The Republic Bank Louisville Invitational final between St. Xavier and Butler was a battle of two halves.

It looked like the Tigers would run away with their first LIT title in nearly 60 years after they jumped out to a 15-4 lead in the opening moments of the game, thanks to 10 quick points from junior Graham Krezmien. Through the first 16 minutes, St. X scored at a 70% clip while holding Butler to 40% from the field en route to a 52-33 lead at the half.

Butler responded with its own brand of relentlessness to open the second half, but it wasn’t enough as St. X held on for an 83-76 win and its first LIT title since 1965.

"Starting us off huge was really what we needed," said Krezmien, who finished with 15 points and eight rebounds. "That's what we're all about: foot on the gas, we can't look back. We (have) bigger things planned, this is just the start."

Powered by an 11-0 run, Butler outscored St. X 23-9 in the third quarter to cut into its 19-point halftime deficit.

"(Butler) is a reflection of their coach," said St. X coach Kevin Klein, in his 16th season leading the Tigers, of third-year Butler coach Kevin Geary. "We told (our players) that third quarter they were gonna come out spitting fire and we knew we had not seen their best. I was just proud of how we looked adversity right in the eye for about the fifth or sixth time this season and we ran with it."

Butler's third quarter fueled a fast-and-furious fourth quarter, highlighted by a back-and-forth duel between St. X’s Chance Dillingham, who finished with 20 points, and Butler's Dayton Williams (27 points, eight rebounds). Dillingham's four-point play to give St. X a 73-65 lead late in the fourth proved to be the difference maker.

"It's just whoever wants it more really," Dillingham said. "I feel like in this moment, I wanted it more, my (teammates) we wanted it more. What we did as a team really helped us (win) this game."

Added Geary, "This game had several kids that will play at the next level. For a high school game that's all you can hope for."

Reach sports reporter Brooks Warren at bwarren@gannett.com and follow him on X at @Broookksss.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville Invitational Tournament 2024: St. Xavier High School wins