For the Northampton’s basketball team, it was a busy and productive summer.

This week, the Konkrete Kids were in the final stages of the Allentown Summer League. They also participated in the Cedar Beach Bash and SportsFest’s “A-Town Thrown Down,” both of which had strong showings.

The Kids also had weekend shootout tournaments at East Stroudsburg University and Millersville University, as they were exposed to teams outside the general area.

In all, it proved to be an interesting summer.

“Our summer leagues and tournaments went very well,” said Kids’ head coach Coy Stampone. “I think we learned a lot about our team, not just our strengths and weaknesses. We did get better.

“Our upperclassmen really worked well with our younger guys. There was a good chemistry there and everyone had a good feeling.”

He cited the play and leadership of incoming seniors Aidan Ellwood, Tim Gribb, Mike Torres and Cory Weisenberger. Stampone will look to one of other three seniors to emerge as the team’s second-leading scorer alongside Elwood, who is viewed as one of the top players in the area.

“The seniors stepped up their play and they took the young guys under their wing,” said Stampone. “At the Beach Bash, we were playing on Sunday and it was big for us to get there. We got to the semifinals of SportsFest and there were a number of coaches who commented on how we got one of the tougher pools playing Bangor, Abington, and Delaware Valley.

“We go to the Sweet 16 of that tournament and picked up two big wins over Emmaus and Nazareth. We lost to Chambersburg, the eventual champion, and a very good team. We had a four-point lead over them at halftime.

“We also played well at our weekend tournaments. At East Stroudsburg, we were 1-1-1. We didn’t play an overtime with one team. At Millersville, we finished 2-1. But the key was to play teams outside our area.

One glaring factor for the Kids this season will be height. With a lack of players over 6-2, the Kids will plan to succeed with their transition game.

“I told the kids to look around our huddle and notice that myself and one of our coaches are the tallest persons,” Stampone said. “We’ll have to work on fundamentally boxing out and figure it out. We have guys who can get the ball out quickly and help us get up the court.”

Still, Stampone is optimistic and anxious to get underway. The Kids will continue a lifting program throughout the summer and continue with a fall program that includes weekend shootout stops at DeSales University and Kutztown University.

“We’ll lift and take some time off,” said Stampone. “But these guys are gym rats. That’s a good sign of the program. These guys played with a lot of confidence.”

Stampone sees his club getting back to the district playoffs for the first time in three years, as they just missed the mark the past season. He likens this club to a team four years ago.

“Our seniors were freshmen then,” he recalled. “I’m upbeat and intrigued about this team. It reminds me of the team four years ago. Those seniors took Aidan under their wing.

“There is a good vibe about this team.”