The No. 25 North Platte Community College men’s basketball team (1-0) knocked off the Northeast Community College Hawks (0-1) in the final seconds Friday night on a lay-up by Cameron Williams.

The Knights started out the game strong as they raced out to an 8-0 lead before the Hawks would score back to back baskets to cut the lead in half. The game was close the rest of the half before a run before halftime gave the Knights an 11 point lead going in to the locker room, capped by a 3-point shot by Marco Pascolo just before the buzzer.

The Hawks would start the second half strong and chip away at the Knights lead. The Knights would hold the Hawks off from taking the lead until the final minute when Northeast would lead 66-65 with 32 seconds left. After two Knights timeouts, the Hawks would come out in a zone. Freshman Cameron Williams got the ball on the baseline and took it strong to the hoop to finish over a Hawks defender for the winning margin with two seconds remaining. A desperate shot from the Hawks would glance harmlessly off the backboard giving the Knights their first win of the season.

The Knights were led by freshman Marco Pascolo who finished with 15 points. Sophomores Ethan Montalvo and Tre’Vaun Hymer were also in double figures with 14 and 10 points respectively. Khapri Alston led the Hawks with 18 points.

“It was a game we found a way to win,” said head coach Kevin O’Connor. “We need to get better at several aspects of the game, but a good way to start the year.”

The Knights return to action tomorrow at 2 p.m. as they close out the McCook Community College Fall Classic against Doane University.

The Knights remain on the road next weekend as they travel to Garden City, Kan. to compete in the Garden City Classic on November 8 and 9. The Knights will take on Seward County Community College on Friday and the hosts Garden City Community College on Saturday.

The Knights begin a home stand of five games on Tuesday November 12 as they take on the York College JV at 7 p.m. before hosting Midland University JV and Doane College JV on November 15 and 16.