BENSALEM – It became clear to Nate Best the Upper Moreland boys basketball team was going to pull off what few people expected it to do Friday night when late in the fourth quarter the Golden Bears still held the lead and Neumann-Goretti’s only option was to send them to the foul line.

“I had confidence in myself to knock down free throws,” UM’s senior guard said. “And I knew we could take it all.”

Upper Moreland hung tight with the Philadelphia Catholic League powerhouse throughout their PIAA Class 5A quarterfinal and in the final seconds of the third quarter sophomore Cannon Campbell connected on a 3-pointer from the left wing, putting the Bears in front 45-43.

It was a lead Upper Moreland never relinquished, coming up with clutch baskets and key defensive stops in the fourth quarter to hold off the Saints – the defending state champions – before pulling away with late free throws for a stunning 62-52 victory at Bensalem High School.

“We know going into this game that everyone’s going to doubt us like even our own family,” Campbell said. “But everyone in the locker room believed. And we knew it was going to be a close game, we scouted them well and we just played our way for 32 minutes. And we dug in and everyone played their role and then we got a great outcome.”

The upset earns Upper Moreland, which finished fifth in District 1, just its second-ever appearance in the state semifinal, the previous trip coming last season when it knocked off another PCL side, Bonner & Prendergast in the quarters. The Golden Bears would then lose to Neumann-Goretti in the 2025 semis – the Saints opening the second half with a 15-3 run to build a 21-point lead and go on to claim a 79-53 win.

This season, after topping the Saints, Upper Moreland (20-9) now faces Bonner in the 5A final four Monday at a site and time to be announced after the Friars’ 61-52 win over Springfield (Delco) in their quarterfinal at Cardinal O’Hara.

“You don’t like to compare year to year but I think, again, just having our four guys between Larry (Hughes), Nate, Cannon and Jose (Hernandez), who had limited minutes last year as freshmen but had significant minutes and were a part of that journey and that incredible season,” Upper Moreland coach Dan Heiland said. “They understand what these games are about and these moments are about and I think between Jose and Cannon and the way they work and push each other every day, I think last year kind of showed that we can be one of those teams and I think obviously, at the point, is huge for us. Big win for us.”

Best paced the Golden Bears with 19 points, the senior going 8-of-10 on free throws including 6-of-8 in the fourth.

“Just hitting big free throws down the stretch and then obviously being a point guard, just being able to handle pressure, get us into our sets and not turn the ball over,” said Heiland of Best. “Like I keep saying, I feel like a broken record but you turn the ball over against these guys and they hurt you. So having a guy like Nate, guy that’s a three-year starter now, as like a true point guard, it’s great to see his game continue to grow.

“He’s shooting the ball better from the perimeter, like I said, knocking down free throws down the stretch and when he plays tough defense and can get us into our sets and we take care of the ball we can do really, really good things.

Campbell collected seven points in both the second and third quarters as he finished with 18 points. Hernandez gave UM an early offensive boost, scoring nine of his 16 points in the first quarter.

“Our guards did a great job,” Campbell said. “They handle the ball extremely well. They controlled the game, we had the pace the whole time, they weren’t turning it over and then that just helps everyone else. We’re able to get in our offensive flow.”

Alassan N’Diaye scored a game-high 20 points for Neumann-Goretti (22-6), which played without a pair of All-PCL selections in senior Stephon Ashley-Wright and junior Marquis Newsom, the latter ineligible due to PIAA transfer rules. Deshawn Yates had 12 of his 16 points in the first half.

“Watching their films the last couple weeks and even last year’s game, we were just undisciplined at times,” Heiland said. “And teams playing them were just undisciplined at times to just allowing their really good shooters to get wide open looks. And we had an emphasis tonight to not allow that to happen.

“They’re really good kids that can attack the basket as well but I’ll trade a tough two versus a wide-open three as many times as I can any night of the week.”

Friday night’s contest was just Upper Moreland 11th PIAA tournament game in program history, the Golden Bears first state victory coming last season. Neumann-Goretti, meanwhile, has played in 11 PIAA finals, winning 10. The Saints are now 66-6 all-time in states, five of their losses coming in the quarterfinal round.

“I know how big this is, I know how big of a deal this is,” Best said. “Celebrating with my peers and my friends out there, that feels amazing. And to do it my senior year, it’s great, I love it.”

A Jayden Williams three to start the third quarter gave Neumann-Goretti a 31-29 lead but Best answered with a trey to put the Bears back in front.

UM held a three-point lead twice in the quarter, the second time at 38-35 before an N’Diaye basket then a Yates jumper made it 39-38 Saints. N’Diaye’s tip-in had Neumann leading 43-42 but just before the buzzer, Campbell drained a three, sending the Bears to the fourth up 45-43.

“We were trying to get a design going and it kind of broke off,” Campbell said. “So I thought I had an open look and, you know, it just went in.”

Campbell hit a jumper to make it 47-43. An EJ Stanton jumper then a Williams free throw had the Saints within 47-46 at 6:35 before a Hughes bucket – his lone field goal of the night – put UM up three.

N’Diaye scored inside and was fouled at 4:32 but missed the free throw, leaving Neumann-Goretti down a point at 49-48. Best deflected a pass for a steal and took it in for a layup then delivered a pass to Kyle Moore inside for a 3-point play at 2:33 that gave the Bears a 54-48 advantage.

“I think we’re up like a few points, and it was coming down to it so I was just trying to keep the ball in my hands and wait for stuff to develop,” Best said. “And Kyle found open space to cut and he got the and-one.”

An N’Diaye basket cut the margin to 54-50 but the Saints would pull no closer. With 57.2 seconds left, Best hit the first from the line then missed the second only for the rebound to go out of bounds and back to the Bears.

Best proceeded to hit a pair of the line at 50.5 seconds then the first of two at 37.9 seconds to push Upper Moreland’s lead to 58-50.

Two Stanton free throws at 31.7 seconds made it 58-52 before Hernandez and Best both went 2-for-2 from the stripe.

Neumann-Goretti’s largest lead was four, Yates draining a 3-pointer to put the Saints ahead 8-4 in the first quarter. Upper Moreland, however, went up 15-12 after two Hughes free throws at 57.3 seconds then a Hernandez basket off a backcourt turnover. A Stanton trey knotted the game at 15 after the opening eight minutes.

Four straight points from Best gave the Bears a 24-21 lead while Hernandez’s 3-pointer from the right wing had UM up 27-23. A Campbell basket put the Bears ahead four again at 29-25 before Kody Colson’s 3-pointer in the half’s final seconds made it 29-28 UM at the break.

Upper Moreland 62, Neumann-Goretti 52

Neumann-Goretti 15 13 15 9 – 52

Upper Moreland 15 14 16 17 – 62

Neumann-Goretti: Alassan N’Diaye 10 0-1 20; Deshawn Yates 7 0-0 16; EJ Stanton 3 2-2 9; Totals 22 3-4 52; Jayden Williams 1 1-2 4; Kody Colson 1 0-0 3; Totals 22 3-4 52.

Upper Moreland: Nate Best 5 8-10 19; Cannon Campbell 8 1-1 18; Jose Hernandez 6 2-2 16; Larry Hughes 1 2-2 4; Kyle Moore 1 1-1 3; Chase Moore 1 0-0 2; Totals 22 14-16 62.

3-pointers: NG-Yates 2, Colson, Stanton, Williams; UM-Hernandez, Best, Campbell.