Most of the assembled throng in Parkland’s gym on Tuesday night were there to witness the coronation of Nick Coval as Parkland’s all-time leading scorer. However, the Northampton boys had not come to be spectators and clap politely at the accomplishment.

The K-Kids stormed out to an incredible 19-1 advantage in the first seven and a half minutes of the game. Parkland did score 6 points in the final 15 seconds of the first quarter to cut the lead to 12.

If the Trojans thought the brief run was going to change the momentum of the game, they were mistaken. Northampton scored the first 5 points of the second quarter on the way to extending the lead to 14 points, 38-24, at the half.

J.J. Kolumber was 4 for 4 from 3-point range in the first 16 minutes and Brody Graff was 4 for 5 from the field with two 3-pointers and 4 for 4 from the line for 14 points at the intermission.

And then the wheels fell off.

Parkland scored the first 9 points of the second half as part of a 14-1 run that closed the gap to a single point, 39-38. Brady Simock knocked down a three to push the lead back to 4, but it would be the only shot the Kids hit from the floor in the period. The Trojans scored the last 5 points of the quarter to take their first lead of the game 43-42.

After Parkland scored the opening hoop of the final period, Kolumber converted an and-1 to knot the game at 45. Over the course of the next six and a half minutes, the K-Kids managed only a single Tristen Pinnock free throw as the Trojans scored just enough to bleed the clock and force Northampton to foul.

Coval got his record and Parkland got the win, 55-48.

“Jekyll and Hyde, man,” explained a frustrated Matt Scholl. “We played so well in the first half. We played with confidence. We dribbled to get each other open. And then in the second half we played with fear. That’s the difference. When you play with confidence, shots go in. When you play with fear, you throw the ball to the other team, a lot, like we did (6 turnovers in the third quarter). Sometimes the moment is too big and I think it was a little too big for our guys today.”

With one week left in the regular season, the K-Kids still have a lot to play for. They are 12-7 overall and 6-7 in the EPC with 3 league games left to play. On Thursday, they travel to Allen. The Canaries have struggled this year with a 2-17 record, although they have played a handful of competitive games against teams with winning records. On Friday, Northampton heads to Whitehall for a rematch with the 14-6 Zephyrs. The Kids won the earlier game between the schools 35-32. They wrap up by hosting Allen on Monday.

The Kids likely need to sweep all three games to get into the 8-team EPC field. As of now they are holding down the fourth spot in the District XI 6A power rankings. District quarterfinal games are played at neutral sites closer to the higher seeded team. With Stroudsburg in the fifth spot, it would be an advantage to keep the game in the Lehigh Valley.