It wasn’t a tip-off tournament game or a section game, but the boys basketball season opener between North Allegheny and Norwin had all the feels of a playoff tussle.
There were lead swings and tense possessions, plenty of fouls and whistles and physical play on both ends of the floor.
The mostly even Class 6A nonsection matchup even went to overtime.
“We didn’t feel like we had control until the final buzzer,” said Rob Niederberger, who earned every bit of his first win as the new Tigers’ coach, 59-57, on Saturday afternoon in North Huntingdon. “We knew the teams were a lot alike, so we knew it could be a good game.”
Blake Craft’s steal and layup with 1:27 left in a conservative overtime put the Tigers (1-0) ahead for good.
Norwin (0-1) cut it to 58-57 with 10.9 seconds left on two free throws by Mario Csukas, but Csukas’ 3-pointer from the corner missed as time expired and the Tigers escaped.
North Allegheny had a down year in 2024-25 — 7-15, no playoffs, four losses by four points or fewer — and is looking to bounce back under Niederberger, a 1999 Tigers alum who coached nine years at Shaler before taking last year off.
Norwin has 10 seniors and is leaning on experience gained during a 10-12 playoff season.
“Norwin is a senior-laden team and they think this is their year,” Niederberger said. “We are trying to learn how to fight and do the things necessary to win. You need games like this to learn about yourself and to build character.”
In a game with 10 lead changes and six ties — and one that saw both teams go nine deep off the bench — North Allegheny led by nine with 2:40 left in the third quarter. Justin Stalter’s driving layup made it 40-31.
But the Knights quieted an 11-3 run to close the gap to 44-38 heading to the fourth.
Alex Graney hit a pair of 3-pointers in the third for Norwin and finished with a game-high 17 points.
Norwin opened the fourth with a 9-0 run, including a 3 by Stef Giannikas and a scooping layup by Chris McKnight, who later fouled out, to take a 47-44 advantage.
But Craft scored on a drive, and Ben Coffman converted a steal to tie it 53-53 with 1:41 left in regulation.
Coffman had 12 of his 15 points in the second half.
After King Carver drove in for a layup to give the Knights a two-point edge with 1:26 to play, Stalter answered with a hard drive and finish to tie it with 32.3.
Nate Kuch came up with a steal, and Norwin called timeout with 12.6 but Potter Brozeski was called for an offensive foul on the ensuing possession.
Kuch got his hands on another steal in the closing seconds to force overtime.
“Our effort was good today,” Norwin coach Cam Auld said. “Anytime you play a good game like that, it hurts when you’re on the other end of it. To see the growth in our guys on the court, to see them keep fighting, it’s promising. We scheduled teams like NA to have games like this.”
Norwin had the ball first in overtime and had a near-minute-long possession but could not score there, or on another time down the court.
“It’s good for us to run into those kind of situations,” Auld said. “It’s more important for our guys to feel that.”
North Allegheny led 13-11 after the first quarter and 29-28 at halftime.
Norwin’s largest lead was six (25-19) late in the second quarter.
Stalter finished with 15 points, and Craft added 12.
McKnight and Carver had 10 points each for the Knights, who host rival Penn-Trafford on Tuesday.