The Konkrete Kids were able to take the Zephyrs boys basketball team out of their comfort zone last Friday night, and in so doing dealt Whitehall a blow that will most likely prevent them from making the league playoffs this year.

As it stands now, the Zephs would have to leapfrog two teams in order to get the final spot, with Northampton and Pocono Mountain West High Schools standing in their way.

The Zephs are currently .500 in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference and the prospects of them beating both Emmaus and Parkland to close out the season, while not impossible, is a tall order.

The Kids (8-6) only face one team with a winning record in their two remaining EPC games, and that's Allentown Central Catholic, a team they defeated earlier in the year. PMW's road also projects as unfavorable for the Zephs since their remaining four games feature three teams from the Mountain Division whom they defeated earlier this season.

Northampton's knockout blow was effectively registered in the first half, with Aidan Ellwood and Mario Delker launching baskets from the perimeter, with Elwood scoring 13 of his 19 points before intermission. The Kids took a commanding 33-22 into the break, and Zephs never recovered, despite trimming the lead to 35-32 midway through the third period, eventually succumbing 64-51 to the upstart Kids who swept the season series.

"You're down double figures and it takes a lot of energy to fight back," said head coach Jeff Jones. "It seemed like we expended a lot of energy to fight back, and then we just couldn't get over the hump."

The Zephs made their run after switching from their match defense to a man-to-man, and started to claw back into the game. Sparking that comeback was Mikey Esquilin who scored six points during their 10-2 run to start the second half. His energy, whether it was slashing to the basket on a breakaway or finding an open Jake Meyers under the basket from the seat of his pants, fueled their comeback. Esquilin finished with 18 points.

Jones said that Esquilin isn't overwhelmed by the situation, and will often take the initiative especially on the offensive end.

"He likes to go and he isn't afraid to make a mistake," said Jones. "We're looking for other guys who are willing to take shots."

Esquilin can also adapt defensively, using his athleticism to create turnovers and jump passing lanes.

"One of his strengths, obviously, is his quickness and his ability to cover guys" said Jones. "Playing man-to-man for him is not that big of a deal."

Still, the decision to play man was predicated upon the torrid shooting of the Kids from the outside, something that Jones didn't want to do. The Kids shot a blistering 70 percent from the field in the first half, prompting the change.

"That's why our start is always so critical," said Jones. "We want to make a team play the way we want them to play rather than them making us do something we're not accustomed to doing.

"That was the first game we played man-to-man all year, and it's something we generally don't practice at all. We work on the match so much."

Once they began the second half playing man-to-man, Jones felt it was the right thing to do as they cut into their 11-point lead.

After outscoring the Kids by seven in the third quarter, Whitehall was looking to chip away even more in the final eight minutes. But the Kids nixed any comeback hopes by going on a 7-0 run to start the period. The Zephs didn't score until the 4:17 mark when Saquon Barkley sank one-of-two from the line. They never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way as the Kids twosome of Alquinton McNeil and Garrett Oplinger took over inside.

Jones said that playing from behind lends itself to a style that's unsuited for them.

'We're not really equipped to play that way, to play fast," said Jones. "It's not something that we practice very often, not something that we do very well. So when we get down, it's difficult.

"Then they make a shot or two, and you're fighting uphill again."

The Zephs were also shorthanded. They were missing guards Chad Rex and Nick Hassler, and their absence impacted their rotation.

Jones also felt that they needed to have better scoring balance. Brett Radocha and Esquilin combined for 36 points, accounting for over half of their total. Conversely, the Kids had four starters finish in double figures, while the fifth had eight.

"They were very balanced on offense, and it makes it very difficult," said Jones. "Certain games you can key on one or two guys, but you can't really do that too much with this team because they have multiple guys who can score and they did tonight."