But the Falcons turned that around quickly in the second quarter, extending a 9-4 lead into 34-9 at halftime en route to beating the Cardinals 74-31.

Jalen Knott scored 13 of his 18 points by intermission. But it was Jared Lary who came off the bench to sandwich Knott’s 3-pointer with two of his own as Lutheran East scored nine consecutive points to stake a 19-4 lead early in the second quarter.

The Falcons made five of their 12 3-pointers in the second period as Mooney played a zone defense to protect the paint and try to rebound against their taller and longer athletes.

“In our game plan, we didn’t plan on them making that many 3-pointers in a quarter,” Mooney coach Carey Palermo said. “We came out in the first quarter and kind of did what we had hoped to do — be deliberate, hold the ball and find a good shot.

Staff photo / Brad Emerine Mooney coach Carey Palermo looks on in disbelief after Lutheran East made another 3-pointer in the second quarter Tuesday night.

“We wanted to be selective. We told them when you have an open shot, take it. But that’s tough because what is an open shot against them? They’re so long, athletic and quick. We wanted the controlled pace. But you have to find a happy medium. We were holding, holding and then we’d have a turnover and never get a shot off.”

Even when Mooney had its best quarter of the game, the third, the Cardinals were outscored 21-17 and trailed 55-26 before Lutheran East forced a running clock in the fourth quarter.

Lutheran East displayed its athleticism and versatility by making 12 3-pointers and five dunks. Jay Billingsley, a 6-foot-8 Georgetown signee, had two dunks, including grabbing a pass off the backboard from Collin Albert and throwing it down just seconds after Lary tossed one down on an assist from Albert.

“Sometimes you just have to say that you lost to a better team,” Palermo said. “There’s no shame in that. They are a tremendous team.”

Knott scored 18 points, Lary netted 16, Hughes had 12 and Billingsley added 10.

Staff photo / Brad Emerine Mooney's Mick Hergenrother gets bumped by Lutheran East's Jared Lary.

Senior Michael Pelini scored a game-high 19 points to pace Mooney. Junior Mick Hergenrother scored six, but no other Cardinal scored more than two points.

Mooney will lose seniors Pelini, Thomas Fire, Anthony Ellinos and Lawrence Williams.

“I’m proud of our seniors,” Palermo said. “As freshmen they went 5-17, as sophomores they went 10-14 and as juniors they went 12-12. So, to finish 17-5 with the most wins since 2010 and to win district for the first time since 2013, it was a fantastic season.

“This was a great experience for our younger guys. Our program is in a great spot, thanks to the seniors. We’ve got a big heap of juniors coming back and we’ve just got to get back to work.”