HARTSELLE — Hartselle and Decatur spent the night running up the court.

They spent the night running down the court.

They chased loose balls. They made turnovers, and they made steals.

For good measure, playing the regulation 32 minutes wasn’t enough for the two girls basketball teams. They needed a four-minute overtime period before Decatur prevailed 62-57.

The Lady Red Raiders made 18 steals and forced 36 turnovers, while the Lady Tigers managed 16 steals of their own and made Decatur give up the ball 25 times.

But after the exhausting game, perhaps the most eye-catching statistic of the night belonged to Decatur point guard Lindsey Hawkins — she played every second of the action-packed contest.

“She’s our floor leader, and we need her on the floor,” Decatur coach Brad Boy said, wearing a big smile after his team scored its second win in seven days over Hartselle.

The two teams also met in the third-place game of the Decatur Orthopaedic Clinic Classic, which Decatur won by three points.

In this one, the Lady Red Raiders outlasted the Lady Tigers on a night in which they swapped momentum almost as often as they swapped the ball.

“I don’t think I could count up all the lead changes,” Boy said.

Whitney Fletcher gave Decatur (9-11) its final edge. She had a game-high 26 points and three steals.

In overtime, she scored five points, including two on a key steal and layup with 1:17 to play to put Decatur up 61-53.

“She’s in such good condition that in a situation like that, when everybody is a step slower, she’s a step quicker,” Boy said.

Britney McCloud added 15 points, five rebounds and two steals.

Hawkins had eight points, three assists and three steals.

Sally Adams had seven points, three rebounds and four steals.

All of her points came in the final two minutes of regulation and the overtime period. All of them followed critical steals.

For Hartselle (9-8), senior Anna Reeves had 14 points — including the Lady Tigers’ first 10 of the night — and four steals. Jessi Smith added 13 points, five rebounds and five assists. Alex Holmes managed 10 points, six rebounds and a game-high eight steals.

Heather Speegle had nine points, and Lauren Dye had five points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals. She made two important free throws when Hartselle trailed 51-49 with 52 seconds left in regulation. Neither team scored again until overtime.

Hartselle boys 44, Decatur 34: Hartselle High’s coaches preached a little relaxation to their boys basketball players Friday night, and it worked.

They asked their Tigers to lay back just a tad on defense. Instead of playing aggressively and gambling for steals, Hartselle stayed back, packed it in tight and left no openings near the basket.

It worked as the Hartselle defense made the difference in the Tigers’ home win over Decatur.

Hartselle allowed only two points in the fourth quarter as the Tigers found a measure of revenge for a season-opening loss to Decatur, which took that victory with a last-second shot.

“Our philosophy on defense is to be real physical, but in the fourth quarter, we told them to especially not let Decatur get behind us,” Hartselle coach Johnny Berry said. “We had been real aggressive, but we told our guys to quit trying to get steals.

“The credit goes to (assistants) Coach (Gary) Orr and Coach (Keith) Wright. They handle the defense. Us having 44 points is my job — I’m the one who messes up the offense.”

Decatur (2-12) held a 32-29 lead heading into the closing seconds of the third quarter. Hartselle’s Jeremy Roper nailed a 3-pointer to send the two teams into the final period tied at 32.

The Tigers (10-9) took a quick 37-34 lead with the help of two baskets by Sam Fleischman. After that, they rode their defense, which Decatur couldn’t crack.

Decatur coach Jamie Lee said his team struggled against the matchup zone Hartselle began using after it took the lead in the final period.

“The credit goes to Hartselle,” Decatur coach Jamie Lee said. “Defensively, they shut us down.”

For Hartselle, Alex Brown had 16 points, two assists and two steals. Roper added nine points, four rebounds and two steals, while Rodney Stansberry had eight points and seven rebounds.

Decatur got 15 points and two assists from William Johnson. Cody Mitchell added nine points, and Torrick Spangler pulled down eight rebounds. Mitch Fawcett had three assists and three steals.

Afterward, despite the loss, Lee delivered an upbeat message for his team.

“I hope they understand that they’re getting better,” Lee said. “They haven’t seen the rewards for it, but they’re getting better, and I’m extremely proud of these kids for how they’re fighting. They’re not giving up.”