Beekmantown's Kelly Parker (35) with the midrange jumper over the defender for the score. It would be a showdown of the top two teams in Section VII Class B as the #1 Saranac Chiefs would meet up with the #2 Beekmantown Eagles at the SUNY Plattsburgh Fieldhouse for the right to go to the New York State Class B Tournament. The game would start off good for the #1 Chiefs as they would race out to the 17-7 lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Chiefs would keep their foot on the pedal and have a 18-6 quarter and cruise out to a 35-13 lead at the break. When the teams would return for the third quarter the Eagles would do there best to get back into the game as they win the quarter 18-14 but that would only trim into margin as the Chiefs still lead 49-31. In the fourth quarter, the Chiefs would stretch there lead back out with an 18-12 quarter and cruise to the 67-43 victory. In the winning effort, the Saranac Chiefs clinch the Class B Championship and head to the New York State Quarterfinals on March 14th at Beekmantown High School. Gallery

Saranac's Connor Burns (2) goes up hard with the Beekmantown defender right there but still lays it off the window for the score. Gallery

Ausable Valley's Eli Douglas (24) would win the opening tip of the game and start the Patriot run in the first quarter. It would be the Section VII Class C Finals and it would be the top-seeded and number 1 in the State Moriah Vikings going against the #2 seeded Ausable Valley Patriots from the SUNY Plattsburgh Fieldhouse. The game would start off good for the upset-minded Ausable Valley Patriots as they would storm out to a 17-11 lead after the first quarter. Although the Vikings wouldn't let that stand and they would make a comeback with a 16-9 quarter for a 27-26 lead at the break. Although the end of the half would not come without a little drama as Luis Perez would half-court shot as the horn sounded to cut it to one. When the team's comeback for the third quarter so would the Vikings offense as they would run with a 20-10 quarter and have a 47-36 lead head into the fourth. In the fourth quarter, the Vikings would let up with the big lead and win the quarter 12-9 for the 59-45 victory. With the win, the Moriah Vikings clinch there 9th straight Section VII Title and head to the state tournament and take on the Madrid Waddington Yellow Jackets from Section X. Gallery

Moriah's Bryce Sprague (32) goes up and under the defender as he throws it off the winfow for the score. Gallery

Saranac’s Conner Burn collects a long breakout pass in the fourth quarter of the Section VII semifinal at Clinton Community College, as Northeastern Clinton’s Bryan Claudio tries to chase him down. The Saranac boys basketball team earned a spot in the Section VII Championship game with a convincing 64-39 win over Northeastern Clinton Saturday at Clinton Community College. The Chiefs ran out in front early, taking a 12-4 lead in the first few minutes. The Cougars kept Saranac from running too much further away for most of the first half, and the teams went into halftime at 34-20 in favor of last year's runner-up. In the second half, Saranac proved to be too much for their opponents, with their lead hitting as much as 20 points at one stage before the final 15-point victory. The Chiefs were paced by senior Connor Recore, who hit two 3-pointers and three free throws en route to 17 points. Fellow seniors Jared Duquette and Brady Hebert both scored 14 in the win. For the Cougars, junior James Molinski scored 11, while senior Alex Gomez notched 10. With the win, Saranac advanced to the Section VII Championship, in which the Chiefs will tip-off against Beekmantown Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Plattsburgh State Fieldhouse. Gallery

Saranac senior Cogan Johnston tries to pull in the offensive rebound as the ball falls toward Northeastern Clinton’s Thomas Gilbo in the Section VII semifinal at Clinton Community College. Gallery

Schroon Lake's Andrew Pelkey (11) with the three from the wing as part of a nine-point night. It would be the Section VII Class D Finals and would feature the top seed Schroon Lake Wildcats and the #3 Willsboro Warriors at the SUNY Plattsburgh Fieldhouse with the winner headed to the state tournament. The game would be tight through the first quarter and the Wildcats would have a 11-8 lead at the end of the quarter. In the second quarter, the game would stay tight and low scoring as the Wildcats would win the quarter 8-6 and have a 19-14 lead at the break. When the teams back for the second half the offenses would come alive and the Warriors would fight back and win the quarter 18-13 and tie the game at 32 as they head into the 4th quarter. In that fourth quarter, the Wildcats would get the slim 8-7 win but that was not without a last-ditch effort from the Warriors. As the Schroon Lake Wildcats would secure the Section VII Class D Championship with the 40-39 and leading the way for the Wildcats would be Cian Bresnahan with 19 points. Gallery

Willsboro's Regan Arnold (3) with the from the arc over the outstretched arm of the Schroon Lake defender. Gallery

Beekmantown junior Cole Nephew drives along the baseline after getting around Plattsburgh’s Kurt Oullette in the Section VII boys’ basketball Class B semifinals at Clinton Community College. The margins were tight in the Section VII boys' basketball Class B semifinal Saturday at Clinton Community College, where the Eagles were 43-42 winners over Plattsburgh High School. A back-and-forth first half saw Beekmantown go into the halftime break with a 6-point lead, but it was the second half where the fireworks began. The Eagles picked up the pace in the third quarter, building a 13-point lead, but the Hornets responded in kind in the fourth quarter. Having closed the gap, Plattsburgh's Ian DeTulleo put away a shot with 54 seconds on the clock to take the late lead. Beekmantown's Nate Finley was awarded a pair of free throws on the immediate next possession, making one tie the game at 42. The Hornets could have retaken the lead with only 6 seconds left in the game, but the layup by Dylan Garrant missed, giving the Eagles the final possession. Beekmantown junior Ian-James McCasland collected the rebound and took it up the court, but he was fouled by Liam Perkins near half-court. With the Eagles already in the double bonus, that gave McCasland a pair of free-throws to take the lead with 3.1 seconds left. He missed the first but struck gold with the second attempt. McCasland then ensured the win by intercepting the in-bounds pass near the sideline. With his momentum going out of bounds, he lofted the ball into the air with nearly 2 seconds on the clock, ensuring time would expire before it fell back down. The tight contest saw only two players - Finley for Beekmantown and Garrant for Plattsburgh - hit double-digit scoring, with each reaching 11 points on the night. With the victory, the Eagles advanced to the Section VII Class B championship game, Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Plattsburgh State Fieldhouse, where they will face the top-seeded Chiefs from Saranac. Gallery

Beekmantown junior Ian-James McCasland lines up the go-ahead free throw with 3.1 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to send the Eagles to a 43-42 win in the Section VII boys’ basketball Class B semifinals at Clinton Community College. Gallery