Northwestern came up big in the final minutes to pull away from Palmerton and post a 60-53 Colonial League boys basketball victory on Thursday.

The game was deadlocked at 50-50 with two minutes to go, before the Tigers cemented the win with a closing flurry.

Ethan Lazarus hit a shot to snap the late tie, but Palmerton fired right back as Chase Reph scored a bucket to tie the game once again. Lazarus was then fouled while attempting a three-pointer, and hit all three free throws, giving the Tigers the lead for good.

Runs were a name of the game in this one, and Northwestern Lehigh ended the game on a 10-3 spurt to grab the road win in a very physical contest.

“These are two physical teams,” Northwestern coach Cory Cesare said. “I think the rebounds were a war every time the ball went up. I think our guys battled and they took good care of the ball, a lot better than our last game. They were strong with it.

“We also made our free throws down the stretch, and that really helped us.”

Lararus agreed with his coach’s assessment.

“The free-throw shooting was huge,” he said. “We missed maybe one as a team, and I think that’s what really sealed it for us. Defensively, we gave up a couple of and-ones, but it was OK because we shot so good.”

Cayden Fitch was the top scorer for the Tigers with 19 points, including four three-pointers. After a tough opening game in a 45-43 win over Pen Argyl, Fitch rebounded with a big game against Palmerton.

“Palmerton played well,” Fitch said. “The 1-3-1 they used really shook things up, and we did struggle at times. It seemed like they had their run and we had our run. But we fought until the end and found a way to pull it out.”

Fitch has experience after playing last year for the Tigers, and really showed his skills against the Blue Bombers. The Northwestern junior drilled some key shots in the contest, and didn’t beat himself up in tough situations.

“That’s what I have to focus on,” Fitch added. “I can’t hang my head. I’m a leader on this team, and I have to lead. You feed off of your leaders.”

Cesare, who is in his first year as coach, had seen Fitch play and knew what he was getting this year.

“I have the utmost confidence in that kid,” Cesare said. I think he can play with anybody in this league. He had a tough first game, and I told him if you miss 11 shots in a row, I want you to take the twelfth. I think he showed it tonight what he can do.”

Matt Machalik and Brayden Hosier were the top performers for the Bombers.

“Northwestern played hard, and played well,” Palmerton head coach Ken Termini said. “They hit their free throws, and I tip my hat off to them. We got plenty of great looks, and we just didn’t make it.

“We’re an incredibly young team. When I saw we played Southern Lehigh and Northwestern in our first two league games, I felt like if we could be competitive in those games, it would be an indication that we can grow into a very good team. We were very competitive in both games. So even though they both ended up in losses, I’m not taking anything negative away from our start.”

Although Termini was pleased with his team’s effort, he did admit it left some points on the court.

“What I’m taking away from this is that when you miss 22 shots from seven feet or less in the second half alone, and you lose by a couple points, that’s probably the reason why,” he said. “It wasn’t that we weren’t getting good shots, we just didn’t put enough of them in, and that happens sometimes.”

The Tigers improve to 2-0 on the season, while the Blue Bombers fall to 1-2.

TAKING OVER NW ... Cesare was named coach just before the start of the season “It’s been exciting, and a whirlwind. It’s all happened fast,” he said. “I’m taking it one step at a time, and I’m loving every second of it. I’m fortunate to work with such hardworking kids, and the community that supports their program. I couldn’t be happier with where I’m at.”

NORTHWESTERN

Fitch 7-1-3-19, Lazarus 4-9-9-17. Christopher 5-2-3-12. Witkowski 2-3-3-7. Shuhay 0-1-2-1. Heilman 1-2-2-4. TOTALS: 19-18-22-60.

PALMERTON

Reph 7-3-7-18, Machalik 6-1-5-15, Hosier 5-0-0-11, Anthony 2-1-4-5, Leister 1-0-1-2. Grammes 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 22-5-17-53.

Northwestern 11 13 19 17 - 60

Palmerton 7 14 17 15 - 53

Three-pointers: NW- Fitch 4; P- Machalik 2, Reph 1, Hosier 1.