Many of the fans who trudged through the frigid cold last night to watch Jim Thorpe host Northern Lehigh in a boys’ basketball game were unaware of the importance of the event for the home team.

With its 49-35 victory, the Olympians secured a place in the District 11 playoffs, a feat that had not been accomplished in the past four years.

Needless to say, Jim Thorpe coach Brian O’Donnell was pleased as he watched his team dribble the clock away in the final seconds, his players throwing their hands up in jubilation.

Northern Lehigh didn’t make it easy. The Bulldogs battled throughout, and when Kellen Bauer converted a free throw with 1:11 left in the third period, his team trailed by just six points at 30-24.

That’s when Jim Thorpe, led by the dicing and slicing attack of Cole Lazorick, who led all scorers with 17 points, took control. He and his teammates outscored the visitors 19-11 the rest of the way to earn their 10th win of the season.

“Our defense played great,” said O’Donnell. “We played them earlier this year and found that when we switched from man to zone in the second half, they had trouble scoring, so that’s what we did all game tonight. We were able to keep Bauer under his average, too.”

The game did not begin in a way that suggested a 14-point Thorpe victory. The Olympians missed their first seven shots and didn’t register their first basket until Pierce Gothard stole a pass and scored on a driving layup with 3:30 left in the opening quarter. Bauer’s running one-hander tied the game at 8-8, but Brody Schrantz’s side jumper with five seconds left gave the Olympians a 12-11 lead going into the second period.

The first half featured five lead changes, with both teams shooting 31% from the floor. Bulldogs coach Jake Waylen spoke with his team at intermission about changing the tempo.

“We have trouble with zone defenses and working to the basket from the half court,” he said. “We needed to get the ball and go quickly from defense to offense. Unfortunately, that never happened much in the second half and we struggled to rely on outside shooting. It didn’t help us that Michael Bauer got in early foul trouble and although Coy Daubert hit some big threes, it wasn’t enough. We tried to pressure them into some turnovers and that worked a time or two, but at the end we were put in a position where we were forced to foul.”

Early in the third period, the Bulldogs passed the ball patiently around the zone and kept themselves within striking range. But Gothard’s layup with 50 seconds left and Schrantz’s three-pointer with three seconds remaining gave Thorpe an 11-point advantage heading into the final eight minutes.

Despite Daubert’s outside shooting and a driving layup off a steal by Bauer that cut the lead to seven at 39-32 with six minutes left, Northern Lehigh could not get closer. Lazorick scored on two buckets — including a nifty reverse layup — Gothard added another layup, and Gothard and Schrantz knocked down free throws as Jim Thorpe scored 10 of the last 12 points.

O’Donnell was pleased with the progress his team has made.

“We’re playing with a lot more confidence. We’re playing more physical and our guys have accepted the roles we’ve given them so we can be successful as a team. Tonight, Cole did what Cole does. He does the tough stuff like boxing out and fighting for rebounds and he was a force on offense, too.”

Behind Lazorick’s 17 points, Gothard added 16. Bauer finished with 10 for the Bulldogs.

THREE FOR THE MONEY ... Daubert had the hot hand from long range for Northern Lehigh. He scored all nine of his points on three 3-pointers.

TARGET SHOOTING ... Jim Thorpe’s shooting percentage improved in the second half. After shooting 31% in the first half, the Olympians shot just under 50% over the final two periods.

NEXT UP ... Northern Lehigh plays its final game of the season against Palmerton on Monday. Game time is 6:45 p.m. Jim Thorpe travels to Northwestern on Monday and will host Lehighton in its final regular-season game on Tuesday, with both games starting at 6:45.

NORTHERN LEHIGH

K. Bauer 4-2-4-10, Daubert 3-0-0-9, Karetsky 2-1-1-6, Schaffer 2-0-0-6, LoPinto 2-0-0-4, M. Bauer 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 13-3-5-35.

JIM THORPE

Lazorick 8-1-4-17, Gothard 7-2-4-16, Schrantz 2-3-4-8, Antignani 2-0-0-4, Moore 2-0-0-4, Levins 0-0-0-0, Flyzik 0-0-0-0, Hodor 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 21-6-12-49.

No. Lehigh 11 7 6 11 - 35

Jim Thorpe 12 12 11 14 - 49

Three-pointers - NL -Daubert 3, Schaffer 2, Karetsky 1. JT - Schrantz 1.

Records: Northern Lehigh (6-15; 5-12); Jim Thorpe (10-10; 9-7)