In the first half against Bangor Monday night, Catasauqua head coach Eric Snyder thought his team might be faced with the prospects of a long night as the Roughies fell behind 28-12, mainly due to the Slaters hitting seven of their first eight three pointers.

But Snyder wasn’t totally convinced. He has a good feeling about his junior-heavy, seasoned team and their season.

A little while later, his convictions became a little stronger.

The Rough Riders erupted for 49 second-half points and downed the Slaters, 78-72, beating them for the first time since the 2014 season.

“That was a really nice win for us,” said Snyder. “They came out on fire shooting the ball, and we went to a 1-3-1 zone. That helped a little bit.

“But we kept battling with them and we eventually took the lead.”

Damian DiPaolo’s three-pointer gave the Roughies a 43-42 lead with roughly four minutes remaining in the third quarter. From there, Catty bumped its lead to double digits before it became a tighter game in the closing minutes.

Derek Troxell led the Roughies with 25 points, and DiPaolo had 16. Cole Schiffer had 13 and Derek George chipped in with 11.

“Derek (Troxell) just does so many things for us out there,” Said Snyder. “He is just a very instinctive player. He had his shot and he does the little things that we need.

“DiPaolo continues to play very aggressively, and Schiffer has been a leader for us. Derek George continues to get better and more confident down low for us. He’s coming off football and he’ll be in basketball form next week.”

The Roughies (1-1) also got a late spark from senior transfer Damian Vasquez off the bench. Catty was coming off a 73-55 loss to Northampton a few days earlier.

They had a road game at Salisbury Wednesday and then a home contest against Colonial League contender Palmerton Friday.

“Northampton really shot the ball well for us, and they hit their threes,” said Snyder. “We lost a tough overtime game to Salisbury in the A-Town Throwdown during the summer, and the kids remembered it.

“Palmerton will be a big challenge for us. If we can pick up a couple wins, it will be a big confidence booster for them.”