Fantastic finishes are common this season in WPIAL boys' basketball games, but Friday's final scores were some of the strangest in a long time.

Four games were decided by one point Friday. Here are the eerie final scores from those four:

60-59.

60-59.

59-58.

59-58.

Coincidence? Well, yes. But that does not make it any less strange. It's weird enough for two games in one day to end with the same score.

Perry kicked things off Friday afternoon against Allderdice. Down 45-35 after three quarters, the Commodores scored 24 fourth-quarter points to upend the Dragons, 59-58.

For Perry, the Post-Gazette's top-ranked City League team, it was the second one-point win against Allder-dice this season; the Commodores beat the Dragons, 68-67, in December.

Another game Friday featured a late rally. But Fort Cherry's 18-point fourth-quarter was not enough to get past Seton-LaSalle. Tyler Manning scored 14 points to lead the Rebels to a 59-58 victory.

Also in Class AA Section 3, North Catholic and South Fayette's nail-biter featured a little bonus basketball. The Trojans outscored the Lions, 8-7, in overtime to eke out a 60-59 win.

North Catholic's Jesse Long and South Fayette's Mike Lamberti each scored 17 points.

Not to be outdone, Center avenged a 37-point loss earlier this season to beat Blackhawk, 60-59. The game ended with a mad scrum for the ball as time expired.

On bus rides to away games, McKeesport boys' basketball players are usually loud -- joking around or listening to music.

But during the trip to Plum, coach Corey Gadson remembers a strange silence.

Once in the gym, he noticed the intensity was missing from his players' eyes.

"In my mind it was 'Uh oh, we're not ready to play,'" he said.

The Tigers were crushed, 52-32.

Gadson said there were a lot of factors in the loss.

"Some people say poor coaching," he joked before saying he did not do a good enough job getting his team ready.

But since then, the Tigers have surged.

McKeesport has won seven of its last eight games, including a rematch against the Mustangs, which the Tigers won, 65-49, Friday night.

Gadson said the coaching staff has altered practice in a move he believes has helped.

McKeesport was plagued by slow starts at the beginning of the year.

Now, Gadson starts practices with fast-paced, up-tempo drills as opposed to slower shooting drills. That move, he believes, has helped McKeesport avoid lethargic starts in recent games.

And Gadson said it helps to have the full attention of star guard Ty-Meer Brown.

Also a standout football player, Brown missed a few basketball practices and games this season while on recruiting trips.

"The process was grueling for him, mentally," Gadson said.

Gadson knew it was coming and didn't criticize Brown.

"He has a commitment to football," he said.

But ever since Brown committed to play football at Connecticut, he has been able to turn his full attention to the basketball court.

Gadson said Brown is "back to his old self" on the court and is playing more focused and relaxed.

Brown's statistics back up that claim. Against Plum, he had a double-double, scoring 18 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

After starting the season 4-10, Upper St. Clair girls' basketball coach Ernie Koontz hoped his team would rebound -- both literally and figuratively.

"This is something that has been our pet peeve all year," Koontz said of rebounding, especially limiting their opponents' offensive rebounds.

Recently, it has paid off.

Upper St. Clair is on a four-game winning streak following the disappointing 4-10 start. They have improved their section record to 6-5 and are tied for fourth place and the final plaoff spot with Peters Township.

The Panthers shocked the district basketball community by beating Bethel Park, the Post-Gazette's No. 2 Class AAAA team, 48-39, last week. The Black Hawks' only other loss came against No. 1 Mt. Lebanon.

In the game against Bethel Park, Koontz said Upper St. Clair dominated the glass, allowing just three Bethel Park offensive rebounds. That helped the Panthers to overcome 24 turnovers and an 11-for-26 performance from the free-throw line.

Koontz said the key to the Panthers' recent success is an increased defensive intensity, better rebounding and limited offensive turnovers.

"The offense will come if we can do those three," he said.

Mike White's "High School Sports Edition" videos are featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.