But in a split second, everything changed.

With the Red Storm trailing by one, Landon LaDue heaved up a desperation shot from half-court, and right away, the sophomore guard knew it was in.

“It felt good off the fingertips,” LaDue said. “I just had faith the whole time.”

His shot hit off the backboard and fell through the hoop as the buzzer sounded off, lifting his Red Storm team past the Plattsburgh Hornets 74-72.

Saranac Lake’s Landon LaDue heaves a half-court shot at the buzzer to win Monday’s Section VII semifinal game against Plattsburgh. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

Within seconds, LaDue was met by a mob of students and fans wearing red and white.

“It’s a crazy shot. It doesn’t really happen a lot,” LaDue said. “But I’m just thankful it went in.”

The shot wasn’t just the game-winner for Saranac Lake, it was also the season-saver, helping advance the team to the Section VII, Class B title game for the first time since 2007. The team will face off against Beekmantown in the championship Friday night.

“My guys played a great game. I think I played a great game and we’re on to a championship which hasn’t happened for a while for Saranac Lake so it’s good to turn the tide,” LaDue said, who was around one month old the last time the Red Storm played in the sectional title game.

LaDue had answered to a tough task set by Plattsburgh after Cayden Williams hit a step-back three-pointer with 4.9 seconds on the clock, to give the Hornets a 72-71 lead.

Saranac Lake’s Brady Owens, right looks to make a pass with Plattsburgh’s Josh Abbott defending him during Monday’s Section VII semifinal game in Saranac Lake. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

“My heart dropped a little bit, but I was like, ‘It’s time to go. It’s game time,'” LaDue said.

After Williams drained that three-point attempt, Saranac Lake seemingly blew its chance with a few seconds remaining when a half-court pass was intercepted by Plattsburgh’s Dan Hartmann.

“We hit that turnover in practice two or three times,” Red Storm head coach Daryl Crist said. “We’ve got to catch it and usually, if we catch it, we get a layup.”

The gym was silent as Saranac Lake’s Caleb Akey fouled Hartmann sending him to the free-throw line with a little over two seconds left.

But Hartmann missed his shot, and the Red Storm’s Carter Hewitt collected the rebound. Hewitt, a senior, then gave the ball to LaDue for one last shot.

Saranac Lake’s Landon LaDue, left, drives to basket during the late stages of the fourth quarter of Monday’s Section VII semifinal game against Plattsburgh in Saranac Lake. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

“We wanted to make sure that it got into Landon or Caleb’s hand going up the court,” Crist said. “We actually practice situations (like this) pretty much every day.”

LaDue took two dribbles and pulled up from the logo.

“‘By design?’ Yeah,” Crist said. “‘Lucky?’ Yeah, it was lucky.”

Crist said he never really doubted his team’s chances. During practices, he goes over do-or-die situations like these and so far it has worked.

Saranac Lake previously won a game at the buzzer earlier this season. Akey was the hero then, netting a three-pointer to top the Canton Golden Bears 44-43 on Dec. 1, 2022.

Saranac Lake’s Caleb Akey dribbles the ball down the court during Monday’s Section VII semifinal game against Plattsburgh in Saranac Lake. (Enterprise photo — Parker O’Brien)

But at the end of those drills, Crist likes to make his players shoot half-court shots. But even with all this preparation, something felt special on Monday.

“Everything went our way. It was a really good game,” Crist said. “Plattsburgh played really well. We were just one possession better.”

LaDue finished with 14 points — but none of his shots were as important as his final one.

“We went in this one for revenge,” LaDue said, referencing the team’s 75-54 loss to Plattsburgh in the sectional semifinals last season. “Especially the guys that were on the team last year. I know how much it hurt. Especially the way they ended it. It wasn’t just a five-point win. They beat us by like 20, so we really wanted to get a win for us.”

Akey, a junior, got the Red Storm on a roll early on by draining four of his game-high five three-pointers in the first quarter, which gave his team a 19-7 advantage. However, Plattsburgh found some momentum with a 10-6 run to wrap up the quarter.

The scoring run carried over into the second quarter with the Hornets taking a two-point advantage over the Red Storm due to a 10-1 run.

With around five minutes left in the first half, Akey and LaDue got Saranac Lake back into the swing of things, by combining for 15 of the team’s 17 points in the quarter. Akey finished the night with a game-high 24 points.

Both teams traded points back and forth throughout the second half. But toward the halfway point of the fourth quarter, Plattsburgh started to slowly take control of the contest by holding a 62-56 lead over the Red Storm.

With four minutes remaining, Plattsburgh’s top-scorer, Max Filosca, fouled out of the game and a few minutes later Michael Phillips, who had drained multiple three-point shots, also fouled out. From then on, the Red Storm picked up the pace.

Filosca finished the game with 21 points while his teammate Williams had 17 and Phillips chipped in 14 points. The Hornets ended their season with a 9-13 record.

Along with Akey and LaDue’s points, the Red Storm had some key buckets from Markus Navarra and Carter Hewitt. Navarra scored 15 points, while Hewitt record 12 in the win.

“All credit goes to the boys,” Crist said, who took over the head coaching position this season. “They’ve listened and done what we’ve asked. Obviously, it was a great turnout from the community tonight. Things are going the right way for Saranac Lake.”

The Section VII Championship game on Friday will be played at the Clinton Community College gymnasium in Plattsburgh at 7:15 p.m.

—

Saranac Lake 74, Plattsburgh 72

Red Storm 25 17 10 22 — 74

Hornets 17 21 15 19 — 72

Saranac Lake (74)

LaDue 7-3-14, Akey 7-5-24, Navarra 5-5-15, Hewitt 5-2-12, Owens 1-1-3, M. Cirikovic 0-0-0, Martelle 0-1-1, Faubert 0-0-0, Crist 0-0-0, Deckenberger 0-0-0, Wilson 0-0-0, McCarthy 0-0-0, Rivers 0-0-0, Cecunjanin 0-0-0, E. Cirikovic 0-0-0. Totals: 25-17-74.

Plattsburgh (72)

Phillips 4-3-14, Filosca 9-2-21, Baker 0-0-0, Hartmann 2-0-6, Sorrell 0-0-0, O’Neal 0-0-0, Rodriguez 2-2-6, Laravia 0-0-0, Ferris 0-0-0, Williams 6-4-17, Abbott 2-4-8, Van Arman 0-0-0, Fitzwater 0-0-0. Totals: 25-15-72.

Three-point goals: Saranac Lake (7), Akey 5, LaDue 2. Plattsburgh (7), Phillips 3, Hartman 2, Filosca, Williams.