After a few days off, it was back to the hardwood for the NRHEG boys’ basketball team as it participated in the Bethany Holiday Tournament Tuesday night against Le Sueur-Henderson — a team the Panthers beat before Christmas break.

The outcome was the same. The Panthers rolled to a 76-52 win behind 28 points from Oakley Baker.

Despite the blowout win, the Panthers struggled in the early going as the Giants jumped out to a 23-13 lead.

“I felt our defensive focus was not very good,” NRHEG coach Pat Churchill said after the game. “We let them dictate the game early on, and we struggled because of it.”

Late in the first half, the Panthers finally turned things around on the defensive end and it translated into points on offense. NRHEG entered the locker room with a two-point lead.

NRHEG’s offense heated up in the second half while Le Sueur-Henderson’s cooled down. From the five-minute mark in the first half to the final eight minutes of the game, the Panthers allowed just eight points to pull away.

Benji Lundberg added 19 points for the Panthers and Tyler Raimann finished with 13.

NRHEG will play tonight against St. Croix Lutheran. Start time is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.