LEHIGHTON - There were several big factors that played into Lehighton's 60-48 Schuylkill League boys basketball loss to visiting North Schuylkill on Monday.

The Indians started slow, they never had an answer for a trio of North Schuylkill double-digit scorers, and they were killed by turnovers."Every time we made a run and got into the game we turned it over," said Lehighton head coach Rich Oertner. "We had 11 turnovers from our big guys, and you can't win with that many turnovers."Lehighton was also unable to control 6-6 swing player Tevin Murray, guard Bobby Grigas and forward Jonathan Smith. Murray slipped in 20 points and collared seven rebounds; Grigas dropped a 17-point spot on the Indians, and Smith checked in with 16 points and 12 rebounds."Grigas hurt us," said Oertner, "We gave them some easy baskets, and we stood around. We had to go man-to-man which isn't our best (defense). We looked lethargic and didn't play very good defense ... plus the turnovers."The Indians countered with Damian Mele and Nick Chambers. Mele scored 14 points to lead his side, including four from beyond the arc. Chambers added 13 points.The Spartans were sizzling to open the game, going 5-for-5 from the floor to jump out to a 13-2 lead. Connor Wood, Girgas and Murray drained triples in the run."We made it a huge point to come out fast today, because in our last couple of games we played from behind," said North Schuylkill's first-year coach Ty Wertman. "Once you do that you can calm down and run things a lot smoother."Murray hit a pair of quick buckets to open the second quarter for a 20-10 lead, but in the middle of the period the Indians cut it to 26-21. Chambers was a monster off the boards all night hauling in 14 rebounds, including a put back that sliced the lead to five points. Also during the rally, Hunter Greene had two of the nine three-pointers the Indians hit during the game.However North Schuylkill posted the final five points for a 31-21 halftime lead.It was almost a duplicate in the third period as Lehighton pulled to within five points after a Chambers followup, but North Schuylkill answered back and when Murray finished off a three-point play with a foul conversion, the lead stood at 49-36 after three quarters.Playing its best ball of the night at the onset of the final period, the Indians charged back on a Greene basket, Tanner Zwetolitz's third trey of the contest, and a Chambers inside deuce.But the rally fizzled from that point on as North Schuylkill spread the floor, allowing Smith to get six points in the final three minutes.QUOTABLE … Wertman had plenty of praise for the Indians, specifically Chambers and Zwetolitz. "Chambers is so strong and can really jump. You don't negate him, you try and manage him," he said. "They also are dangerous from the perimeter. Zwetolitz is such a great three-point shooter and the way they dribble and penetrate and kickout, it gives them a lot of (looks)."STATISTICS … The Indians owned the glass, 35-25. NS went 24-for-48 from the floor. The Indians were 19-for-57.JUNIOR VARSITY .… North Schuylkill won the opener in OT, 36-32. The Indians were led by Addison Howland with 15.NORTH SCHUYLKILLMurray 8-3-3-20, Grigas 6-3-4-17, Smith 7-1-2-16, Wood 2-0-0-5, Jordan 1-0-1-2, Mazur 0-0-0-0, Wesit 0-0-0-0. Totals 24-7-10-60.LEHIGHTONMele 5-0-0-14,Chambers 6-1-2-13, Greene 4-0-0-9, Zwetolitz 3-0-0-9, McDowell 1-0-0-3.Totals 191-2-48.North Schuylkill 16 15 18 11 - 60Lehighton 7 17 12 12 - 48Three-point field goals: NS - Grigas 2, Murray 1, Smith 1, Wood 1. L - Mele 4, Zwetolitz 3, Geen 1, McDowell 1.