At the end of a season, any team that is likely to qualify for the postseason is looking to gain momentum.

Jim Thorpe, which looks to be locked into the District 11 4A playoffs on power rating points, was able to come away with a momentum-building win over rival Lehighton on Monday night.

The Olympians (9-11) put together a strong second-half effort, defeating the Indians 49-41 for the Schuylkill League Division 1 victory.

Throughout the first half, the game was literally a back-and-forth affair. There was no lead bigger than five during the half with Lehighton (6-13) up by one after the first and Jim Thorpe leading by one after the second.

The Tribe, which struggled against Jim Thorpe’s 1-3-1 defense in their first meeting earlier in the season (27 total points), moved the ball much better this time around against the zone, and was also able to knock down some open shots when given the opportunity.

Lehighton went 3-for-7 from behind the arc in the first half.

“We expected them to come out and play us 1-3-1 because that’s what they played last time, and we worked on it and we were prepared for it,” said Lehighton head coach Trevor Miller. “I thought we handled it pretty well and moved the ball well.

“But when they switched to man-to-man, we let their pressure dictate what we did offensively. It forced us into turnovers, into rushed shots, but we did also get some good looks at the rim, but we didn’t knock them down. You have to make layups against a team like Jim Thorpe to win the game.”

Turnovers and pressure were the difference makers in the second half for the Olympians. Thorpe forced 12 Lehighton miscues in the second half, taking a four-point advantage into the fourth (34-30).

With scoring at a premium, Thorpe put together the run it needed to pull away from Lehighton. An Olympians 8-2 surge at the beginning of the fourth gave them a 10-point advantage with 5:27 remaining. An Adam Lauer three, two free throws from Nate Rosahac, and a big three-point play finish at the bucket from James Adames put Thorpe in position to close out the game.

“I thought they were beating our zone a little too easily,” said Olympians head coach Jason McElmoyle. “I didn’t think we were moving as well as we should have. Sometimes, just to up our energy level in a game, we go man-to-man, it gets our guys going.

“We went to it for a play or two, and it was working, the kids were playing hard in it, so we stuck with it. We also did a good job of rebounding the ball late in the second half. I thought all five guys did a good job of finding a body, and we limited their second chance opportunities.”

Lehighton would make one last run, pulling within five with 2:15 remaining after a five-point surge by Addison Howland. But the offensive struggles continued for the Indians after that and they could never get any closer.

LEADERS ... Thorpe was led by Rosahac, who scored 13 of his game-high 19 points in the first half. Caiden Hurley added 11, going 5-for-6 from the foul line in the fourth quarter, while Adames added nine. For Lehighton, Howland finished with a team-high 10.

SHOOTING WOES ... Lehighton, which went 10-for-24 in the first half, struggled in the second half, going 6-for-33, including a 2-for-10 effort from three-point range.

LEHIGHTON

Heery 4-0-0-8, Acosta 2-0-0-8, Hunsicker 3-0-0-8, Crum 2-3-5-7, Haydt 2-0-0-6, Howland 4-1-2-10, Potts 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 16-4-7-41.

JIM THORPE

Searfoss 1-0-1-2, Burak 1-0-0-3, Cannariato 0-0-0-0, Hurley 2-5-6-11, Condly 0-0-0-0, Adames 4-1-4-9, Lauer 2-0-2-5, Rosahac 7-5-10-19. TOTALS: 17-11-22-49.

Lehighton 12 12 6 11 - 41

Jim Thorpe 11 14 9 15 - 49

Three-pointers: Lehighton - Haydt 2, Hunsicker 2; Jim Thorpe - Hurley 2, Burak 1, Lauer 1.