Brunswick’s Noah Johnson, left, drives toward the basket as Morse’s Andrew Card defends during a boys basketball game Thursday night in Brunswick. Eric Maxim/The Times Record

BRUNSWICK — The Brunswick boys basketball team raced out to a big lead early and then held on late to edge Morse in a Class A South game Thursday night.

Thomas Harvey led all scorers with 17 points as the Dragons (2-5) prevailed 51-42. Trevor Gerrish scored 15 points and Noah Johnson added 14. Gerrish also had 15 rebounds, 10 of the defensive end.

Gavin Baillargeon and Gabe Morrison each scored nine points to lead Morse (1-6). Trace McFarland chipped in with eight.

“I was proud of our guys,” said Brunswick coach Ben Clark. “It’s never easy against Morse; they play hard against us every time and I was proud of our guys coming out on top.”

“It means everything to us,” added Harvey. “It’s just about gaining momentum game after game, one game at a time.”

The Dragons set the tone early, converting Morse turnovers into points, led by Johnson’s seven in the opening quarter that included a 3-pointer and a pair from the line. Brunswick led 15-8 after the first quarter.

Morse fought back in the second, turning the tables on the Dragons.

The Shipbuilders kept it close with Brunswick’s inability to break the press.

“We applied pretty good pressure,” said Morse coach Chris York. “They were hurting us in our half-court man so we switched to a little half court one-three-one, which gave them some issues.”

Morse scored 16 points off 22 Brunswick turnovers.

brunswick sophomore Trevor Gerrish takes a shot in front of More defender Andrew Card, right, and Gabe Morrison during a boys basketball game Thursday night in Brunswick. Eric Maxim/The Times Record

At the half, Brunswick held on to a 21-17 lead, scoring just one field goal in the second quarter.

The two Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference rivals traded hoops to open the second half before the Dragons offense came to life with a 14-5 run, which Jared Similien highlighted with a steal and layup. Harvey also converted a 3-point play to give the home team its biggest lead, 35-23 with less than three minutes left in the third.

Harvey finished with 11 points in the quarter.

“(Coach) told me to keep shooting and they’ll start falling,” said the senior guard.

“He’s really important for us,” added Clark about Harvey. “He scores, he rebounds, he’s one of our best passers and does a lot of things really well. It’s his senior year and it’s his last go. He’s hungry, I thought he played pretty well (Thursday).”

The Shipbuilders did not go away.

After Johnson opened the fourth with his second 3-pointer, McFarland answered with the first of his two fourth quarter treys. A Nick Pesce basket and a Baillargeon 3-pointer pulled Morse to within 44-40.

“Great thing about this group is their effort is never in question and I know they’re always going to leave it all out on the court,” said York.

A Gerrish bucket and a pair of free throws, along with a Johnson layup, helped put the Dragons storm ahead 50-40.

“We made some adjustments down the line that helped a little bit, but ultimately it wasn’t enough by any of us,” said York.