ST. JAMES - For the second straight day, the Blair Oaks Falcons were down by 11 points in the second half.
And for the second straight day, they made the needed run to overcome it.
Blair Oaks took its first lead about a minute into the fourth quarter and never relinquished it in a 46-43 victory against the St. James Tigers on Saturday night in the St. James Tournament championship game.
St. James began the game on a 9-2 run and led 15-8 at the end of the first quarter. Turnovers and missed shots added up for the Falcons in the second quarter, resulting in a 23-12 halftime deficit.
But the Falcons got going in the third quarter, tying the game at 33 with a Luke Northweather three-point play. St. James made it 36-33 with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.
The third-seeded Tigers didn't score again until a layup with about two minutes remaining. By that time, Blair Oaks had rolled off 11 consecutive points.
Luke Northweather scored 21 points to lead top-seeded Blair Oaks, while Eric Northweather, who was named the tournament MVP, added 13 points.
Quinn Kusgen also made the all-tournament team for the No. 1-ranked team in Class 3.
Other all-tournament team honorees include St. James teammates Mason Parker and Andrew Branson, Waynesville's Jayden Smith and Salem's Reese Dodson.
Blair Oaks (15-2) will return to Tri-County Conference play Tuesday when it plays at Southern Boone. The freshman game will start at 5 p.m. with the JV contest beginning around 6:15 p.m. and the varsity tipping off around 7:45 p.m.