Fast start leads Windham boys basketball to win over Nashua South (video)

WINDHAM - Good starts have become normal for the Windham High School boys basketball team early in the season.

The difference Tuesday night against Nashua South was the Jaguars were able to only take a commanding lead, but hold on to it.

Windham jumped out to a 17-point advantage in the first quarter and never let the Panthers get back within single digits the rest of the way in a 75-56 win in a Division I contest.

Jack Koutrobis led the Jaguars (2-1) with 23 points, including two 3-pointers while shooting 9 of 11 at the free throw line. Jack Begley added 19 points and Jack Murphy was also in double figures with 15 points for Windham.

At the other end, the Jaguars held South (1-2) to just six points in the opening quarter, going on a 13-0 run to end the frame with a 23-6 lead.

"I’m really happy with the defensive effort," Windham coach Carson Desrosiers said. "That’s something we try to hang our hats on. From the get-go, we jumped on them early and we didn’t let up. They go as (Zach Castonguay) and (Josh Caruso) go and our guys were ready for the challenge.

"We’ve had a seven- or eight-point lead in every first quarter in all our games so far. The difference (Tuesday) was we were able to maintain it and continue making those shots and put ourselves in positions of success."

Windham was able to keep that cushion early in the second quarter when it went through a scoring drought of its own. South switched to a zone defense to start the second and 6-0 run by Caruso got the Panthers back within 11 points early in the quarter.

But even while the Jaguars struggled to score over a five-minute stretch, they were keeping the Panthers off the board as well.

A pair of 3-pointers by Murphy and Will Collins put Windham up by 16 points late in the quarter and the Jaguars went into halftime up 39-18.

"They shot very well, credit to them, but our defense certainly isn’t where it needs to be," South coach Nate Mazerolle said. "Offensively, we don’t get any rhythm. We have a couple of guys who can really score, and when they do, we’re very good. But we didn’t get any offensive rhythm. Part of that is them, they’re long and very athletic, they disrupt things."

Castonguay led South with 17 points and Caruso finished 13 while Daniel Karavanic recorded six of his eight points in the second half.

Windham's lead hung around the 20-point mark for most of the third quarter, until a 7-2 run by South late in the quarter got the Panthers within 14 points.

A basket by Tyler Jordan with 16 seconds left made it 53-37 Jaguars going into the fourth, but a three-point play by Castonguay to open the final frame made it a 13-point game. Windham answered with a 9-3 run to go up 17 points, and after a timeout, the Jaguars outscored the Panthers 6-2 to go up by 21.

"Excuse or not, we have a lot of new guys, young guys, who are still a little deer-in-headlights," Mazerolle said. "Every loose ball, they were quicker to, and that indecision hurt us, especially in the first quarter. That first quarter was the game because (the lead) stayed about there. If we make a couple more layups and free throws, end of the third, beginning of the fourth, all of a sudden, it’s a seven-point game."

Neither team has much time to think about the game, as they both return to the court Thursday night. Nashua South hosts Alvirne at 6:30 p.m. while Windham goes on the road to Bedford for a 7 p.m. start.