Slippery Rock’s Josh Book is the Butler Eagle Boys Basketball Player of the Year for the second season in a row after averaging 21.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle

One moment in Slippery Rock’s regular-season region matchup against Sharon was a microcosm for Josh Book’s campaign.

With about four seconds remaining, the Rockets needed a 3-pointer to force overtime. Everyone in the gym knew the senior forward was going to take the shot.

“Last year, I think he maybe took some people by surprise,” Slippery Rock coach AJ Motta said. “This year, that was not the case. People knew exactly what was coming, what kind of player he was.”

Motta recalled the sequence, one he’s watched a handful of times since.

“We have our inbounds play set,” Motta said, “and the opposing coach yells out exactly what we’re doing. He knows it. ... I’m getting goosebumps right now just thinking about it all again.”

What came next added to Book’s legend at Slippery Rock, a fabled career that now includes winning this season’s Butler Eagle Boys Basketball Player of the Year, his second in a row.

“Josh catches about 30 feet from the basket, triple-teamed, and still makes the shot,” Motta said. “Teams know what’s coming, and they still can’t stop it at times.”

Opposing defenses approached Book in a number of ways. Some teams had guys who tried to size up to him. Motta said he also “got fronted. He got guys playing behind him. He got double-teamed. He got triple-teamed. ... Whenever he had the ball, all eyes were on him.”

Book averaged 21.9 points and 11.1 rebounds per game in 2024-25. He had five games of at least 30 points. Slippery Rock went 13-12 and reached the District 10 Class 4A tournament.

Knoch’s Alan Bauman is the Butler Eagle Boys Basketball Coach of the Year for the second straight season. Greg Wohlford/Special to the Eagle

Alan Bauman knew what it would take for his Knoch boys hoops team to take the next step. Building off a WPIAL Tournament appearance the season before, he stacked the Knights’ non-conference gauntlet.

South Allegheny won the WPIAL Class 3A title and was the PIAA runner-up. Knoch beat them 62-59 in early February. McDowell and Johnstown reached states in Class 5A, Moon and Belle Vernon in 4A and Shady Side Academy and Bishop Guilfoyle in 3A. North Hills and Baldwin made WPIALs.

Overall, the Knights went 5-4 in out-of-section competition.

“As juniors, we were like, ‘OK, if we want to take that next step and be a true contender, we needed to beef up our outside (opponents) to be ready to compete come playoff time and in those dog fights of section play,’” said Bauman, voted the Butler Eagle’s Boys Basketball Coach of the Year for the second year in a row.

The weathering paid off for Knoch, which reached its first PIAA Tournament in 19 years.

“It meant a great deal,” said Bauman, who resigned last week after five years leading the team. “State playoffs isn’t something that comes commonly in our area, and for us to rebound from a really emotional loss at Avonworth and come back and win two games the way we did, I thought it showed the attitude and the focus that our kids had this year.”

Meet the rest of the Butler County boys basketball all-stars of the 2024-25 season, listed alphabetically:

Knoch's Jackson Bauman reached 1,000 points as a junior and averaged 17 points this season. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle

Morgan Phillips

Bauman was the Knights’ unquestioned leader on the floor. His father and Knoch coach Alan Bauman said he “has the ability to control the pace of play and has become an efficient scorer.”

The younger Bauman averaged 23 points per game during the postseason. Overall, he put up 17 points, five rebounds and five assists an outing and has already eclipsed 1,000 career points.

North Catholic’s Jason Fredericks (5) led the Trojans to the PIAA semifinals while averaging 20 points per game. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle

Rob McGraw

Fredericks was good for 20 points per game and shot 44.3% from 3-point territory for the Trojans, who reached the PIAA Class 4A semifinals.

“Jason was the catalyst for much of our team’s success,” Trojans coach Jim Rocco said. “His efficiency and ability to maximize possessions in key moments made such a difference.”

Butler's Andrew Gettinger averaged 15.3 points, seven rebounds and 3.8 assists in a new role as a point guard this season. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle

Morgan Phillips

Gettinger stood out for the Golden Tornado, who reached the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs despite having plenty of doubters entering the season. He averaged 15.3 points, seven rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.6 blocks per game. He shot 50% from the field, including 43% from beyond the arc.

Karns City's Shane Peters averaged 20 points and 14 rebounds as one of Butler County’s most dominant bigs this season. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle

Morgan Phillips

Shane Peters

Peters’ 20-point-per-game average ranked second in Butler County this season. A 1,000-point scorer, he also pulled down 14 rebounds per game.

“His senior year was pretty spectacular,” Gremlins coach Zach Kepple said. “Scoring over 400 points and grabbing over 200 rebounds is pretty special.”

Mars Austen Wroblewski (5) proved a high-energy scorer for the Planets, averaging 17.8 points. Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle

Justin Guido/Special to the Eagle

Wroblewski had a breakout year, bucketing the 10th-most points in a single season in Planets history. A first-team WPIAL all-section selection, he averaged 17.8 points per game and knocked down 40.8% of his 3-point tries.

Joe Rapp, so., G, A-C Valley; Tayt Lucas, sr., G, Butler; Cole Johnston, jr., G, Karns City; Teegan Finucan, jr., G, Knoch; Will Wilson, sr., F, Mars; Jude Rottmann, jr., G, North Catholic; Owen Maddalon, sr., G, North Catholic; Owen Congdon, jr., F, Seneca Valley; Tyler Pepin, sr., G, Seneca Valley; Robert Young, jr., F, Summit Academy; Gage Jordan, sr., F, Union; Trent Fleming, jr., G, Union