POTTSVILLE — Northwestern Lehigh had to navigate more than just a quality opponent Tuesday night at fabled Martz Hall.

Just when it appeared the Tigers had solved Pottsville late in a terrific nonleague boys basketball game, the Crimson Tide delivered a sensational overtime response, pulling out a thrilling 64-62 victory.

Pottsville rode the coattails of superb senior Christian Alvarez, who was nothing short of stellar with a game-high 30 points. But it was Ryder Bowers who delivered the decisive blow in the four-minute extra session, knocking down a 3-pointer and later converting a foul shot that proved to be the difference.

That sequence allowed Pottsville coach Tyler Heffner to exhale.

“Ryder didn’t get a ton of shots during the game. He was pressing, but he finally got open there,” Heffner said.

Bowers’ triple gave the Tide a 58-55 lead early in overtime, and his free throw down the stretch provided the final margin.

As brilliant as Alvarez was for the winners, Brady Krimmel kept Northwestern Lehigh from fading with a 23-point night, including a perfect 8-for-8 effort from the free-throw line. Krimmel’s knack for finding space — even when it seemed the defense had him covered — was evident throughout.

In fact, Krimmel buried a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from well beyond the top of the key to force overtime.

“We had a hard time finding him,” Heffner said. “He’s quite the player, and when he hit that shot, it was a great one.”

Northwestern Lehigh coach Pat Wanamaker knows exactly what his junior guard can bring.

“He kind of came out of his shell tonight,” Wanamaker said. “He’s one of the smartest kids I’ve been around as far as basketball.”

Where the Tigers got stuck was in the opening minutes, as Pottsville came out firing, blitzing Northwestern Lehigh with an 8-0 run.

“We started down eight-nothing. I think they had five 3s in the first quarter,” Wanamaker said.

Indeed, Pottsville raced to a 16-7 advantage and closed the quarter ahead 19-11, with Alvarez scorching the nets for three 3-pointers and 13 points. That early surge carried into the second quarter.

Northwestern Lehigh’s Malachi Coleman tightened up defensively and limited Alvarez to zero points in the second, but Pottsville still found production as Bowers scored five points, while Colin McGinley and Davey Kunstek each connected from beyond the arc to give the Tide a 30-23 halftime lead.

The break worked in Northwestern Lehigh’s favor.

The Tigers’ defense slowed Pottsville significantly in the third quarter, even though Alvarez accounted for all seven of the Tide’s points. Offensively, Northwestern Lehigh settled into its halfcourt sets and rallied behind Krimmel, who scored nine straight points to open the period.

Buckets from Mason Bollinger, a Coleman 3-pointer and a Bollinger putback lifted the Tigers into their first lead of the night, 39-37.

“We made some adjustments at halftime on defense,” Wanamaker said. “That helped us match up better, and we started to get some good looks.”

Northwestern Lehigh carried that momentum into the fourth, opening a 46-41 lead behind baskets from Brady Zimmerman and Bollinger, along with a Zimmerman 3-pointer.

Alvarez continued to shoulder the Pottsville offense, draining two more 3s, but the Tigers answered with contributions from Coleman, Zimmerman and Bollinger to build a 52-47 edge with 2:22 left in regulation.

Pottsville wasn’t done.

The Tide surged ahead 55-52 with 21 seconds remaining after Bowers sank two foul shots, setting the stage for Krimmel’s game-tying 3-pointer to send the contest into overtime.

Pottsville then found another gear, edging Northwestern Lehigh 9-7 in the extra period. A Cannon Fitch 3-pointer pulled the Tigers within one (63-62) with nine seconds left, but Bowers’ final free throw sealed the outcome. Northwestern Lehigh couldn’t find an open look on its last possession.

“That’s not a flash basketball team we played,” Wanamaker said. “That’s a championship-quality team. That’s a district-level championship team.”

UPS AND DOWNS ... Northwestern Lehigh fell into an early hole, rallied, and looked poised to close late. Pottsville, which had lost only to Hazleton Area and Wilson, found the grit to finish the job.

COUNTING IT UP ... The Tigers held a 31-23 rebounding edge, led by Coleman’s 12 boards. Coleman also did a commendable job defensively on Alvarez for long stretches. Northwestern Lehigh was paced by Krimmel (23), Coleman (12), Bollinger (10) and Zimmerman (9). Pottsville received 30 from Alvarez, 14 from Bowers and nine from Kunstek.

SIZZLE ... Pottsville knocked down 12 3-pointers, including six by Alvarez. Northwestern Lehigh was perfect from the line (10-for-10). The Tigers shot 22-for-43 from the field, while Pottsville went 23-for-39 — a combined 45-for-82 on the night.

NORTHWESTERN

Krimmel 6-8-8-23, Coleman 5-0-0-12, Bollinger 3-0-0-10, Zimmerman 3-0-0-9, Lagowy 1-0-0-3, Fitch 1-0-0-3, Wertman 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 22-10-10-62

POTTSVILLE

Alvarez 9-2-2-30, Bowers 4-3-3-14, Kunstek 4-0-0-9, Hobbs 1-0-0-3, McGinley 1-0-0-3, Kimber 2-1-2-5, Allen 0-0-0-0, Herndon 0-0-0-0, Bainbridge 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 23-6-11-64

Northwestern 11 12 16 16 7 — 62

Pottsville 19 11 7 18 9 — 64

Three-pointers: NW — Krimmel 3, Coleman 2, Bollinger 4, Zimmerman 3, Lagowy 1, Fitch 1. P — Alvarez 6, Bowers 3, Kunstek 1, Hobbs 1, McGinley 1.

Records: Northwestern (6-1); Pottsville (7-2)