ROLLA - It was a tremendous start by Ben Cooper and the Helias Crusaders.
It was an even better finish by Josh Pritchett and the Rolla Bulldogs.
Pritchett scored 17 of his game-high 41 points in the fourth quarter, but it was Alec Buhr who hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with about :05 left to give Rolla a 63-60 win against Helias in the Class 4 District 11 championship game.
Rolla trailed by as many as 22 points late in the second quarter and was down 43-24 at halftime and 53-38 entering the fourth quarter.
Pritchett made a pair of free throws with less than 5 minutes to play, pulling the Bulldogs within single digits at 58-49. He then hit back-to-back 3s to make it a one-possession game with Helias leading 58-55 with 3:24 to play.
The Rolla senior then made 3-of-4 free throws with 2:29 to play after Helias was whistled for a personal foul and then a technical foul.
Pritchett then made a basket to give Rolla a 60-58 advantage, its first lead since late in the first quarter, but Landon Harrison made a pair of free throws with 1:41 to play, tying the game at 60.
Rolla would hold the ball for the last shot. After grabbing a loose ball, Buhr knocked down the go-ahead 3 for the Bulldogs, who outscored the Crusaders 25-7 in the fourth quarter.
Harrison's 3-point attempt to tie the game at the buzzer was off the mark.
Cooper scored all 16 of Helias' points in the first quarter, giving the Crusaders a three-point lead after the opening eight minutes.
Helias started the second quarter on a 9-0 run, and after Rolla answered with the game's next five points, the Crusaders went on a 15-0 run to stretch their advantage to 40-18.
Cooper made five 3s in the first quarter and led the Crusaders with 21 points. Helias made 10 of its 13 3-pointers in the first half.
Nick Brandt scored his 10 points in the first half, while Harrison also reached double figures with 10 points.
Harrison ends his high-school career with 1,600 points, ranking second on Helias' all-time scoring list behind Jamaal Tatum's 1,785 points.
Helias finishes the season with a 17-10 record.
Rolla (24-3), ranked No. 5 in Class 4, awaits the District 12 winner in the Class 4 sectional round at 7:45 p.m. Tuesday at Sedalia Smith-Cotton. Fourth-ranked Grandview (22-3) faces Nevada (21-4) for the District 12 title at 7:30 p.m. today in Pleasant Hill.