WEXFORD — Close.

The Seneca Valley boys basketball team is beginning to despise that word.

And its latest defeat didn't help.

The Raiders gave North Allegheny — the Section 3-AAAA frontrunner — all it could handle, but they suffered a 60-56 loss Tuesday night.

The Raiders' last three section losses have come against the three best teams, North Allegheny, Pine-Richland and Shaler, by a combined 12 points.

"We played well tonight," said SV coach Vic Giannotta. "I don't know what else I can ask these kids to do."

SV was down 44-43 at the beginning of the final period.

Though the team's offense kept it close the rest of the game, Seneca Valley never regained the lead.

The Tigers (13-6, 7-1) made it a two-possession game at 60-56 when Jeff Finke hit a free throw with 4.8 seconds left.

NA center Phil Hoffman was a thorn in the Raiders' side the entire second half.

The 6-foot-4 senior scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the second half, including 10 in the fourth quarter.

"Their post kid killed us," said Giannotta.

In the first half, the Tigers had four 3-point goals. When Seneca Valley took away NA's outside shots in the second half, Hoffman took center stage.

"I told the kids at halftime that if (SV) wants to take away our perimeter game, we have a guy who can score inside," said Tigers coach Dave DeGregorio. "Phil's a beast in the post."

Seneca Valley featured three players scoring in double figures with Pat Heery (17), C.J. Brown (11) and Gabe Grinder (10).

The first half saw both teams shoot an incredible percentage from the field.

The Raiders were 14-of-22 for 63.6 percent in the first two quarters while the Tigers were 12-of-19 for 63.1 percent.

Heery scored eight points in the first period, after which SV led 18-13.

But NA responded, as Jon Masuga (13 points) and Ted Connolly (11) combined for 24 points in the first half.

"I was comfortable with that fast pace," said DeGregorio. "Both teams were playing well and a lot of guys were knocking down shots."

Seneca Valley (10-8, 2-6) shot 23-of-48 from the field for 47.9 percent and committed only eight turnovers. The Raiders also grabbed for 25 rebounds, matching NA's total.

But the scoreboard is what matters most to the Raiders.

"These kids want to win," said Giannotta. "But you have to keep things in perspective. We've got another game on Thursday to get ready for. That's the beautiful thing about basketball."

SENECA VALLEY 56Gabe Grinder 3 1-3 10, Kevin Mayberry 1 1-2 3, Pat Heery 8 1-2 17, C.J. Brown 5 0-0 11, John Fitzpatrick 4 1-2 9, Shawn Eagle 1 0-0 2, Jarrett Shotts 1 2-3 4, Tony Treser 0 0-0 0, Sean Gress 0 0-0 0, Kevin Rohm 0 0-0 0, John Bryant 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 23 6-12 56.

NORTH ALLEGHENY 60Ted Connolly 4 4-6 12, Ross Constantino 0 2-2 2, Jeff Finke 3 1-3 9, Phil Hoffman 8 4-5 20, Jon Masuga 6 15, Adam Neugebauer 1 0-0 2, Damian Founds 0 0-0 0, Jeff Haus 0 0-0 0, Steve Kirsch 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 22 11-16 60.

Seneca Valley 18 13 12 13—56North Allegheny 13 18 13 16—603-point goals: Seneca Valley 4 (Grinder 3, Brown); North Allegheny 5 (Masuga 3, Finke 2)

JV: North Allegheny 56-51 OT

Thursday: New Castle at Seneca Valley, 7:30 p.m.

<a href="http://ads.butlereagle.com/rebound/gotw.html" target="_blank">Check out video highlights of this Game of the Week on Friday's Rebound site!</a>