The matchup between St. Adalbert and Lakewood Catholic Academy opened with both teams firing on all cylinders. Offense came early and often, as each squad traded buckets in a fast-paced start. St. Adalbert built its early momentum behind hot three-point shooting, knocking down multiple key shots from deep throughout the first half. Lakewood answered every punch with strong offensive possessions of their own, keeping the game tight despite the Falcons’ long-range success.

As the half wore on, St. Adalbert’s perimeter shooting created just enough separation, sending them into halftime with a 31–22 lead.

Lakewood came out of the break rejuvenated, stringing together several strong offensive possessions to quickly chip away at the deficit. They called a timeout trailing 31–27 with 17:00 remaining, and although St. Adalbert responded with a smooth mid-range jumper, both defenses tightened up afterward. Open looks were rare—and when they came, neither side consistently capitalized.

Lakewood eventually broke through, finding a rhythm on offense while clamping down defensively. Their run brought the score to 35–34 before St. Adalbert called a timeout with 11:56 to play. Out of the break, St. Adalbert buried a clutch three, only for Lakewood to answer immediately with one of their own. The Royals continued to push, stringing together multiple buckets to seize the lead 45–40, forcing St. Adalbert to burn their final timeout with 6:49 remaining.

The final minutes turned into a defensive slugfest. St. Adalbert snapped a scoring drought with a layup, prompting Lakewood to take a timeout up 45–42 with 2:49 left. The Royals emerged with a crucial second-chance basket to extend the lead, but St. Adalbert refused to go away, converting a tough layup to close the gap to 47–44 with 49 seconds remaining.

The Falcons applied heavy defensive pressure, trapping aggressively in the backcourt, but Lakewood stayed poised—beating the trap and finding the open teammate to seal the game. A late bucket pushed the lead out of reach as Lakewood Catholic Academy completed a resilient comeback, securing a 49–44 victory.