WALES — Oak Hill High School boys’ basketball has lacked a signature win and a real rival for years.

The Raiders got the former and probably cemented the latter, too, rallying from a seven-point deficit Friday night to knock off Leavitt in overtime, 66-61.

Tim Levesque scored 20 points for Oak Hill (2-3), none bigger than the slash to the hoop that tied it with 13 seconds remaining in regulation and the 3-pointer that gave the Raiders the lead for good in the extra session.

“I wasn’t shooting very well for most of the game,” said Levesque, who supplemented his streaky offense with seven assists, six rebounds and six steals.

Ben Foss added 17 points — including eight in the fourth quarter — to go with 12 rebounds and five steals. Cam Morin chalked up 12 points and nine thefts.

It was the first-ever regular season collision between the two teams, who operated in different hoop leagues and divisions before uniting in the Class B division of the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference this winter.

Separated by only a few miles of winding, two-lane highway along Sawyer and Allen Pond roads, Leavitt and Oak Hill cultivated a short but spirited relationship in football before the Raiders changed conferences.

“That’s what we sold all week,” said Oak Hill coach Jared Browne. “We don’t really have another rival. Our closest ones are Maranacook and maybe Gardiner, but they have their own rivalries and their own traditions. Now we have Leavitt and Oak Hill, so here we go. Let’s start our own tradition.”

The ebb and flow, ups and downs and twists and turns were typical of a Hatfield-McCoy style matchup.

Oak Hill raced to a 13-point lead in the first quarter before a barrage of Leavitt 3-pointers and an extended cold snap had the Hornets on top, 45-38, with 1:36 left in the third.

Lucas Witham scored eight unanswered points of his game-high 21 at the end of that surge for the Hornets (2-3).

“We played awful defense in the first quarter. Then we came back and played hard,” said Leavitt coach Mike Hathaway, whose team dropped its third straight game. “We haven’t played hard for 32 minutes since our first two games. We’ve got to find a way to do that. We’ve got to get better in a lot of areas.”

Hampered by lingering injuries to three starters and one of its primary reserves, Leavitt biggest bugaboo was 37 turnovers. Ten of those came in the fourth quarter, and eight more marred an overtime period that saw the Hornets attempt only two field goals.

Oak Hill’s finishing kick to the third period was a harbinger, with Morin’s steal producing a layup by Jake Samson (eight points) that cut the deficit to 45-42.

“Our defense is definitely our strength right now,” Morin said. “That intensity picked us up and was really a big factor.”

Still trailing by six early in the fourth, Oak Hill held Leavitt without a field goal for 5 1/2 minutes while cashing in repeatedly with easy deuces.

Levesque twice dished to Foss for inside hoops during an 8-0 run. Another steal and layup by Levesque restored a 54-51 Oak Hill advantage with 3:14 to go in regulation.

“Tim does a lot of scoring, but Ben is probably our MVP  right now,” Browne said. “He went out in the second quarter with a bloody nose, and that’s when Leavitt started their run. He’s one of the most underrated players in our conference.”

Witham scored every point for Leavitt down the stretch. His foul-line jumper put Leavitt in front with 1:28 to go. After Foss answered with two free throws, Witham knocked down a 3-pointer from the left corner for the ninth lead change of the half with 22 seconds left.

Levesque’s tying hoop left enough time for Leavitt to set up the game-winning shot, but Cam Griffin was whistled for an offensive foul with 7.8 seconds to go.

That put the spotlight on Levesque, whose 21-footer for the win grazed the rim. Brian Bradstreet’s bid for a weakside put-back rattled in and out as time expired.

“I thought we got a little tired at times, because we’re not very deep. But there’s a lot of heart in that locker room,” Browne said. “We didn’t get down. We didn’t quit.”

Tyler Allen (11 points, 10 rebounds) sank two free throws to keep Leavitt within two at 63-61 with 37 seconds left in OT. Oak Hill missed two free throws to end its next possession, but Morin’s subsequent steal and lay-up iced it.

Fittingly, another Levesque takeaway and free throw provided the final margin.

Tim Dow chipped in 10 points off the bench for the Hornets.

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