BUTLER TWP— Different venue, same result.

Butler was held to a season-low 32 points for the second time this season in dropping a 44-32 boys basketball decision to North Hills Saturday at the Golden Tornado gym.

The Indians posted a 46-32 triumph over Butler Dec. 12 at North Hills.

"Every time we play these guys, it feels like the same type of game,"North Hills coach Buzz Gabos said. "The entire pace just slows down. It drags on. ... First team to 30 points wins."

North Hills (9-7, 3-4) had a 28-25 lead through three quarters Saturday. The lead changed hands five times in the first three periods and neither team ever led by more than five points.

Then D.J. Scott struck.

A baseline jumper by Butler freshman guard Nate Snodgrass pulled the Tornado to within 28-27 with 6:43 remaining. Scott, a junior guard, nailed a 3-pointer on North Hills' next possession, then drained another his next time down the floor.

The Indians had a sudden 34-27 lead and pulled away from there.

"A one-possession game suddenly felt like we were down a bunch,"Butler coach Joe Lewandowski admitted.

Scott's treys triggered a 16-2 run that gave the Indians their biggest lead, 44-29, with 22 seconds to play.

"Until he hit those 3s, D.J. really hadn't done much of anything in this game,"Gabos said. "Butler's defense takes a lot away from you. They know how to challenge shots."

The Tornado (5-9, 1-6) allow 48.3 points per game, third-fewest in WPIALClass AAAA, trailing only Fox Chapel and Peters Township. Both of those teams have winning records. Peters Township, in fact, leads its section and is 13-1 overall.

Butler is scoring only 46.1 points per game, however, lowest in WPIALQuad-A. Saturday marked the sixth time the Tornado failed to score 40 points in a game this season.

The loss was Butler's fourth in a row.

"We've looked at film, wondering if it's execution, but we're executing our plays well," Lewandowski said. "We're just not finishing. All you can do is keep working."

Cody Patton, averaging 19 points per game, scored 15 for North Hills. Jeff Witt added 10 points and five rebounds while Scott had 10 points.

"We were 0-for-10 on 3-point shots in the first half,"Gabos said. "Coming out of the locker room for the second half, we felt like if we could hit a few 3s, we could win by double digits."

North Hills sank four in the second half.

Jeff Tompkins was the lone Butler player in double figures, scoring 11 points. Logan Renwick had four assists and Snodgrass three steals.

Brian Jendesky was 3-for-3 from the free-throw line and was the only Butler player to get there.

North Hills had a 20-17 edge in rebounding and had nine turnovers to Butler's 13.

NORTH HILLS 44Cody Patton 5-10 4-4 15, Sean White 1-4 0-0 3, D.J. Scott 2-3 4-4 10, Scott Zubik 1-4 2-2 4, Jeff Witt 4-5 2-4 10, R.J. Miller 0-2 0-0 0, Timo Steffens 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 14-30 12-14 44

BUTLER 32Cole Harvey 0-2 0-0 0, Eric King 0-0 0-0 0, Brian Jendesky 1-3 3-3 5, Logan Renwick 1-3 0-0 2, Jeff Tompkins 5-8 0-0 11, Nate Snodgrass 2-4 0-0 4, Vinny Schmidt 2-3 0-0 5, Bob Swartwout 2-12 0-0 5. Totals: 13-35 3-3 32

North Hills 14 6 8 16—44Butler 9 9 7 7—323-point goals: Patton, White, Scott 2; Tompkins, Schmidt, Swartwout

JV: Butler, 60-39 (B:Cody Herald 14, David Tompkins 14, Vinny Schmidt 11; NH: Mark DeVita 9)

Tuesday: Butler at Shaler