Last-second shot ends Rams’ season

COLLIER TOWNSHIP: Ten seconds remained. The score was knotted at 43. This was the last situation Highlands and Belle Vernon figured to find themselves Monday night.

Cam Mascara certainly looked surprised. The Belle Vernon senior forward was the one with the ball in his hands as the clock wound down. And with two seconds left, from just inside the free-throw line, Mascara released a prayer.

It was answered.

The ball bounced about the rim, then fell through it as time expired to lift the Leopards to a thrilling 45-43 victory over Highlands in a WPIAL Class AAA first-round basketball playoff game at Chartiers Valley High School.

All the Golden Rams could do afterward was stand around in disbelief.

'We got beat at the buzzer (at least) three times this year,' Highlands' Justin Bouch said. 'I knew it was going in.'

'We picked one heck of a time to play our worst game,' said Highlands coach Rich Falter, whose team edged Belle Vernon in double overtime during the first round of last year's playoffs. 'We played terribly.

'(Belle Vernon) is a very overrated 21-3 basketball team.'

Highlands dropped to 13-12, while the Leopards improved to 22-3 and advanced to face fourth-seeded Hampton this weekend.

'This is probably the worst game we played all year,' Belle Vernon coach Phil Stewart said. 'We were struggling.'

For two teams playing their worst, Monday's game couldn't have been more competitive.

Highlands' Matt Bonislawski connected on a 3-pointer 20 seconds into the game, and the Golden Rams never would trail in the first half.

They built as much as a six-point lead twice in the first quarter and rode Bouch's hot hand to a 21-20 halftime lead.

Bouch finished with a game-high 19 points, including five 3-pointers.

'I just had (the touch) all week long,' he said, 'and it just carried over into today.'

Seconds into the second half, though, Belle Vernon broke through and opened a 22-21 advantage. The lead see-sawed back and forth before Belle Vernon's Steven King connected on a trey with 5:34 remaining in the third quarter that gave the Leopards a 28-25 lead.

Highlands pulled within one point four times during the rest of the quarter but entered the fourth quarter trailing 36-33.

The Golden Rams also entered the final stanza without scoring the final 58 seconds of the third. That drought reached three minutes, eight seconds - and their deficit six points - before Bouch rallied his team.

The senior forward connected on a deep 3-pointer from the top of the key with 5:50 remaining, then hit another on the Golden Rams' next possession to even the score at 39.

Just when it looked as though Belle Vernon would pull away, Bouch responded.

'We were running things for him,' Falter said. 'We were trying to get the guy (guarding) him in foul trouble.'

That, ironically, was Mascara.

He scored five of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter. But none were more damaging than the final two.

The Leopards opened 41-39 and 43-41 leads only to watch the resilient Golden Rams answer. At the end, Stewart called for his team to hold for the final shot.

After exhausting almost 30 seconds of the clock, Mascara found himself just outside the foul line with about seven seconds remaining.

He made a move, worked his way into the paint, then broke the Golden Rams' hearts.

'I was the most excited guy in the world when I watched the tape (of Belle Vernon),' Falter said. 'We were the underdog, but I don't think there's a person in this room that thought we would lose.

'We didn't execute. Everything we did all week, we didn't do (tonight).'