Even though their season is still in the beginning stages, Northampton's boys' basketball program continues to make major and minor strides this winter.

Their recent major accomplishment was winning consecutive games, a feat that hasn't been achieved in recent years. With wins over Catasauqua and Blue Mountain, the K-Kids believe they can continue their ascent in the second half of the season.

The Kids notched their first two wins of the season with a 64-60 overtime victory over Catty and a 40-38 triumph over Blue Mountain.

"We had a great game with Catty and we pulled it out in overtime after we blew a big lead," said second-year head coach Coy Stampone. "Blue Mountain is a tough place to play and it was a good experience for the kids.

"Blue Mountain came right at us and were in our faces on defense. But our kids hung tough and played four quarters of good basketball. We blew a big lead against Catty, and I thought we might collapse.

"But they stayed strong and we came back from being down in overtime. It was nice to finally get a win and we gained more confidence in the process. Now, we have to move forward from here."

Northampton (2-4) began the first of three home games this week with a 69-45 loss to Salisbury Monday night. They will host Emmaus Friday night before an afternoon tilt with Phillipsburg Saturday.

In order for them to stay the course, Stampone knows his team must limit the amount of turnovers. The Kids suffered 12 against Catasauqua and 18 against Blue Mountain.

"We still have too many turnovers," he said. "We still have too many unforced turnovers where we're just giving the ball away. We had about 48 to 50 passes in those games and it breaks down to a 1 to 4 ratio. That's not good for us.

"We have been working hard on our ball handling and finding the open man. If we can reduce that amount, we'll be in better shape."

So far, the Kids have had effective frontcourt play from Garrett Oplinger and Piefka Stonewall, both of whom are the team's leading scorers. Stampone has also been pleased with the contributions of Ryan Hudock, A.Q. McNeil, Dylan Cook, and Basem Azar, all of whom have helped form an effective rotation.

"I'm really proud of our kids," said Stampone. "We have been moving forward in many ways. We're getting back into the heart of our schedule and we know there are no easy games out there. We just have to come to play every night and keep proving we belong out there."