The ball looked like it would glance off a collection of hands and drift off into the air, and the game would head to a second overtime.

But at the last possible moment, the unlikeliest of rebounders appeared.

Ben Walters, Beech Grove's 5-10 guard, snared the ball on the left side of the lane and in the same motion flicked it gingerly into the air as the buzzer sounded. The ball hit the rim and fell through, giving host Beech Grove a 47-45 overtime victory Friday night over Bishop Chatard in a Class 3A Sectional 26 semifinal. The shot sent a gym packed with Hornets fans into a thunderous roar.

"It just came right to me," Walters said after his teammates carried him around the floor on their shoulders. "I didn't even think of coming down with it. I just kind of threw it at the goal."

Walters' first game-winning shot of any kind gave Beech Grove (18-3) its 11th win in a row and put it one win from its first sectional crown in 15 years. The host Hornets face Northwest (16-6), which rolled past Brebeuf Jesuit 66-51, at 7:30 tonight in the title game.

Walters' rebound basket, the only score in overtime, came off a long jumper from David Sanders as time wound down.

The plan was for Sanders to drive and get fouled, drive for a jumper in the lane or drive and kick. An 83 percent free throw shooter, Sanders had missed the front end of a one-and-one with 3.7 seconds left in regulation, and Beech Grove coach Randy Males figured he wouldn't miss again.

"I didn't expect Ben Walters to get an offense rebound put-back," Males said. "That was not one of the things I thought about, but that's OK. We'll take it."

Beech Grove, which beat Roncalli 70-62 in overtime in the quarterfinals, held the ball for nearly the first four minutes of the five-minute extra period. The Hornets turned the ball over, but John Hart blocked Jimmy Kennedy's layup attempt. Chatard (16-6) turned it over seconds later, setting up the ending.

Walters' winner came at the basket in front of the Beech Grove student section that stood all game and was filled with painted faces and bodies.

"I was filled with excitement. I was so psyched," said Walters, who scored a game-high 20 points.

The Hornets trailed 45-40 late, but Walters hit a 3-pointer and Hart made two steals in the final 65 seconds, each leading to Beech Grove making 1-of-2 free throws.

In the second game, senior Alex Young scored 12 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter with his future college coach, IUPUI's Ron Hunter, in the stands.

Senior guard Antonio Cannon added 19 points for Northwest, which led by double figures early against Brebeuf (6-14).

Bishop Chatard -- J. Kennedy 5-13 1-1 3, P. Kennedy 2-2 0-0 4, B. Kennedy 1-4 0-0 2. Zimmerman 2-5 0-2 4, Hightower 8-9 3-3 19, Wayer 1-3 0-0 3, Huxhold 0-0 0-0 0, Dietrick 0-3 0-0 0, Martin 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 19-39 4-6 45.

Beech Grove -- Sanders 2-8 2-3 6, Weathers 2-4 0-0 4, Walters 6-12 5-6 20, Hart 2-6 1-2 6, Clem 4-9 0-0 9, Page 1-3 0-0 2. Totals: 17-42 8-13 47.

3-point shooting -- Chatard 3-11 (J. Kennedy 2-6, Wayer 1-2, B. Kennedy 0-1, Dietrick 0-2), Beech Grove 5-19 (Walters 3-8, Hart 1-4, Clem 1-4, Sanders 0-1, Weathers 0-2). Rebounds -- Chatard 26 (Hightower 8), BG 26 (Clem 7, Hart 7). Assists -- Chatard 13 (P. Kennedy 6), BG 12 (Sanders 4). Turnovers -- Chatard 13, BG 7. Total fouls -- Chatard 15, BG 9. Fouled out -- Clem. Officials -- Rex Nichols, Micah Reid, David Sheets.

Northwest -- Proffitt 0-2 0-1 0, Stallings 3-4 6-6 12, Young 8-13 2-2 21, Cannon 8-14 2-4 19, Joseph 0-2 2-4 2, Rendell 1-1 0-0 2, Westley 1-2 0-0 2, Prather 1-10 0-2 2, Daniel 1-3 0-1 2, Jewell 1-2 0-0 2, Hayes 0-2 2-3 2, Johnson 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 24-57 14-23 66.

Brebeuf Jesuit -- Dillon 2-7 1-2 5, Bruen 0-3 0-0 0, Gachaw 2-4 1-4 6, Ferrell 2-4 0-0 4, Barton 2-7 0-0 4, Estes 3-7 0-0 7, Altum 1-6 0-0 5, Kroot 1-4 0-0 2, Hawkins 3-6 1-1 6, Plews 1-5 0-0 2, Dean 2-2 2-3 6, McClure 0-0 0-1 0, Owens -3 0-0 4. Totals: 21-58 5-11 51.

3-point shooting -- Northwest 4-10 (Young 3-5, Cannon 1-3, Proffitt 0-1), Brebeuf 4-19 (Hawkins 1-2, Gachaw 1-3, Estes 1-3, Altum 1-6, Dillon 0-1, Bruen 0-1, Kroot 0-2). Rebounds -- Northwest 41 (Cannon 10, Young 9), Brebeuf 31 (Dean 5, Plews 5). Assists -- Northwest 6 (Westley 3), Brebeuf 10 (Dillon 3). Turnovers -- Northwest 14, Brebeuf 15. Total fouls -- Northwest 19, Brebeuf 19. Officials -- Casey Gaynor, Shawn Malloy, Charlie Farthing.