The championship final looms over the students of Tree Hill High as excitement builds as the big game approaches. Nathan is ravaged by the order from Dante to throw the game which he appears to have to obey. He attempts to explain this to Lucas as the pair stand on the River Court. Lucas comments on the irony of them battling on the same spot they did a year ago. He promises to do everything in his power to prevent Nathan from throwing the game.

Rachel begins her tutoring with Haley who is still unsure about their arrangement. Despite Haley’s efforts Rachel doesn’t cooperate however he interest is raised as Haley pulls out a set of keys to a filing cabinet filled with current and future test papers.

The team and the fans make their way to the game by car and bus. The cheerleaders have to cram into Rachel’s car as they are not allowed on the team bus which raises complaints from Brooke about having to stop every few minutes for a toilet break for Haley and being forced to share a car with Peyton.

Lucas continues to battle Nathan over his decision pointing out the numerous lives that will be affected if the game is thrown. Whilst on the team bus heading to the game stadium he points out the damage it will do to Whitey, with the championship being the final game he will coach, and encourages Nathan to look around at their fellow team mates who are gearing up for a game which will decide their futures.

Karen attempts to rouse Deb who is still relying heavily on drugs to get herself through recent events in her life. She pleads with Deb to think about Nathan for once and commands her to get dressed and join Karen as she drives up to the game. Deb complies however she brings her pills with her on the trip and continues to act out of character in the few snatches of conversation she has during their journey. Eventually Deb succumbs to the drugs and falls asleep leaving Karen to continue to a drug rehabilitation centre where she drops Deb off before continuing on to the game. When Deb comes around she is in a well furnished room with in the rehab clinic with a TV on so she can watch Nathan’s progress in the state championship game.

In the changing room before the game Lucas pulls Skills to one side and lets him know about Nathan and his plans to throw the game. He and skills agree to freeze Nathan out of the play to prevent him from ruining their chances. They put this into action on the court however the Raven’s still take heavy point losses in the early stages of the game and Nathan gives the ball away during the times which he has possession. The game continues to go poorly for the Ravens much to the delight of Dante and Bear. As Lucas is taken off court after his 15 minutes are the Raven’s points deficit deepens. Frustration takes Skills and he and Nathan begin to fight on court. At the half time buzzer the Raven trail by 15 points. Whitey plays a tape of the last Tree Hill Ravens championship game which took place 18 years ago and involved Dan Scott. He pleads with those gathered to not let history repeat itself again and asks them to dig deep and work together as a tam.

Haley is rushed to hospital by her fellow cheerleaders after she collapses in the bathroom before the game. A check up shows that the baby is fine and the collapse was due to stress. Whilst telling Haley this the doctor inadvertently reveals the sex of the baby, telling Haley that she will be having a baby boy.

Nathan finds his resolve wavering as the second half of the game approaches. The presence of Haley boosts his confidence as does the news that they will be having a son. During the second half Nathan attempts to play basketball properly and he works with Skills and Lucas to turn the game around. The Ravens claw their way back into the game and find themselves trailing by 2 points with seconds to the final buzzer. A time out is called and Lucas is allowed back on the court for the last moments of the game as the Ravens attempt to win the championship. The team require two points to draw the game and a three pointer to win it. They break from their huddle and take to the court for the last time in the game. The ball is quickly passed into the Pontiacs half and Nathan gets an opportunity to shoot for two points and a draw. At the last moments he pulls the shot and passes to Lucas standing behind him. In a flash Lucas takes his three point shot, the ball hangs in the air for moments as the entire stadium watches the ball fly towards the net. It bounces off the backboard and drops neatly to secure three points and a win for the Tree Hill Ravens.

In the after game celebrations on court, Lucas finds himself talking to Brooke. She tells him that it is o.k if he chooses to be with Peyton, a blessing which sees him look for his friend and tell her that she is the one that he wants to stand beside him in the future. Amidst hundreds of fans and a never ending flurry of ticker tape, the pair kiss as they begin their relationship.

Abandoning throwing the game and risking Dante’s wrath seems to have paid off for Nathan. During the moments after the game everything seems right amongst his friends and family. This satisfaction does not last long though as Dante attempts to get revenge. The team and fans take their celebrations back to Tric, however Nathan and Haley leave early as Haley is tired from the days excitement. On the street outside they hold each other unaware of the car which slowly starts as soon as they wander off the footpath. As Nathan begins to tell Haley about why he played poorly in the first half of the game the car behind them picks up speed. The headlights are flicked on drawing Haley’s attention to the car. There is only enough time for Haley to push Nathan away from her. The car hits Haley and she bounces off the windscreen and smashes into the road behind. Dante looses control of the car and smashes into lamppost further down the street. Nathan falls to the ground beside Haley as Luke appears from Tric. He rushes over to where Nathan is huddle over Haley and calls an ambulance. Nathan spots the crashed car and tells Lucas to watch over Haley as he runs to the car to confront Dante. He rips open the car door and pulls Dante from inside and begins punching the semi conscious Dante landing crashing blows on his face. Nathan is stopped in mid punch by Dan who checks Dante’s pulse and tells Nathan that he has killed the man. As police sirens are heard getting nearer, Dan encourages Nathan to run from the scene. He then punches the ground several times to get bloody knuckles and turns with his hands in the air as the first patrol car pulls up. Lucas attempts to tell the ambulance what has happened. He manages to gasp out Haley’s name and that she is pregnant. He appears to faint with the panic of the situation, however one of the paramedics who attends to him quickly realises he has gone into cardiac arrest and starts CPR.