ADAMS TWP - Hampton boys basketball coach Joe Lafko had seen the scenario before - and he didn't like the ending.

Fortunately on Thursday against Mars, his squad may have learned a few lessons from some tough losses earlier in the season.

Hampton enjoyed leads of 16 points in the first half and 14 in the second, only to see it wilt to just seven both times.

Then, it built a 17-point lead with 2:40 remaining, but a 13-2 push by the Planets made it a six-point game with 1:17 left.

Mars could get no closer the rest of the way as the Talbots held on for a 74-65 Section 1-AAA victory.

"We've been in a lot of tough situations against other good basketball teams," said Lafko. "It's nice to see we've learned from that."

Hampton (5-4, 3-1) suffered a two-point loss to North Allegheny earlier in the year and had 13-point leads against New Castle and Keystone Oaks, only to see both result in losses.

"Hopefully, that experience has paid off," he added.

Mars (7-3, 3-1) trailed 13-12 late in the first quarter before Hampton went on a 13-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Joe Cangilla with 6:22 left before halftime to give the squad a 26-12 lead.

"They're a very good basketball team," said Mars coach Rob Carmody. "They're well-coached and have guys who can shoot the ball. If you fall behind and have to play catch-up, you fall right into their hands."

With the game at 31-21, the Talbots' Asa Braxton and John Ward drained consecutive treys to open up a 37-21 lead with 2:04 left before the half.

"This was building," said Carmody. "We had jumped out on other people, but after the Pine-Richland game (Dec. 11), we've come out flat.

"Maybe we're full of ourselves. You can't do that. Hampton was ticked off they lost to Knoch at home and had to try and make that game back up," Carmody added.

The Planets did answer with a 9-0 spurt - highlighted by a Tim Frye 3-pointer and a pair of free throws - to trim the deficit to seven with 45.9 seconds left.

In the third quarter, Hampton rebuilt its lead to 14 with 3:46 remaining before a basket by Sean Gallagher and a 3-pointer and a score by Scott Martinelli sliced the margin in half two minutes later.

John Ward then took control of the game by sandwiching a pair of 3-pointers around a basket to stake Hampton to a 58-43 lead with 7:17 remaining.

Hampton increased the lead to 65-48 before the Planets' one final push.

Gallagher connected on a 3-pointer and a basket to kick-start a 13-2 run - which also included consecutive 3-pointers by Mark Lucas and Frye and a pair of free throws by Charlie Jaicks - for a 67-61 game with 1:17 left.

The teams exchanged scores on each of their next two possessions, which would keep the Planets at bay the rest of the game.

Despite the home loss, Carmody hopes his team has learned a little something, but doesn't want the loss to detract from what his team has done already.

"The seniors here won only four games as freshmen," said Carmody. "They won two road games last year and already have four this year.

"We won at Highlands for the first time ever and we beat Pine-Richland. We've done a lot of neat things.

"Hopefully, with the holiday, we'll recharge our batteries and come back Tuesday resilient and come out flying again," he added.

Notes:

Ward led all scorers with 22 points, while teammates Bob Bartley added 13 and Steve Paskorz added 10 … Mars was paced by Martinelli (19), Gallagher (15) and Frye (13).

HAMPTON 74

Joe Cangilla 3 2-4 9, Brian Dandrea 2 4-4 9, John Ward 8 2-2 22, Bob Bartley 6 1-1 13, Steve Paskorz 3 4-4 10, Zach Ingoldsby 1 1-2 3, Mike Bittner 1 3-4 5, Asa Braxton 1 0-0 3. Totals: 25 17-21 21 74.

MARS 65

Sean Gallagher 5 4-4 15, Scott Martinelli 5 7-8 19, Mark Lucas 1 0-0 3, Dusty Wessel 2 0-0 4, Tim Frye 4 2-2 13, Robbie Herold 1 0-1 2, Charlie Jaicks 2 2-2 7, Zach Zollner 0 0-0 0, Steve Cress 1 0-0 2. Totals: 21 15-17 65.

3-point goals: Ward 4, Cangilla, Dandrea, Braxton; Frye 3, Martinelli 2, Lucas, Jaicks

JV: Mars, 55-47

Tuesday: Mars at Mars Holiday Tournament