SANFORD — Thanks to a 10- point surge in the second half, Corey Hart led the Thornton Academy boys basketball team past the host Sanford Spartans 60-52 on Friday night.

The Trojans were led by Jack Tilley with 22 points, while Hart added 11.

Sanford was led by senior captain Tye Laviolette with 15 points, while Ethan Belanger scored 13, including two 3-pointers.

Thornton jumped out to an early lead, going on a 7-3 run within the first three minutes of play.

The Trojans were led by forwards David Keohan and John Fogg in the opening quarter, who not only played strong defense but also won the battle for rebounds.

Thanks to a late 3-pointer by Laviolette, the Spartans managed to pull within three heading into the second quarter.

Early in the second quarter, Hart received two fouls and was held out for the majority of the period. Sanford took advantage of the opportunity and took control of the game.

The Spartans outscored TA 18-9 in the second, including 12 points from 3-pointers and took a 29-23 lead into the half.

Sanford coach Paul Nolette saw the absence of Hart as an opportunity for his team to make some plays.

“In fairness, they were playing without one of their best players. He got into foul trouble and sat out most of the second and that really took a big, talented player off the court. That gave us a chance to gain some confidence,” said Nolette.

TA coach Robert Davies was disappointed in his team’s slow start.

“In the first half, they outhustled us. In the second half, we came out and hustled a bit more and got back in it,” said Davies. “It’s a long season, but we can’t let that happen again.”

TA stormed into the third quarter and quickly went on a 15-5 run, regaining the lead late in the period.

Sanford continued to battle, and the score was a close 44-41 in favor of TA heading into the final period of play.

Hart was back in the game and was the difference in the fourth, scoring seven of the team’s first nine points.

TA’s offense continued to produce in the final eight minutes and the Trojans secured the victory.

Nolette was impressed with the amount of talent on the TA squad, especially Hart’s versatility.

“When you have guys like Hart, Lambert, Tilley, they’re hard to control,” said Nolette. “When you have Hart playing on the wing, that creates matchup problems which is the key, I think he was the difference in the second half.”

Davies was pleased with the impact that Hart made in the second half and has been impressed with his performance throughout the season.

“Corey is a big part of our team. He got into a bit of foul trouble in the first, but came back strong in the second. He really played well and that was important,” said Davies.

Sanford celebrated senior night as the upperclassmen played their final games on their homecourt. Despite the loss, Nolette was happy to send the senior players off on a high note as the Spartans battled hard until the end.

“I told the kids from the beginning that if they put forth the effort, they represented their school the right way then I would be happy,” said Nolette. “Tonight, they played hard and left it all out there. With it being senior night, it was good to send Tye (Laviolette) out in proper fashion.”

Nolette was also thrilled to see senior Joe Burnham step out of his team manager role and hit a 3-pointer late in Friday’s game.

“It was also great to get Joe Burnham some time. It was everything that is right about sports,” said Nolette.

In the end, Nolette felt that his team accomplished the goals they set heading into the season.

“Heading into this season, our objective was to continually get better. We won five of our last nine, with one loss being by only two points and the other four points, but I think we have gotten better and we’re happy with where we are at this point,” said Nolette.

— Sports Staff Writer Alex Sponseller can be reached at sports@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.