15, T. Koehler 5 3-4 14, J. Danzig 4 3-6 12, T. Rothenberger 1 0-0 3, D. Nealon 0 2-2 2, B. Bauman 0 0-0 0, L. Goodman 0 0-2 0, A. Derry 0 0-0 0, J. Nealon 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 10-23 61.

Dallas 7 6 10 19 42

Abington Heights 17 12 15 17 61

3-point goals: N. Kocher (DAL) 2, B. Donahue (DAL), J. Bittner (DAL), A. Charlton (DAL), T. Rothenberger (AH), S. Maxwell (AH), J. Danzig (AH), G. Tinsley (AH), T. Koehler (AH).

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