When you find something that’s working well, you stick with it.

Wednesday night, Southern Lehigh’s 1-2-2 half-court zone defense worked extremely well against Palmerton.

The Spartans’ zone forced the Bombers to attempt over 20 three-pointers in the Colonial League matchup - and they struggled mightily from beyond the arc.

Palmerton started the game cold, and then couldn’t get key jumpers to fall late as it dropped a 56-55 double overtime decision to the Spartans.

“We thought our zone had the potential to work well, and it did, but unfortunately early on we didn’t rebound well out of it, which helped give them second chances,” said Southern Lehigh head coach Ryan Wehr. “But we defended hard, and whether we were in our zone, or in our man, our priority was to really pack the paint and force them to shoot from the outside.”

The Spartans defense made an impact immediately as the Bombers shot just 1-for-7 from threepoint land in the first quarter which helped Southern Lehigh jump out to a 12-4 first lead.

But Palmerton - which battled back numerous times throughout the game - finished the quarter on an 8-1 run to cut the deficit to 13-12.

The Bombers shooting woes would continue in the second quarter as they shot 0-for-5 in the frame from three-point range, allowing Southern Lehigh to build a 28-23 lead at intermission. Big man Max Pristas led the way for the Spartans with nine points in the first half.

Paint touches came few and far between for the Palmerton offense in the first half.

“From outside the arc, the ball jut didn’t want to go down for us tonight - and we had good looks. We just couldn’t get one to fall,” said Palmerton coach Ken Termini. “We had a good look at the end of regulation, at the end of the first overtime and at the end of the second overtime, and again it was just one of those nights where the ball just wouldn’t go down for us. Credit to Southern Lehigh, they played well defensively.

“For us, we just need to stay positive and keep working hard.”

Although the Bombers continued to shoot poorly from three-point range in the third quarter, they were finally able to get deeper into the Southern Lehigh zone, improving their looks at the basket.

Matt Machalik led that effort for Palmerton, as he finished with 10 points and four rebounds in the frame. While Machalik picked up the offense in the quarter, no other Bomber scored and they still trailed (36-33) heading into the fourth period.

The two teams would skirmish back-and-forth in both the fourth quarter and overtime.

With the score knotted at 45-45 in the final seconds of the regulation, Palmerton was able to get a good look from the right elbow, but it wouldn’t go down as time expired. At the end of the first overtime with the score tied at 49-49, a Bombers’ shot from the right wing to win it was deflected by a Southern Lehigh defender to force another extra session.

A clutch three-point play with just under a minute remaining in the second OT by the Spartans’ Jonah Shaw gave Southern Lehigh a 56-53 lead. Machalik answered with a deuce for the Bombers - and after a pair of missed of one-and-one opportunities by the Spartans - Palmerton once again had a chance to win it the final seconds, but a shot from the top of the key was too strong.

“We were able to do just enough to pull out that win. I really like coming up here and the challenge this gym presents, because their fans are passionate and really care,” said Wehr. “It’s always a good atmosphere here, so it was good to get the win against a really good Palmerton team.

“I really liked our kids’ toughness, and I think it says a lot about them to close out a win like that on the road in a tough environment.”

ICE COLD … The story of the night for Palmerton was its struggles from beyond the three-point line as it finished 1-for-23.

SCORING LEADERS … Machalik led Palmerton with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Brayden Hosier added 16 points. For So. Lehigh, Pristas scored a team-high 19 and Shaw added 13.

IMPACT … With the win, it appears Southern Lehigh (14-6, 12-3) will join Notre Dame Green Pond with byes in the opening round of the Colonial League playoffs. Meanwhile, Palmerton (15-5, 11-4) will host a quarterfinal game on Saturday, Feb. 11.

SOUTHERN LEHIGH

Gordon 2-0-0-4, Plessl 0-0-0-0, Brunner 1-2-2-4, Allen 3-0-2-7, Trump 1-2-2-4, Koser 0-0-0-0, Shaw 6-2-4-13, Smith 0-2-2-2, Pristas 7-4-4-19, Kauffman 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 20-13-18-56.

PALMERTON

Machalik 9-5-6-24, Sebelin 0-0-0-0, Robinson 1-0-0-2, Reph 4-1-1-9, Grammes 2-0-0-4, Hosier 7-2-2-16, Z. Anthony 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 23-8-9-55.

So. Lehigh 12 16 8 9 4 6 – 56

Palmerton 12 11 10 12 3 3 – 55

Three-pointers: Southern Lehigh – Trump 1, Shaw 1, Pristas 1; Palmerton – Machalik 1.