From a harassing defense to an efficient offense, the Aberdeen Roncalli Cavaliers were clicking on both ends of the floor Thursday night.

Roncalli scored the first 14 points of the game and played with a double-digit lead the rest of the way in a 55-30 Northeast Conference girls’ basketball win over Deuel at Roncalli Gym.

“What we emphasized at practice the last couple of days on the offensive end really showed up today,” said Roncalli coach Derek Larson of his team’s unselfish play. “The ball didn’t stick in anyone’s hand. We wanted to make sure that we cut hard to the rim instead of just jogging through the lane. I thought as a whole we did a really good job of that today. I thought we found people on those cuts as well.”

The Cavaliers consistently cut through the lane where teammates spotted them for high-percentage shots and it sometimes involved the same play only with different roles.

During back-to-back possessions in the third quarter for instance, Ava Hanson spotted McKenna O’Keefe on a cut to the basket for a layup. The next time down the floor, it was O’Keefe who passed the ball to Hanson moving through the lane for an easy basket.

Of course, it was Roncalli’s defense that jump-started the offense as the Cavaliers forced 10 turnovers in the first five minutes of the game, three of which directly leading to six points.

“I thought as a team we ran the ball really well and got up and down the court,” O’Keefe said. “I feel that really helped us create some easy baskets.”

Roncalli gave up just two points in the opening quarter as Deuel had a difficult time getting into its offense.

“Our pressure really made their offense make some bad passes,” O’Keefe said. “I feel like our press really helped us at the beginning.”

Not only was Roncalli’s defense on display in the opening half, it also made a statement in the third quarter.

After the Cardinals had a strong start to the third quarter with eight points in three minutes, the Cavaliers did not allow another Deuel point for rest of the period.

Hanson ended up with a game-high 21 points for the Cavaliers. Claire Crawford followed with 11 and O’Keefe contributed 10.

Josie Andersen and Harley Hennings each finished with 11 points to pace Deuel.

Roncalli concluded the regular season with a 10-9 record and now heads into post season action on Tuesday. The Cavaliers will face Redfield at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Sisseton.

Interestingly enough, that’s who Roncalli faced to start the season.

“They’re playing really well,” Larson said. “Midway through the year I think they weren’t playing as good as they are now. They’ve really kind of hit their stride the last week.”

DEUEL (4-16): Jaycee Hourigan 1 0-0 2, Kaitlyn Gubrud 1 0-0 2,Josie Andersen 4 2-2 11, Emma Hamann 1 0-0 2, Harley Hennings 4 3-4 11, Morgan Theisen 0 1-2 1, Roxanne Raml 0 1-2 1. Totals 11-32 7-10 50.

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (10-9): McKenna O’Keefe 5 0-0 10, Camryn Bain 2 0-0 4, Maddie Huber 3 0-0 7, Claire Crawford 5 0-0 11, Ava Hanson 9 1-2 21, Morgan Helms 1 0-0 2. Totals 25-49 1-2 55.

Deuel 2 11 19 30

Aberdeen Roncalli 18 37 51 55

3-point field goals – Andersen; Huber, Crawford, Hanson 2. Total fouls – Deuel 5; Aberdeen Roncalli 11. Rebounds – Deuel 25 (Hennings 6); Aberdeen Roncalli 21 (Crawford 6). Turnovers – Deuel 26; Aberdeen Roncalli 11.