JEFFERSON TWP — Once Knoch started to build momentum, there was no stopping the Knights.

An 11-2 surge to end the first half gave Knoch a 10-point lead and the Knights maintained a comfortable cushion the rest of the way for a 61-42 victory over Freeport in a mutual Section 1-AAA boys basketball opener on Thursday night at Knoch High School.

Austin Miller paced the Knights (2-2, 1-0) with 17 points, six assists and three steals, while Dakota Bruggeman tallied a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Knoch coach Ron McNabb believes work on the glass from Bruggeman, Marc Vaughan and Matthew Zanella turned the tide after Freeport held a 13-10 edge early in the second quarter.

“We didn't start out the game very well on the boards. I was a little frustrated with that because we've put a lot of emphasis on that,” McNabb explained. “I thought that was a big turning point when we started controlling the boards. We started rebounding and guarding real hard and I thought that was real good for us.”

Freeport (1-3, 0-1) couldn't cut the gap to any closer than eight points in the second half, but was still within 10 midway through the fourth. However, the Knights went on another 11-2 run to end the game.

“Coming down the stretch with a little bit of breathing room was nice,” McNabb noted.

A stout Knoch defense was made more challenging in a road environment. Freeport shot 30 percent from the field, including 1-for-16 from 3-point range.

“I think we're still trying to find the right mix in the bench rotation,” said Freeport coach Mike Beale. “I thought we executed well early and got some nice, open looks. But when you're on the road, you have to hit shots and we just didn't hit our shots.

“We have full confidence in our shooters and they know that,” he added. “If they have the shot, I want them to take it. Tonight, they just rimmed out and didn't go down.”

Brendan Lynch led the Yellowjackets with 15 points, a game-high seven assists and two steals. Robbie Miller added nine points, six rebounds and two steals for Freeport, while Tony DeVivo pulled down a team-high seven boards.

“Freeport is explosive. Coach Beale does a good job with those guys,” said McNabb. “The coaching staff was real nervous coming into the game, so I was real happy with the way the kids responded. It was huge for us.”

Austin Miller, who was 3-for-7 from beyond the arc, hopes starting off the section schedule with a win in front of the home crowd can catapult the Knights to a stellar season.

“It gets the confidence up. We have to keep working hard in practice; big things can happen,” said Miller. “We're coming together as a family, playing well together, hopefully keep it rolling and we'll see what we can do later in the year.”

Zanella recorded 11 points for Knoch, Chris Kier dished out five assists and both blocked two shots, as well. Vaughan finished with six points — all of which came in the first half — and seven rebounds.

“Any win in the section is a great win for us,” said McNabb. “I want these guys to get used to that and start getting confidence in themselves.

“I'm just real proud of our effort and if we keep playing like that, I think we can get a lot better, too.”

FREEPORT 42

Brendan Lynch 5-18 5-6 15, Robbie Miller 4-14 0-0 9, Tony DeVivo 1-8 0-0 2, Ethan McCormick 0-2 0-0 0, Josh Beale 1-3 0-0 2, Seth Bowser 3-6 0-0 6, Fred Pastoria 3-5 0-0 6, Zane Geist 0-3 0-0 0, Mason Eddinger 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 18-60 5-6 42.

KNOCH 61

Chris Kier 1-2 0-0 3, Dakota Bruggeman 5-11 4-5 14, David Gallagher 2-6 1-2 6, Austin Miller 5-9 4-4 17, Marc Vaughan 3-8 0-2 6, Alex Campbell 0-0 0-0 0, Matthew Zanella 5-7 1-3 11, Ben Pfieffer 2-4 0-0 5. Totals: 23-47 10-16 61.

Freeport 6 11 13 12—42

Knoch8 19 19 15—61

3-point goals: Freeport 1-16 (Miller 1-5, Lynch 0-4, DeVivo 0-4, Beale 0-1, Bowser 0-1, Pastoria 0-1). Knoch 5-13 (Miller 3-7, Gallagher 1-3, Kier 1-2, Pfieffer 0-1).

JV: Freeport 36, Knoch 32. F: Eddinger 11, Bowser 10. K: Adams 8, Miller 7.

Tuesday: Freeport at Valley, 7:30 p.m.; Kittanning at Knoch, 7:30 p.m.