The message head coach Jeff Jones delivered to his team before Friday night’s game was about setting the tone and making sure that Allentown Central Catholic knew they were in for a fight.

“Let’s deliver the first punch and be the team that’s the more aggressive team,” said Jones.

It was certainly received loud and clear as they exploded for 25 first quarter points, securing a double-digit lead they would never relinquish as they defeated the visiting Vikings 76-65.

That message was on the heels of their slow start against, East Stroudsburg North, a game in which they had to climb out of a 10-point deficit at halftime before eventually winning in overtime, 55-53.

The game against the Timberwolves perhaps played another role in their maturity as the team had to endure some transportation problems and didn’t get home from ESN until 11:30 p.m.

“It was a long night, and so maybe it was one of those games that brings you together,” said Jones.

Jones said it came together against the Vikings because they made shots. That was evident from the outset as they bolted out to a 10-5 lead, with Zach Gilbert hitting twice from beyond the arc to help them deliver that costly blow to their Skyline Division rivals.

Mikey Esquilin was also prominent in that first quarter, hitting a bucket on a follow-up, and then hitting another shot from the field as well as a three-pointer to help the Zephs establish that early lead.

Esquilin finished with a team-high 15 points, part of a contingent that had five players in double digits.

Esquilin knew the importance of Friday’s game, and his energy on both ends of the floor helped set the tone that led to the win.

“We haven’t had a home win yet, so we knew this was a big game,” said Esquilin.

Esquilin said both teams are familiar with one another, but once they got onto the court they had to get down to business and get a victory.

“It was a fun win,” he said.

It was their first win against ACC since 2010, losing twice last year as part of the conference realignment.

The Zephs are now 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the league.

Jones said that part of being successful when they are playing their up tempo game is the ability to convert their opportunities.

“We were able to make plays and there are enough guys who can make plays and score,” he said.

As for Friday’s win, that scoring came from all angles. Jackson Buskirk was nailing soft floaters from the baseline, Devin Martinez was cleaning up the offensive boards and putting them back for scores, Charles Hudson was attacking the rim, and Kayden Walschburger was hitting from beyond the arc.

“We kind of kept our foot on the pedal for the most part,” said Jones. “We kept playing offense, we kept playing offense, and at the end of the quarter we tried to get the last shot. For the most part we kept our tempo and we kept our pace.”

Last year, Zay Jennings ripped them for 19 points at Rockne Hall, hitting from inside and out to help the Vikings win the game. While he knocked down 16 points on Friday, he didn’t seem to be in the flow offensively as much, especially early when the Zephs were feasting on breakaway buckets to start the game.

For the most part, Jackson Buskirk was on him, and that being said, four other guys really helped Jackson out,” said Jones. “He comes off the screens really well, dribble penetration really well, he shoots deep; he does a lot of things really, really well. Jackson did a heck of a job and the other guys helped.”

Esquilin said that their defensive strategy was to deny their three-point shooting.

“We just wanted to maintain the perimeter,” said Esquilin, “We didn’t want any three-pointers. Zay Jennings is a great shooter, Aiden’s [Ellwood] a great shooter. All their guards are great shooters. We were just worried about staying on the wall, and not allow any threes at all. We didn’t want Zay to get hot.”

Often times Esquilin was drawing a double team, sometimes more, but his ability to distribute the ball to the open man led to some easy buckets.

“Scoring’s not everything,” said Esquilin. “I want to get my teammates involved. I just want to get an assist. I like dishing it.”