Last year the Emmaus boys basketball team did not have much luck against the Lehigh Valley Conference and District 11 Class AAA champion Central Catholic. The Vikings got the better of the Green Hornets twice, by wide margins.

After eight minutes last Tuesday night, it looked as if a similar outcome was in store. But in the second quarter, Emmaus found its way.

Led by a team-high 15 points (nine in the second quarter), from Tyler Prescott, Emmaus jumped on Central by shooting seven three-pointers and playing an aggressive man-to-man style to slow down a high-scoring Vikings offense. The Hornets prevailed 61-51 in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference game at Rockne Hall.

It was also a much needed win coming on the heels of a tough loss at Whitehall just four days earlier.

"It's always good to come in here and get a win," Prescott said. "It's a good environment and they always have a good crowd. This team is a little different from last year because they lost a lot of players, but they're still a good team. We just wanted to get back after that Whitehall loss and move forward. We needed this one."

The Hornets' three top scorers (Prescott, Joey Polcynski, and David Kachelries) combined for just two points in the opening frame as they trailed Central 16-10.

But Emmaus opened up the second quarter with a 10-0 run led by Prescott and Kachelries, and the Vikings never got closer than six after halftime. The Green Hornets took a 28-23 lead into the locker room.

"In the beginning I wasn't really feeling it, but then some started going in so I figured just keep shooting," said Prescott. "We hit a couple of threes and free-throws to calm our nerves down. Then David [Kachelries] and Matt [Kachelries] got a couple of steals, and just everyone that came in contributed and played hard. That helped a lot."

Playing at Rockne Hall is something Prescott and his teammates enjoy.

The key for the Green Hornets defensively was to shut down the guard play of Zay Jennings and Ben Pratt, who lead the Vikings in scoring. Jennings (18 points) and Pratt (10 points) both scored in double figures, but the Hornets' defense did not allow the pair many open looks.

"David [Kachelries] and I knew we had to shut them down," said Prescott. "I think we got it done today and that was the difference."

Polcynski finished with 12 points and Kachelries added 11. Jacob Feiertag contributed 9 points and Matt Kachelries, in his second game back, tallied seven for Emmaus.

Emmaus made it two in a row with a 71-58 win over Nazareth on Friday night. David Kachelries scored a game-high 29 points in the win, including 14 in a decisive fourth quarter. Prescott chipped in with 17 points.

The Hornets played in Sunday's HoopGroup Showcase at, losing to Neumann-Goretti, 71-55. David Kachelries and Jake Feiertag scored 13 points each in the loss.

Emmaus (9-9 overall, 9-3 EPC) has clinched a spot in the District 11 Class AAAA playoffs and needs to finish strong over its final four games to secure a league playoff spot.