Two weeks ago, the Northampton boys basketball team appeared on the brink of collapse. They were 9-8 and coming off a 16-point loss to an Easton team that was 4-11 at the time. Since then, they have ripped off five straight wins and enter the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the EPC.

The game that clinched their spot in the league tournament occurred last Thursday when they rallied from a six-point deficit with 5 minutes left in the game to nip Bethlehem Catholic 46-42.

The Kids were cruising early as they scored the last seven points of the first quarter to lay claim to a 17-10 lead.

It looked like they might take a 9-point lead into the half, but Becahi hit a half court shot at the buzzer to reduce the margin to 24-18.

Northampton maintained their advantage through 4:42 of the third quarter with a Noah Walakovits basket that made the score 30-24. However, for the next 8 minutes of the game, the Golden Hawks outscored the K-Kids 15-3 to turn the game on its head.

The Kids battled back scoring 8 straight point to reclaim the lead 41-39 with 2:21 left.

The final minutes saw a bunch of drama as Becahi hit a three to take the lead with 54 ticks remaining. Walakovits came off the left wing and finished at the hoop to put Northampton back on top with 35 seconds left. There was a pileup in the lane on Beca’s final possession, but no foul called. The Kids iced the game with three free throws.

On Senior Night, Northampton’s lone senior, Ronnie Jones, got a rare start and responded by scoring the Kids’ first basket and giving the team 7 solid minutes during the first quarter. Jones described the experience, “It was surreal. It didn’t feel real. To get the win on top of that is nice.” On making districts and EPCs he remarked, “It’s going to be fun, but it’ll be sad when it ends.”

Walakovits and Leo Regec shared the scoring lead with 11 points each. The rest of the scorers were: Jake Raysley 8, Brady Simock 7, Ethan Raphun 6, Jones 2, and Logan Walter 1.

The K-Kids enter the EPC tournament as the sixth seed and draw third-seeded Central in the quarterfinals. The Vikings were 19-3 this season, 14-2 in conference. Their two conference losses were to Parkland and Freedom. Northampton was 3-0 against those schools this year.

The game is al 6 p.m. on Friday at Rockne Hall. If the K-Kids advance to the semifinals, that game will be Tuesday at the PPL Center at 6 p.m. versus the winner of Liberty and Pocono Mountain East.