All-time WPIAL boys basketball championship games No. 1: 2005 Beaver Falls beats Aliquippa in triple overtime

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, February 27, 2018 | 6:33 PM

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The TribLive High School Sports Network will be counting down the Top 10 boys and girls WPIAL basketball championship games leading up to the 2018 title games March 1-3 at the Petersen Events Center.

TRIBHSSN is the exclusive audio and video home for all 12 WPIAL championship games, which will be broadcasted and video streamed live at TribHSSN.triblive.com.

Here is the 10th installment of a 10-part series ranking the top WPIAL boys basketball championship games in district history.

No. 1: 2005 — WPIAL Class 2A finals: Beaver Falls 79, Aliquippa 78 (3OT)

Baseball had the “shot heard around the world” when Bobby Thompson homered and the Giants won the pennant. Football has “the catch” when Joe Montana's desperate heave was pulled in by Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone to start a dynasty run in the 1980's for the San Francisco 49ers.

WPIAL basketball has “the game.” When told of the Trib HSSN's countdown list of greatest district basketball title games, many, many suggestions were made by several “experts.” But everybody agreed what should be at the top of the list.

Two great rivals locked in a punch and counter punch battle that turned into a golden game of “horse.” Whatever you can do, I can do better became the theme of the game that just would not end.

In 2004, Aliquippa beat Beaver Falls, 70-64, in the WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship game. In 2005, the Quips and Tigers split during the regular season with Beaver Falls winning at home 80-51 and Aliquippa claiming victory on its home court 71-64 three and a half weeks later.

This soon-to-be-epic title game was back and forth for four quarters with 14 lead changes and 15 ties. With one minute left in regulation, Aliquippa led 54-48. Carliss Jeter scored for Beaver Falls, followed by a Dom Henderson 3-pointer to pull the Tigers to within two points. Mark Lay hit a free throw with 10 seconds left, but missed the second shot. Jack Anderson grabbed the rebound for Beaver Falls, which got the ball up to Lance Jeter, who flushed a long 3-point shot with three seconds left to send the game into overtime. Jeter's shot was just a sign of things to come.

Beaver Falls grabbed a 66-61 lead with 64 seconds left in the first overtime, only to have Aliquippa fight back to tie the game on a Sjavante Gilliam layup at the buzzer. Jeter's 3-pointer with just over one minute left in the second overtime gave the Tigers a one-point lead, but a late Lay free throw tied the game and forced only the second WPIAL boys championship basketball game to go beyond two overtimes.

Was a fourth overtime in the cards? Beaver Falls and Aliquippa were tied 76-76 with 10 seconds left in the third overtime when Gilliam's driving layup put the Quips up by two with 6.5 seconds left.

Then, before a standing room only crowd of more than 5,000 exhausted fans at the A.J. Palumbo Center, Jeter dribbled to half court and launched a 45-foot golden shot that was true. Jeter celebrated on the press table as Beaver Falls clinched a seventh district crown and its first title in 11 years.

Jeter's heroics capped off a monster game as he led all scorers with 37 points. Herb Pope led Aliquippa with 24 points and 12 rebounds. The loss was a hiccup for the Quips, who won district gold in 2003 and 2004, then won more round ball gold in 2006 and 2007.

Don Rebel is a TribLive High School Sports Network broadcaster and staff writer. Reach him at drebel@tribweb.com.

Tags: Aliquippa, Beaver Falls