BUTLER TWP — Shots were being swatted away inside.

So Butler tried the outside route.

The Golden Tornado sank five treys in the first half — three by Nick Patten — to open up inside lanes in the fourth quarter and key a 65-54 boys basketball win over Perry Traditional Academy Tuesday night in the Butler gym.

“They were blocking shots all over the place, we counted well into double digits ... enough that we had to alter our shots in there,” Butler coach Matt Clement said.

“We tossed a ball outside and Rich Marnic hit a three. Then Cory Wheeler drains one, then Nick Patten a couple of them. Without those shots, we're in big trouble inside the rest of the night.”

As it turned out, the Tornado (2-1) owned the inside down the stretch.

The lead changed hands 11 times on the night and neither team ever had a double-digit lead until two Tyler Frederick free throws gave Butler a 64-54 edge with 23 seconds left.

Perry's last lead was at 50-47 with 6:06 remaining. The Commodores (1-2) made one more field goal and scored four more points the rest of the game.

“The game got more physical down the stretch and we picked up the intensity, especially on defense,” Patten said.

“Keenan Krause did a great job shutting down No. 1 (Perry senior guard Devin Lyles) in those final minutes. If he doesn't do that, this game may have turned out differently.”

Lyles led the Commodores with 24 points and seven rebounds, but scored just three points in the last six minutes.

“He's our best player,” Perry coach Marco Corona said. “Butler made the plays toward the end to win the game, offensively and defensively.”

Patten may have made the play of the night. With the Tornado trailing 50-47, he stole a pass at mid-court and drove for an easy lay-up the other way, cutting the deficit to one with 4:18 remaining.

The steal came after Butler missed the front end of two one-and-ones, plus another two free throws.

“Tyler (Frederick) did a great job of forcing a lob pass with his reach and I was able to jump it,” Patten said.

Butler grabbed the lead for good on a jumper by Arum Krause with 3:15 to play. Krause added another eight-footer moments later, following a steal.

“Nick and Arum have stepped it up in producing points for us,” Clement said. “They've been tag-teaming it pretty good.”

Patten scored 25 points, grabbed six rebounds, had three steals and three assists. He drained all six of his free throws in the fourth quarter. Arum Krause scored six of his 13 points in the final period.

Patten finally gave Butler breathing room on the scoreboard when he sank two free throws with 1:53 left for a 55-50 lead, then four in a row with 1:35 to play. He had outfought Perry's Jaewon Mitchell for a rebound, got fouled, then got two additional free throws when Mitchell's frustration led to a technical foul.

When Patten's free throws were done, the Tornado had a 59-50 lead.

“We got them last year, they got us this year,” Corona said. “We'll see them again next year. This was a hard-fought, physical game, as we expected.”

Frederick had seven points and eight rebounds as the Butler freshman continues to produce off the bench. Eric Hindman contributed five points and four boards off the bench as well.

“We're 10-deep right now,” Clement said. “This is the type of team where we have to check our egos at the door each night, go out and win basketball games.”

Butler opens section play Friday night at defending WPIAL champion New Castle. The Red Hurricane defeated Perry, 88-34, in their last game.

“They're in mid-season form,” Corona said.

PERRY 54

Devin Lyles 8-16 3-4 24, Kevin Griffin 1-7 1-2 3, Norman Taylor 4-8 0-0 9, Jaewon Mitchell 3-7 1-2 7, Marcus Dean 0-5 5-7 5, Trevon Woodson 1-2 0-0 2, Juwan Byrd 1-4 0-0 2, Greg Washington 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 19-48 10-17 54.

BUTLER 65

Justice Lewandowski 0-3 0-0 0, Rich Marnic 1-2 0-0 3, Arum Krause 5-11 3-6 13, Keenan Krause 2-9 0-0 4, Andrew Paterno 0-2 0-0 0, Nick Patten 6-13 10-11 25, Cory Wheeler 1-1 0-0 3, Tyler Frederick 1-1 5-9 7, Eric Hindman 0-0 5-7 5, Mark Gross 2-3 1-2 5. Totals: 18-45 24-36 65.

Perry 13 17 15 9—54

Butler13 20 12 20—65

3-point goals: Lyles 5, Taylor; Marnic, Patten 3, Wheeler

JV: Butler, 58-42 (B: Damien Pickett 10, P: Cordell Jackson 17)

Friday: Butler at New Castle