HAMPTON TWP — Against Hampton on Friday, Knoch did everything it could to keep the Talbots from pulling away in their Section 1-AAA contest.

In the end, it turned out to be too much Matt Madia.

Madia, a 6-foot senior guard, poured in a game-high 27 points, including 18 in the opening half, to key Hampton's 51-43 boys basketball victory over the Knights.

"Matt Madia had a tremendous game. He's been leading us all year," said Hampton coach Joe Lafko. "He's really become an important leader, not just in points and assists, but emotionally and verbally."

Madia scored 11 of the Talbots' 15 first-quarter points and his 3-pointer with 6:07 left before halftime allowed the squad to open up a 21-14 lead.

"(Madia) shoots well, so you can't sag off on him," said Knoch coach Chris Andreassi. "You have to guard him and he has a very quick first step.

"You have to bring help, You can't leave any one player on an island with him and that's what we did in the second half."Andreassi added.

Knoch (6-10, 3-5) countered with a score by Mike Gallagher and a 3-pointer by Chris Cetnar — the Knights' fifth at that point — to make it a two-point game with 3:26 before the break.

Hampton (14-3, 7-2) reeled off the final seven points of the half, then opened the second half with scores by Tim Donegan and Bill Luther to take a seemingly commanding 32-19 lead.

"We had one or two turnovers and we missed some shots," said Andreassi. "They finished on their end."

But a score by Gallagher, two free throws by Jake McTighe and baskets by Andrew Wirtz and Gallagher pulled Knoch to within 32-27.

The Knights cut the deficit to two points twice, the latter time at 39-37, but Nate Winek converted a three-point play and Donegan added another basket to give the Talbots a 44-37 lead with 3:21 remaining.

Knoch scored only one point in a five-minute stretch in the fourth quarter, allowing Hampton to pull away.

"This victory was really big for us, especially after the (64-56) loss to Mars on Tuesday," said Lafko, whose team saw its nine-game winning streak snapped against the Planets. "You never know how the kids will bounce back."

The loss offset the performance of Gallagher, who finished with a 19-point effort.

"Give Mike Gallagher credit," said Lafko. "He was hitting shots with guys in his face. (Madia and Gallagher) are two of the best guards in the area and they put on a good show tonight."

KNOCH 43Mike Gallagher 8 0-0 19, Andrew Wirtz 4 1-2 12, Chris Cetnar 2 0-0 6, Jake McTighe 2 2-2 6, Micah Lio 0 0-0 0, Cory Miller 0 0-0 0, Nathan Junk 0 0-0 0, Kevin Wood 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 16 3-4 43.

HAMPTON 51Bill Luther 2 3-4 7, Nate Winek 2 2-4 6, Matt Madia 9 7-8 27, Tim Donegan 5 1-3 11, T.J. Brown 0 0-0 0, Chris Dill 0 0-0 0, Jordan Paskorz 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 18 13-19 51.

Knoch 11 8 13 11—43Hampton 15 13 9 14—513-point goals: Gallagher 3, Wirtz 3, Cetnar 2; Madia 2

JV: Knoch, 51-45

Monday: Perry at Knoch