By Kalle Oakes,Staff Writer

BRUNSWICK – Move it ahead three weeks, into the Augusta Civic Center auditorium, and Thursday night’s Edward Little-Brunswick boys’ basketball showdown was the kind the teams and paying customers would be talking about for years.

Heck, anyone affiliated with the Red Eddies might be clearing out permanent space in the memory bank, anyhow. And rightfully so.

EL erased a six-point deficit in the final 1:43 of regulation, then dominated overtime to bounce previously undefeated Brunswick, 81-74, for the Eddies’ biggest win since joining the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference.

“These kids remember us beating Portland at the Expo and beating Thornton in the Western Maine semifinals. But this is definitely the biggest win they’ve been part of. And I’m a KVAC guy,” said EL coach Mike Adams, a Mt. Blue graduate. “To beat a program like Brunswick, in their gym, coached by a class act like Todd Hanson, that’s special.”

It was a thriller throughout. EL junior center Troy Barnies was fabulous, as usual, with 30 points and 10 rebounds. But when Brunswick (12-1) held Barnies without a field goal in the fourth quarter and appeared to seize control of the game, Eric Prue and Nate Guerette collaborated for 12 of EL’s 13 points in the period to resuscitate the Red Eddies. Prue corralled a huge defensive rebound and sank two free throws with 1:25 left in the quarter, then made a backcourt steal and a deuce eight seconds later to send it to an extra session.

Barnies drained a 10-footer off a feed from Guerette to christen overtime.

The Eddies played brilliantly with the newfound lead, forcing eight consecutive misses from the field by the Dragons. Barnies, Prue, Ryan Goss and Kyle Giguere combined to swish 11 straight free throws in OT.

“Anybody can step up for us,” Prue said. “We’re confident. We’re starting to hit our shots.”

EL (9-4) won its sixth straight game and seventh in its last eight, exceeding its combined victory total of the last two seasons and avenging a five-point home loss to Brunswick in December.

“We’ve had some doubters,” Barnies said. “Hopefully this gains us some respect from the KVAC.”

Prue finished with 14 points. Goss added 13, including three 3-pointers in a third quarter that saw both teams play almost a perfect game offensively. EL committed only two turnovers after halftime.

Doug Eichinger led Brunswick with 29 points. Jordan Kelly contributed 14, mostly on the strength of four treys in a virtual third-quarter shootout with Goss. Travis O’Dell chalked up 11 points, 12 rebounds and five assists for the Dragons, while Justin Dionne dropped in 10 points.

“I liked the position we were in with the lead coming down the stretch, but 81 points is the most we’ve given up in years,” Hanson said. “I’ve said it all along, and we saw it tonight, that there isn’t a lot of difference between the top teams in the KVAC.”

There were nine lead changes and three ties in the first half, alone, with EL going up by as many as seven and leading 34-30 at the break. Kelly led Brunswick’s rally to a six-point advantage in the third quarter, and O’Dell’s drive restored that cushion at 64-58 with 1:54 to go in the fourth.

Guerette, a senior captain who sat on the bench for the first three quarters, answered with a short jumper in the paint to ignite an amazing EL comeback. Guerette, Goss, Barnies and Prue each hit at least one 3-pointer on a night when two terrific teams combined for 17 from beyond the arc.

“We’re not one or two individuals,” Guerette said. “This was a team effort.”