But when all was said and done, the Cardinals emerged the victor in a thriller of a game.

Randolph (10-1) pushed past the Black Knights (7-5) 63-60 in overtime on Friday, with neither team leading by more than seven points at any point in the game. Although Silver Creek led most of the way, the Cardinals did just enough to escape with the victory.

“They’re a great team. They’re the sixth ranked team in the state,” said Silver Creek coach Ralph Jackson. “We took them to overtime and lost by three, we had our chances. That’s all you can ask, is to give yourself a chance.”

Trailing 63-60 with just seven seconds left on the clock in overtime, Silver Creek senior guard Dominic Jamison had a chance to tie the game on a tough 3-pointer off an in-bound, but it was just a tad wide, squashing the last hope for Silver Creek. Though it wasn’t Jamison’s best scoring effort, his attention was focused somewhere else — guarding Randolph’s star senior Tyler Hind.

Silver Creek’s Jeremy Wilcox lays the ball off the backboard during Friday’s CCAA East 1 Division boys basketball game at Silver Creek High School. OBSERVER Photo by Justin Goetz.

Jamison was the one primarily tasked to guard Hind, though he did have help through most of the game. Hind didn’t hit his first field goal until less than two minutes to go in the third quarter. Although Hind ended with 21 points, Jamison and the Black Knights were able to fluster him as good as anyone can hope to.

“He’s one of the best players in Western New York,” Jackson said. “We were trying to keep our focus on him and help whoever was on him. Unfortunately, we let him get to the free-throw line and he doesn’t typically miss. I was trying to switch defenders so the same guy wasn’t chasing him around the whole time, but it got to the point where Dom wanted the matchup.”

Jamison certainly made the most of his matchup, especially in the first half, when Hind forced a few shots. He seemingly couldn’t buy a basket, stifled to just five points at the half on five free throws. With the game tied at 30 going into the break, Randolph coach Kevin Hind knew Tyler Hind’s contributions were coming in other areas, despite the scoring difficulties.

“He wasn’t shooting well, but he had several assists early on. We told him if the other guys are hitting shots, it’ll loosen things up, and other guys stepped up early,” Kevin Hind said.

Tyler Hind, in addition to his 21 points, ended with 10 boards and 10 assists, finishing with a triple-double on the night. The shots Hind did make though were effective. With his team trailing 56-51 with just over a minute to go in regulation, Hind was able to bury a layup, come up with a steal, and finally hit a three pointer to tie it — his only three of the game. Into overtime, with Randolph trailing 60-58, Hind went to the line for two free throws. Hind sunk the first one, missed the second, but was able to get his own rebound and put back a layup to give his team the lead 61-60 on what would be the winning basket.

Randolph’s Gabe McCoy shoots during Friday’s CCAA East 1 Division boys basketball game at Silver Creek High School. OBSERVER Photo by Justin Goetz.

Despite the loss, Silver Creek was leading for a majority of the game, including 16-13 after the first quarter, and 42-39 at the end of the third. Every time Randolph appeared to be making a run, the Black Knights would answer back with a run of their own. Jackson was proud of his team’s ability to stick with it.

“We stuck with it. They hit some shots, then we’d come down and hit some shots, then we’d answer with our own shots,” Jackson said. “Neither team led by more than seven. These are the games you want to play. You have games where you win big, but these are the ones you’ll remember.”

Meanwhile Coach Hind gave all the credit to the Black Knights.

“It was an awesome game, those guys played incredible,” Hind said. “At halftime, I said I wasn’t sure they were going to keep hitting shots but they did. I give them a lot of credit, they had a good defensive plan and they executed, but I had guys step up, especially early. That is a good team on the other side and they gave us a game, and in a tough league game on the road, you’re just happy to come out with a win.”

Hind led all scorers with 21 points, while Branson Morrison had 12 for the Cardinals. In addition to blanketing Hind, Randolph’s standout freshman big man Gabe McCoy was also silenced, scoring only eight points on the game. The Black Knights were led by Jeremy Wilcox, who had 15 points and seven boards, while Jamison and Spencer Harford each had 13, with Jamison adding seven assists and Harford adding six rebounds. Sam Braidich added 10 for the Black Knights.

The Black Knights are next in action on Tuesday, Jan. 28 as they will travel to Chautauqua Lake to take on the Thunderbirds at 7:30 p.m. — a team they have already beaten this season, though Jackson noted that they are much improved since then. Randolph will next take on the Ellicottville Eagles on that same day, in Randolph at 7:30 p.m.