It was evident from the end of the first quarter, that last Friday nights basketball game between Emmaus and Bethlehem Catholic was going to be high scoring, at least for one team.

The Green Hornets (12-4 overall, 6-3 Lehigh Valley Conference) led 22-11 after the first eight minutes, and used their tenacious defense to force Golden Hawks turnovers in winning their tenth of eleven games, 78-72 at Emmaus high school.

Joey Polczynski opened the game with a steal and a dunk that brought a roar out of the near capacity crowd and set the tone for the game. The sophomore scored 10 of his 18 in the first quarter helping Emmaus get out to an early lead.

Becahi (8-8 overall, 5-4 LVC) started out slow from the field, in particular, one of the leading scorers Freddie Simmons. Simmons was held to just four points in the first half, and the Golden Hawks shot 9-for-29 as a team before halftime.

The Green Hornets held an early 7-0 advantage and led 31-19 at halftime, seemingly cruising by Becahi. The lead grew to as many as 15 midway through the third quarter, but then the Golden Hawks found a rhythm and began creeping back little by little, led by Simmons (20 points) and Edward Hudak (12 points), the Emmaus lead was only six after three.

"The team began to settle in," said head coach Mike Frew. "They (Emmaus) came out red hot, and we had to make some adjustments. I called a timeout and we settled down a bit."

Becahi brought it to as close as four at 48-44 early in the fourth quarter, and seemed to be just one stop and one possession away from tying the contest. But the two Emmaus seniors, Nate Feiertag and Joey Nicolini scored 12 of their team's first 14 points in the quarter, and would not let this one slip away.

"Their transition game bothered us all night," noted Frew. "Just when we started closing it to 6-7 points, we'd have a breakdown and they'd get an uncontested layup. That was a difficult thing for us all night. We got behind and were forced to foul. They made their foul shots, and that's just how some games go."

The advantage quickly grew back to double digits, and the Green Hornets went 14-for-18 from the free-throw line to put this one away.

Senior Jamal Aziz (14 points) and Andrew Hudak (10 points) reached double digits for Becahi.

The Golden Hawks take on Dieruff at home on Tuesday, and then travel to inner-city rival Liberty on Friday night.