JEFFERSONTWP— It was all about the 3-ball.

Knoch's Michael Gallagher was enjoying it. Coach Chris Andreassi?Not so much.

Gallagher struck for a career-high 30 points and drained six treys as the Knights held off Deer Lakes, 60-48, in boys basketball action Tuesday night.

"(Forward Jake McTighe) scored 30 on them last time, so they were packing it on him pretty good,"Gallagher said. "We were getting a lot of open looks out there."

Gallagher and Chris Cetnar began the game by sinking 3-pointers, but Knoch (7-11, 4-5) did not sink a two-point field goal during the first quarter. With 1:31 left in the third quarter, the game was tied at 32 and the Knights had registered just five two-point buckets by that time.

"We were getting the open shots, but our percentage from out there wasn't very good,"Andreassi said. "We had to commit to getting the ball inside to Jake.

"That's what it took, a commitment from everybody to do that. We spread the floor a little more in the fourth quarter. They had to come out and guard us and that opened things up for Jake."

McTighe scored 11 of his 17 points in the final period, sinking five layups, including a pair of stickbacks on offensive rebounds.

"He can be a force down in there,"Andreassi said.

Gallagher can be a force outside — and was on this night.

His 3-pointer beat the first-half buzzer and gave the Knights a 23-14 lead at intermission. Gallagher nailed another trey just before the third-quarter buzzer, snapping that 32-32 tie and giving Knoch the lead for good.

"He's a great player and our plan was to never leave him,"Deer Lakes coach Kevin Cochran said. "If he took a shot from the concession stand, our guy was supposed to be with him.

"But we doubled down a few times, lost him and he made us pay for it."

Gallagher sank six 3-pointers in a game for the third time this season. He has 57 treys on the campaign and 160 for his career — six shy of Steve Graff's school record 166.

"I watched him play when I was a little kid,"Gallagher said of Graff. "It'd be an honor to pass his record."

Andreassi coached Graff in junior high.

"What a tremendous pure shooter that kid was,"Andreassi said. "But I think Michael's going get his record."

Tuesday's win kept the Knights' WPIALplayoff hopes alive. With games remaining against Highlands, Valley and Mars, they likely will have to win them all to get in.

"All we're worried about is getting better at our next practice,"Andreassi said. "When you look at the scoreboard, you take away your own preparation time."

McTighe had 10 rebounds to go with his 17 points. Cetnar had nine points and five rebounds, Gallagher four rebounds and three steals.

Knoch had lost six of its last seven games before Tuesday's win. Deer Lakes (3-15, 0-10) lost its seventh straight.

Ryan Stanko, averaging 20.4 points per game, scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Lancers. Deer Lakes hasn't been to the playoffs since 2001.

"It's been pretty dismal for us since then," Cochran said. "We pulled even tonight a couple of times, but we don't know how to win yet. We've been bumped up to Triple-A and we're taking our lumps."

DEERLAKES48Mike Whitico 2-7 3-4 8, Josh Gaston 0-0 0-0 0, Hunter Waits 1-3 0-0 2, Jeff Fleming 4-9 0-0 8, Joe Babinchak 0-1 0-0 0, Zach Reichard 4-11 0-1 9, Ryan Stanko 8-18 4-5 21. Totals: 19-49 7-10 48

KNOCH60Cory Miller 0-2 0-0 0, Kevin Wood 0-2 0-0, Michael Gallagher 10-19 4-4 30, Chris Cetnar 4-11 0-1 9, Brandon Flick 0-2 0-0 0, Jake McTighe 7-14 3-4 17, Robert Zanella 0-0 0-0 0, Nathan Junk 1-3 0-0 2, Micah Lio 0-0 2-4 2. Totals: 22-53 9-13 60

Deer Lakes 8 6 18 16—48Knoch 10 13 12 25—603-point goals: Whitico, Reichard, Stanko; Gallagher 6, Cetnar

JV: Knoch, 50-15 (K:Robert Zanella 10, Jed Whisler 10; DL:Joe Kunc 7)

Friday: Knoch at Highlands