Stick-to-itiveness, solid defense, and a 14-0 scoring run in the second half keyed Newtown High School’s boys’ basketball team’s 52-42 victory over visiting Brookfield on January 9. The Nighthawks improved to 4-3 and Brookfield fell to 5-2 overall.

Newtown trailed 37-36 late in the third quarter and took the lead for good on not two but three putback efforts culminating with Declan Regan’s follow-up points with 40 seconds to go in the period. The Nighthawks displayed that sort of persistence and tenacity to hang around after falling behind early, then pulling away with pure domination in the fourth quarter.

Leading 38-37 heading into the final stanza, the Hawks built on their lead, established a 50-37 advantage, and did not surrender a point until a Bobcat basket with 1:52 left, a stretch of 7:24 worth of scoreless basketball for the visitors thanks to solid player marking and rebounding by the Hawks when the Bobcats had possession.

“Our second-half defense was the best we’ve played all year,” said Newtown Coach Tim Tallcouch, adding that his team played great man-to-man D and switched well when needed.

Brookfield hit a couple of early 3-pointers and jumped out to an 8-0 lead and seized a 17-10 advantage in the first quarter. The Nighthawks finished the opening half on a 14-6 run and took a 24-23 lead at halftime. The Hawks took their first lead of the night on Regan’s rim-roller with 1:42 left in the half, and went back on top with 45 seconds left on another Regan hoop down low to answer a Brookfield basket. Newtown went into the locker room with some momentum but plenty of work to do.

“We harped on the rebounds. I think we did a really good job of limiting them to one shot. We knew if we didn’t make them uncomfortable from the 3-point line it would be a long night,” Tallcouch said.

The Bobcats finished the game with five 3-pointers, one of which came very late, after the Hawks took a 52-39 lead.

Newtown had five baskets from downtown themselves. Makai Coleman and Saahil Ray each hit a shot from behind the arc in the fourth quarter; Coleman made four of Newtown’s 3-pointers in the game and finished with 27 points, weaving through the Brookfield defense to the rim for some of his points.

After Regan scored off the glass down low for a 43-37 lead the Bobcats called timeout with 6:37 remaining. Tight defense by Newtown’s Eli Williams led to a Brookfield miss and Ray drained a 3-pointer at the other end for a nine point lead, prompting another Brookfield time-out, 1:05 later. But Newtown’s stopping and scoring continued. Coleman’s pull-up jumper near the baseline and another Regan hoop capped the 14-0 stretch.

Regan scored 15, and Ray and Williams both added five points. Williams was a rebounding machine with ten and had a nice all-around game with four assists, four steals, and four blocks. Coleman had five assists and six rebounds to go along with his 27 points. Ray dished out six assists and had a pair of steals. Regan pulled down eight rebounds, had three assists, a trio of steals, and one shot block. Ben Barber grabbed four rebounds, an assist, and a steal.

Tallcouch has been pleased with his team’s defense throughout the early going this season and referred to it as a strength of the squad thus far. While the offense tries to gain traction the defense is keeping Newtown competitive.

“Even if your offense has a night off your defense is what’s going to keep you in the game,” Tallcouch said.

The Hawks held six of their first seven opponents to point totals in the 50s and 40s, including a 60-41 victory at New Fairfield on January 5. The Hawks trailed 16-14 after one quarter but limited the Rebels to a handful of points in the second and took a 26-21 halftime lead before outscoring New Fairfield 23-11 in the third quarter to take control. Coleman had 16 points as well as five steals and Regan scored 14 in that win. Barber had nine rebounds, Williams had eight rebounds and six blocks, and Regan had seven rebounds and three blocks.

Battling back has been a trademark for the team thus far. The Hawks fell behind by 15 points before whittling visiting Greenwich’s lead to just two in a January 7 clash. Newtown ultimately fell 51-45 despite 19 points from Coleman and 16 from Regan, along with seven rebounds apiece from Regan and Williams, who added four blocks.

“Sometimes I think we play a little bit tight at the early part of the game,” said Tallcouch, adding that he likes what he sees with his team in the latter portions of contests. “The most important piece is the finish.”

The Hawks will look to finish the season strong and are now getting into the thick of South-West Conference play beginning with the Brookfield tilt; 12 of the remaining 14 contests are against SWC foes. NHS, after visiting Bethel on Thursday, will visit Immaculate of Danbury on January 17 before returning home to face Weston on January 20 — all at 7 pm.

Sports Editor Andy Hutchison can be reached at andyh@thebee.com.