Published: March 04, 2007 12:23 am      

Hilltop boys claim 6-AA

LORETTO — When the lights went out with 1 minute, 12 seconds left in overtime of Saturday’s District 6 Class AA title game, Westmont Hilltop coach Dave Roman Jr. had two theories.

“I thought Blairsville shot the lights out because they were making everything,” Roman said after his team’s 68-60 overtime victory against the Bobcats.

“It actually helped us because we were out of timeouts. I’m thinking one of our students may have hit the switch,” Roman added, laughing. The game was delayed 10 minutes after the lights at DeGold Arena apparently overheated.

The Hilltoppers coach finally could relax after the upstart Bobcats (23-4) overcame a 10-point deficit to force overtime against undefeated Westmont (28-0).

Westmont will play the District 7 seventh-place team in the PIAA playoffs. Hilltop has won 6-AA titles in 1999, 2000, 2004 and 2007 while appearing in six of the past nine championship games.

Blairsville won last year’s 6-A crown before moving up a class.

Hilltop led 36-26 after a Jordan DeMarco 3-pointer midway through the third quarter. But Blairsville had a 13-2 run to lead 39-38 after Andy Ostach’s basket with 59.2 showing.

“We got away from what was working,” Roman said. “The problem was we were going inside to start the second half, and Zack Trotz was either scoring or getting dribble penetration, then for some reason we were trying to shoot jump shots. I said, ‘Guys, you built a 10-point lead going inside. Why are we shooting jumpers?’

“We got the time out and kept going back inside. We got the lead up again and built a cushion, but Blairsville is such a great offensive team with a lot of firepower.”

Blairsville held leads of 49-48, 51-50 and 53-52 late in the fourth. Hilltop tied the score at 53-all on an Adam Watson free throw with 1:58 left in regulation.

After two missed free throws by the Bobcats’ Brett Gunder, Westmont ran down most of the final 1:33, working for the last shot. But a turnover with 2.9 left led to OT.

In overtime, Watson made a conventional three-point play seven seconds in to put Hilltop on the way to a 15-7 scoring advantage.

“The key was getting a good start and trying to score first in the overtime,” Roman said.

Trotz had 16 points and eight rebounds for Westmont.

“Teams know about Joey Stephenson and Joe Balog and the outside 3,” Trotz said. “The last few games that’s freed up looks for me. They’ve been getting me the ball in good positions and I’ve been finishing the shots.”

Joey Stephenson (15 points), Watson (12) and David Young (10) also hit double digits.

Cory Manarelli had 20 and Ostach, 17, for Blairsville.

“We played 36 minutes of basketball and everybody got their money’s worth tonight,” Blairsville coach Jason Stone. “I told the kids to keep their heads high.”