Senior guard Tommy Chatman drove to the basket, drew a foul and made both free throws with 5.4 seconds left in the third overtime Friday, setting up Park Center for a 57-55 victory in the Class 4A, Section 5 championship game at Rogers.
Champlin Park had one more chance, but senior guard Bennett Otto's buzzer-beater was no good.
"Down the stretch I just give our team a lot of credit. We got two or three stops in overtime. That was the difference," Park Center coach James Ware said.
With one second left in the second half, Otto's potential game-winning shot banked off the rim as the buzzer sounded, sending the game into overtime tied 43-43.
Champlin Park (23-6) got 14 points from senior guard Jacob Johnson. Park Center (28-1) was led by junior forward Dain Dainja with 15 points, including nine in overtime.
Park Center lost to Osseo in the section final last season.
"I strictly told [Dainja], 'Remember that feeling last year when we lost to Osseo?' He told me, 'Yes.' I said, 'We're not feeling like that again,' " junior forward Detavious Frierson said.
Park Center defeated Champlin Park 71-54 in the regular season.
"The big change is the section finals. Anything goes, and it's really tough to get to the state tournament," Champlin Park coach Mark Tuchscherer said.
Jack Warrick is a University of Minnesota student on assignment for the Star Tribune.
