For all the ups and downs the Bishop Ludden boys basketball team had to deal with this winter, it still managed to finish on top of the OHSL Freedom American division standings. Not only that, but in a supremely ironic twist, the Gaelic Knights would get to make up a game that wasn’t played in the opening round of the Section III Class A playoffs. Ludden drew the no. 8 seed with its 12-7 mark and would face no. 9 seed Fowler (11-7) Tuesday in Geddes. The two teams were supposed to meet Feb. 2, but Fowler never showed up, and the Gaelic Knights weren’t happy about it. As fate would have it, Ludden and Fowler got drawn together in the sectional bracket, with the winner to face top seed and defending state champion Jamesville-DeWitt Friday night. J-D will be without star guard Alshwan Hymes, ejected for a flagrant foul in the Red Rams’ loss to CBA last Friday that ended a 38-game win streak. As J-D’s streak ended, Ludden was at Cortland blowing a big fourth-quarter lead, only to regroup in overtime and beat the Purple Tigers 55-48. Roaring out to a 20-7 lead, the Gaelic Knights maintained that margin through the game’s middle stages, taking a 42-33 edge to the fourth quarter. All of a sudden, Cortland came to life, erasing that deficit behind Trevor Williamson (23 points) and Jordan Prior (14 points). With the game tied 48-48 in the last seconds of regulation, both teams missed possible winning shots. Just as quickly as it had surrendered the lead, Ludden took it back with inspired defense in overtime that kept the Purple Tigers off the board all four minutes. On the offensive side, Frank Smith had his way in the paint, producing 24 points, while Rick Montgomery helped out with 15 points. Omar Osbourne added six points. Ludden’s girls basketball team closed the regular season to its home court Friday night and again unleashed its offense in the course of a 75-53 victory, its second over the Trojans in a seven-day span. For a while, Homer hung around, erasing much of a 23-9 first-quarter deficit as the Gaelic Knights’ defense got a bit content. Only leading 36-32 at the break, Ludden steadily got away in the second half. Michelle Roesch led with 21 points, with Ashley Cianfriglia hitting a trio of 3-pointers on her way to 17 points. Bella Knapp proved difficult to contain, too, earning 16 points, one of her highest totals of the season, as Natalie Barletta added eight points. With its final regular-season mark of 14-5, Ludden gained the no. 4 seed for the Class B-1 playoffs and will host no. 5 seed Watertown IHC next Tuesday in the quarterfinal round. The winner could get a shot at six-time defending champion South Jefferson, who again drew the top seed.