CHILLICOTHE — The Miami Trace Panthers won a thriller at Chillicothe High School Friday, Dec. 16 to remain undefeated in the South Central Ohio League.

The Panthers won in overtime on a buzzer-beating three-point field goal by senior Blake Pittser. The final score: Miami Trace 62, Chillicothe 59.

The game was tied, 14-14 at the end of the first quarter.

At the half, Miami Trace had opened a seven-point lead, 31-24.

Chillicothe countered with a 10-point margin in the third quarter to take a 43-40 lead.

Miami Trace sent the game into overtime with a three-point margin in the fourth quarter (15-12).

“It was a really good game,” Miami Trace head coach Rob Pittser said. “We were able to build a seven-point lead at halftime.

“They played us man all the first half,” Pittser said. “We did a nice job of attacking the basket.

“They went to a 1-2-2 zone to start the second half,” Pittser said. “For whatever reason, we really struggled with the zone. They were able to go on a run. They were up eight with about three minutes to go.

“Blake hit a couple of threes,” Pittser said. “Then he hit a jumper in the middle of the zone. We finally found a hole in the zone. Those eight points tied it up. We had a chance with a possession at the end of regulation, but we didn’t score.”

The game was tied, 59-59 coming to the end of the first overtime.

“They had the ball with about seven seconds left and had to go the length of the floor,” Pittser said. “They turned it over. A kid went into the lane and I think the ball actually dribbled off Seth Leach’s foot.

“The ball bounced right to Tyrae and he passed it to Blake and he threw it in for about a 30-35-footer at the buzzer,” Pittser said. “He was just across half-court.”

Miami Trace remains atop the South Central Ohio League with a record of 4-0. The Panthers are 5-1 overall.

“Of our first four league games, we’ve won three on the road,” Pittser said. “We won at Massie, at Wilmington and at Chillicothe. Those are three pretty tough places to play.”

Miami Trace is back in action Friday at Logan Elm with the freshman game starting it all off at 4:45 p.m.

Miami Trace High School is the host site of the McDonald’s Holiday Tournament Wednesday night, Dec. 28. London will play Madison Plains at 6:30 p.m., followed by the Panthers taking on Greeneview.

The consolation game is set for Friday, Dec. 30 at 6:30 p.m. and the championship game will tip no earlier than 8 p.m.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

MT 14 17 9 15 7 — 62

C 14 10 19 12 4 — 59

MIAMI TRACE — Blake Pittser 4 (4)-0-20; DeAndre Pettiford 4 (1)-3-14; Cameron Carter 3-3-9; Darby Tyree 1 (1)-2-7; Tyrae Pettiford 3-0-6; Seth Leach 2-0-4; Keondrick Bryant 1-0-2; Mitchell Creamer 0-0-0; Skyler McDonald 0-0-0. TOTALS — 18 (6)-8-62. Free throw shooting: 8 of 12 for 67 percent. Three-point field goals: Pittser, 4; D. Pettiford, Tyree. Combined field goal shooting: 24 of 49 for 48 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 6 of 14 for 42 percent. Rebounds: 25 (7 offensive). Assists: 11. Steals: 14. Blocks: 3. Turnovers: 20. Personal fouls: 12. Bench points: 22. Second chance points: 2. Points off turnovers: 6.

CHILLICOTHE — Branden Maughmer 7 (1)-3-20; Jordan Johnson 1 (4)-3-17; Hunter Coffland 2 (1)-7; Seth Barnes 2-2-6; Will Roderick 1 (1)-5; Simon Roderick 2-0-4; Jason Benson 0-0-0; Khaleel Danzy 0-0-0. TOTALS — 15 (7)-8-59. Free throw shooting: 8 of 11 for 72 percent. Three-point field goals: Johnson, 4; Maughmer, Coffland, W. Roderick. Combined field goal shooting: 22 of 52 for 42 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 7 of 24 for 29 percent. Rebounds: 24 (11 offensive). Assists: 7. Steals: 12. Blocks: 3. Turnovers: 16. Personal fouls: 9. Bench points: 4. Second chance points: 10. Points off turnovers: 19.