There is no such thing as playing a perfect basketball game.

But if coming close to perfection is possible, then the Lehighton girls accomplished that in Tuesday’s 59-12 victory over Jim Thorpe.

The Tribe scored on every type of shot – layups, jumpers, three-pointers, put-backs and free throws. On defense, they opened with a full-court press that stifled any chance for the Olympians to get into an offensive rhythm.

Lehighton scored the first 14 points of the game on its way to a 23-3 first-period lead, and took a 39-8 advantage into the intermission.

Indians (3-2) coach Joe Berezwick praised his team for executing his game plan right from the start.

“We watched some film on Jim Thorpe, and we thought that opening with the press would create some turnovers and transition points for us,” he said. “At times this season, we’ve struggled to score, but tonight we put the ball in the basket.”

The Olympians (0-4) didn’t score until Sarah Hartman hit a three-ball with 2:02 left in the first period, and didn’t score again until Amara Robinson put down a jumper at the 7:20 mark of the second. Much of the JT scoring droughts were caused by a suffocating Lehighton defense that limited the home team’s shots to just 14 in the entire first half.

Jim Thorpe coach Milton Moronta commented on his team’s growing pains after the game.

“We need to get better at the basics like playing defense and rebounding, and we need to communicate on the floor,” he said. “Give Lehighton credit. They played more physical than us. It was certainly a wake-up call. We have a lot to work on at practice.”

Eight players scored for the Indians, who were led by Emma Repsher’s 13 points. Also putting up double figures were Timara Klotz and Leah Uyvari with 10 point apiece.

The Tribe featured a balanced attack, with six different players scoring points in the first period. Offensive rebounding gave the visitors second and third chances, evidenced by 10 missed shots in the first eight minutes, but the Tribe still managed to score 23 by the end of the period.

In the second period, put-backs by Ariel Barthol and Repsher, along with lay-ups from Klotz and Morgan Costenbader, increased Lehighton’s margin to 37-6 before Hartman sank two of three free throws for Thorpe.

With the mercy rule clock ticking down toward the end of the game, driving lay-ups from Klotz, two from Repsher, and a jumper by Uyvari brought the period to a close with a 55-10 lead.

“We played some really good teams to start our season with Palmerton, Northern Lehigh, and Blue Mountain,” said Berezwick. “We had some tough losses, so I wasn’t worried about any letdown tonight. I think our athleticism came through nicely on both ends of the court.”

THE DIRTY DOZEN … In Jim Thorpe’s four losses, it’s been held to exactly 12 points in three of them.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL … Lehighton committed just four turnovers, allowing Thorpe little chance to score off the transition.

UP NEXT … Jim Thorpe plays at Pottsville, while Lehighton travels to Tamaqua on Friday night.

LEHIGHTON

Repsher 5-1-1-13, Klotz 5-0-0-10, Uyvari 4-1-2-10, McHugh 2-3-5-7, Costenbader 3-0-0-7, Barthol 2-0-0-5, Trotman 2-0-0-5, Cal. Hewey 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 24- 5-59.

JIM THORPE

Hartman 1-2-3-5, Robinson 1-1-1-3, Yeakel 1-0-0-2, Sully 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 4-3-12.

Lehighton 23 16 16 4 - 59

Jim Thorpe 3 5 2 2 - 12

Three-pointers: Lehighton - Barthol 1, Uyvari 1, Trotman 1, Repsher 1, Costenbader 1; Jim Thorpe - Hartman 1.