BUTLER TWP — Butler got the turnover. The Golden Tornado couldn’t get the finish.

The frantic final seconds of Tuesday night’s home Section 1-6A boys basketball game against Pine-Richland ended with Devin Carney receiving an inbounds pass following a Ram turnover with five ticks on the clock. Fronted by 6-foot-3 defender Joe Dudkowski, Carney took the pass and tried a quick turnaround jumper from eight feet.

The shot missed its mark, the teams battled for the rebound and time expired for a 66-65 Pine-Richland victory.

“We have to close this game out better than we did,” Rams coach Bob Petcash said. “We knew they were gonna go to Devin on that last play . Why wouldn’t they? He (Dudkowski) defended the play well.”

The loss was the third in a row for Butler (8-5, 2-5), putting the Tornado in a near must-win situation in section play.

“The good news is we still control our own destiny,” Butler coach Matt Clement said. “Before tonight, all of our section games were important. Now they’re even more important.

“I’ll take my chances with Devin Carney shooting a 6 or 8-footer to win a game anytime. It just didn’t go in.”

Senior guard Raine Gratzmiller agreed.

“Devin’s our guy in a situation like that, make or miss,“ Gratzmiller said. ”We totally trust him.“

Pine-Richland (8-5, 4-2) had a 10-point lead (58-48) with 6:03 to play before Butler began a furious comeback. Ryan Porch came off the bench to drain a trey to begin a 12-2 run. A steal and trey by Madden Clement knotted the game at 60 with 3:22 remaining.

Gratzmiller hit a trey with 2:45 left to give the Tornado a 63-62 edge. Jameson O’Toole quickly answered with a layup for the Rams, who held a 64-63 edge from there until Dudkowski drained two free throws for a 66-63 lead with 8.4 seconds left. Pine-Richland had three turnovers in the first three quarters, five in the fourth period.

“We always preach taking care of the ball,” Petcash said. “This one almost got away from us. There was crazy stuff going on. This is a crazy rivalry. We’ll take a win anyway we can get it.”

The Rams fouled Carney with 6.8 seconds left and he made both free throws. Pine-Richland then turned the ball over as its inbounds pass was deflected away, setting up Butler with one last chance to win.

“The kids worked so hard in coming back, really picked up the intensity,” Clement said. “We had our chances at the end, but we have to play with that same intensity for four quarters. We gave up 11 offensive boards in the first half. That’s way too many.”

There were four tries and five lead changes early in the game before the Rams went on a 10-2 run late in the second period to build the lead they took into the fourth quarter. Pine-Richland stuck back two offensive rebounds and O’Toole completed a three-point play during that surge.

“We didn’t rebound well in the first half,” Gratzmiller admitted. “They were beating us to the boards. That cost us in the end. Now we have to put some wins together or we’re not going to be around for the playoffs.”

Carney led Butler with 25 points. Gratzmiller had 14 points and seven rebounds, Madden Clement 10 points. Braylon Littlejohn tallied six points and three assists off the bench.

Pine-Richland placed four players in double figures. Luke Shanahan tallied 16 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, Dudkowski 16 points, five boards and three assists. O’Toole had 14 points, Andy Swartout 12. Andrew Alexander had eight points and seven assists.

“Good team win in a tough place,” Petcash said. “Everybody contributed.”

Butler will try to snap its slide Friday night at North Allegheny.

“We’re learning lessons as we go,” Clement said. “We have to play hard and intense for all four quarters. In this section, that’s the only way we’re gonna get it done.”

PIINE-RICHLAND 66

Andrew Alexander 3-6 1-2 8, Andy Swartout 5-11 0-0 12, Owen Luellen 0-2 0-2 0, Luke Shanahan 7-9 0-0 16, Nathan Zavasky 0-1 0-0 0, Jameson O’Toole 5-9 2-3 14, Joe Dudkowski 5-12 6-6 16.,. Totals:25-50 10-13 66.

BUTLER 65

Braylon Littlejohn 3-7 0-0 6, Raine Gratzmiller 4-6 4-6 14, Devin Carney 8-22 7-8 25, Madden Clement 4-8 0-0 10, Ryan Porch 1-1 0-0 3, Colin Patterson 2-3 0-0 5, CJ Singleton 0-1 0-0 0, Charlie Kreinbucher 1-2 0-0 2, Colin Casteel 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 23-50 11-14 65.

Pine-Riohland 16 22 16 12 — 66

Butler 16 13 19 17 — 65

3-point goals: Pine-Richland 6 (Swartout 2, Shanahan 2,, O’Toole 2), Butler 8 (Gratzmiller 2, Carney 2, Clement 2, Patterson, Porch)

JV: Butler, 61-36 (B: Ayden Davis 12, P-R: Emery Moye 12)

Friday: Butler at North Allegheny