MELLETTE – Aberdeen Roncalli set out to accomplish three things Friday night.

The Cavaliers managed obtain two of them and it was enough to secure a 55-42 win over Northwestern in non-conference boys’ basketball action.

“When we came into the game we talked about this being the start of the second half of the season, so we were going in 0-0 with just kind of a blank slate,” said Roncalli coach Dan Gallagher. “We said we’re going to hound on three things: we’re going to rebound the basketball, we’re going to value the basketball, and we’re going to build a defensive identity. And we were two out of three with it. We didn’t value the basketball very well.”

Gallagher noted that a two-thirds percentage doesn’t grade out very well when it comes to tests, but it turned out to be a passing grade on the court.

“If you’re taking a test, it’s still a failing grade,” Gallagher said, “but I was really happy with the way our guys played defense tonight. We got in foul trouble, but we were able to adjust.”

The contest was tight in the opening half and the Wildcats led 22-21 at the break.

Roncalli had two objectives in the second half and both worked out well as the Cavaliers pulled away for the double-digit victory.

“It was kind of a combination of getting the basketball at the basket, but also just defensively we cranked it up a notch. We really made it difficult for them,” Gallagher said. “We were in passing in the lanes, and were able to get out in transition a little bit, too.”

Getting to the basket meant pounding the ball into the lane, which resulted in high-percentage shots, especially for center Parker Grieben.

“We really talked about just getting the ball inside,” Gallagher said. “Parker I thought played one of his best games of the season, if not his best.”

Both teams got off to a slow start. Each played on Thursday night and might have been a little leg weary in the opening quarter.

“It definitely showed in the first quarter, both offenses were struggling, but both defenses were applying great pressure,” Gallagher said.

As has been the norm in previous matchups, the Wildcats brought maximum effort against Roncalli.

“You‘ve got to give credit to Northwestern. They’re a team that just always plays super hard,” Gallagher said. “Definitely got us out of our rhythm, but just happy again with how our guys adjusted as the game was going on and the defense that we played with.”

Gallagher noted that a good share of Northwestern’s 42 points were scored on free throws.

“About half of those came from the foul line,” Gallagher said, “so when it comes to just sitting down and getting stops, for the most part we did a good job there.”

Aiden Fisher and Jesse Hernandez each scored 11 points to lead a balanced Roncalli attack. Grieben finished with nine and Sam Franks contributed eight.

Dallas Stoltenberg led all scorers with 15 points for Northwestern, and Ty Boekelheiede followed with 14.

Roncalli, 5-6 on the season, has a road game at Britton-Hecla on Thursday, before competing in the Dak XII-NEC Clash in Madison next Saturday. Pairings for that event will be announced today or Sunday.

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (5-6): Aiden Fisher 4 2-2 11, Sam Franks 4 0-2 8, Brody Weinmeister 2 0-0 4, Parker Grieben 4 1-2 9, Jesse Hernandez 4 1-4 11, Cam Olson 2 3-3 7, Sam Larson 1 0-0 3, Bryson Olson 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 7-13 55.

NORTHWESTERN (3-6): Jack Hansen 1 7-8 9, Jarren Haven 1 1-4 3, Dallas Stoltenberg 4 7-8 15, Ty Boekelheide 4 6-6 14. Totals 10 21-26 42.

Aberdeen Roncalli 9 32 40 55

Northwestern 7 22 30 42

3-point field goals – Fisher, Hernandez 2, Larson; Hansen. Fouled out – C. Olson. Total fouls – Aberdeen Roncalli 22; Northwestern 12.