(5-15-26) Two North Carolina boys basketball teams…Boone Trail and Angier played what is widely recognized as the longest recorded high school basketball game in history.

Date:

February 15, 1961

Length of Game:

13 overtimes

Final Score:

Angier 56, Boone Trail 54

After the regulation game ended in a 44-44 tie, the two teams would play in 13 overtime sessions, and both teams used only the original five starting players in the game with no substitutions. The teams only scored a combined 18 points in the 13 overtime sessions, and there were nine sessions where neither team scored any points.

Boone Trail’s Frankie Stewart led all scorers with 29 points. Reportedly, one of the Angier players was so superstitious that the coaches told his team to not tell him they were in overtime number 13.

The game began at 8:30 p.m. Saturday night and ended just before midnight. With the final buzzer, it just avoided the “no play on Sunday” rule.

Why It Lasted So Long

  • There was no shot clock.
  • Teams often held the ball for long stretches to protect a lead or wait for a high-percentage shot.
  • Overtime periods were only 3 minutes long at the time in North Carolina.
  • Fatigue became a major factor as starters played nearly the entire game.

Historical Significance

  • The game lasted nearly four hours.
  • It became a North Carolina high school sports legend.
  • It is still cited as the longest high school basketball game ever played in terms of overtime periods.
  • This game was held at Campbell University’s Carter Gym and is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest basketball game ever played. The gym was small in size and could seat only 947 spectators. 
  • The game was part of the Harnett County high school championship.