Manhattan ? Bishop Seabury boys basketball coach Ashley Battles could only think of two things in his entire life that had a greater significance than Friday evening’s six-overtime thriller at Bramlage Coliseum: his wedding day and the birth of his three children.

Despite Seabury’s heartbreaking 52-51 loss to St. John in the semifinals of the 2A state tournament, Battles was thrilled with the effort of his team and most of all, thrilled to be a part of such a classic game where “nobody lost.”

Still, the scoreboard showed a one-point loss for the Seahawks, and they will be playing for third place, not first, on Saturday afternoon. But for a moment, the Seahawks were on the verge of playing for their first-ever state title.

Then the unthinkable happened.

St John (24-1) guard Cole Kinnamon buried a double-clutch shot from about 35-feet away at the buzzer to down Seabury (19-5) in the sixth overtime.

“I’ve never been more dead inside than after seeing that ball go through the net and the clock hit zero,” Seabury junior Zach McDermott said. “I just love my team, and I’m proud of what we did.”

The Seahawks had a plethora of chances to win the game after escaping the first overtime unscathed. McDermott — who scored 23 points and grabbed 14 rebounds — sank two free throws with 8.5 seconds remaining to tie the game at 41-all and force a second overtime.

“I live for that moment,” McDermott said. “I’ll do anything to make sure my team wins.”

However, neither team scored in the next two overtimes. McDermott won the tip in both periods, and Seabury held the ball for the final shot each time.

The Seahawks shot just 29 percent against the Tigers’ zone defense, and Battles hoped holding the ball would force them to play man-to-man.

The Tigers never did, but the Seahawks got a good look at the buzzer in both overtime periods. Junior Bansi King’s shot bounced off the rim to end the second overtime, and McDermott’s 3-pointer rattled in-and-out to end the third overtime.

“We got the shots that we wanted,” Battles said. “We got them where we wanted them and got them in the hands of the guys we wanted to have it. They just didn’t fall for us.”

The teams’ traded baskets in the fourth overtime, but Seabury once again found itself with the ball on the final possession after a steal by senior Mikey Wycoff. He scored 15 points in the game, but missed a floater in the lane that would’ve won it.

With the St. John band chanting, “Lets’ play basketball” as Seabury held the ball to start the fifth overtime, McDermott made a driving layup, and Seabury took a 45-43 lead. Chase Fisher responded with a layup on the next possession for St. John, and Seabury had another chance to win the game.

With one second remaining, senior Max Easter threw a bomb down the sideline to McDermott on an inbounds pass, and McDermott’s deep three came up short. Easter ran to the sideline, hands on his head, and the marathon game continued.

“That’s definitely the highest level, most intense game with the most on the line I’ve ever been a part of,” McDermott said. “And I’ve been playing basketball since I could walk.”

McDermott hit a deep 3-pointer to start the sixth overtime, but the Seahawks missed three free throws down the stretch. That kept the game within one possession, which enabled Kinnamon, son of St. John coach Clint Kinnamon, to break Seabury’s hearts with an improbable buzzer-beater.

“I thought we had it,” McDermott said. “It was a hell of a shot, I give it up to him. He’s a great player and that’s just a great shot.”

Seabury will turn its attention to a third-place matchup with Hoxie (19-5) at 2 p.m. today. The Seahawks never planned on playing for third place, and Battles admits it would be much easier if they would have lost by 20 Friday.

Even so, they’re focused on one thing: finishing strong.

“It’s not about third or fourth, McDermott said, “but just ending our season with a win.”

ST. JOHN (52)

Quincy Smith 0-1 0-1 0, Cole Kinnamon 4-8 2-3 13, Alexis Valenzuela 0-3 0-0 0, Jorge Calleros 1-2 3-6 5, Chase Fisher 9-19 6-12 24, Triston Long 5-5 0-0 10, Tanner Halling 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 19-39 11-22 52.

BISHOP SEABURY (51)

Mikey Wycoff 4-15 7-8 15, Zach McDermott 5-18 11-14 23, Thomas Dizerega 1-2 1-2 3, Bansi King 3-6 0-0 8, Austin Gaumer 1-3 0-0 2, Max Easter 0-5 0-0 0. Totals: 14-49 19-24 51.

Seabury 8 9 9 13 2 0 0 2 2 6 — 51

St. John 13 4 9 13 2 0 0 2 2 7 — 52

Three point goals: Seabury 4-23 (McDermott 2, King 2). St. John 3-6 (Kinnamon 3). Turnovers: Seabury 15, St. John 13. Fouled out: Jorge Calleros.