The Lancers started strong and cruised to an easy nonsection home win over the Rams.

Neshannock built a 21-5 lead after the first quarter and settled for a 43-22 buffer at the break.

“We came out and played really well,” Lancers coach John Corey said. “We shot the ball really well.

“We stunk defensively in the second quarter. We had mental lapses in that second quarter, defensively. (Jon) Magusiak made three of his 3s in the second quarter; we were having some trouble finding him.”

Neshannock’s defense held South Side Beaver to single digits in the other three periods.

“That’s what we expect from our defense,” Corey said.

Ernie Burkes paced the Lancers (3-0) with 25 points, 11 of which came in the second quarter. He pulled down eight rebounds with six assists and three steals.

“Ernie played really well,” Corey said. “He shot the ball really well and he had a really good overall floor game.

“The rebounds for him stick out to me a lot. That makes everyone’s job a lot easier.”

Tyler Haswell followed with 12 points and six rebounds for the winners, while Matt Seltzer added 10 markers and six boards.

Magusiak tossed in 12 points to lead South Side Beaver (1-2).

Neshannock was 30 of 63 from the field, compared to 15 of 52 for the Rams.