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BRUNSWICK — The Brunswick girls’ basketball team is still one to reckon with in Class A South. In case anyone still needed a reminder, the Dragons provided another one Friday night.

Lexi Morin scored 17 points, Kyra Fortier had 13, and the Dragons used a strong second half to defeat Biddeford 52-38 and improve to 3-0.

Brunswick, the defending Class A champion, has been part of every discussion of the Class A favorites and power structure over the last few years. The first three games of the season suggest that’s still the case.

“We have a different team this year, and we have to work with what we have,” Morin said. “We weren’t sure going into this season what we were going to do as a team, but I see now … I think we can do great things with this team.”

There was reason to think the Dragons might take a step back this season. Among the players who graduated after last year’s championship run were standout forwards Dakota Shipley and Maddy Werner, now playing at the University of Southern Maine and University of New England, respectively, and playoff-tested perimeter threat Emily Doring.

It was a lot of talent to see leave. And the Dragons know some people likely figured the team was going to dip.

“Oh, a hundred percent,” said senior Eva Harvie, who scored eight points Friday. “But people that we wouldn’t think would step up are stepping up, and we feel very excited for the season.”

So far, the results have been good. Brunswick opened with wins over Fryeburg Academy and Freeport, and then made the plays in a showdown with the talented Tigers that featured fast breaks, pressure defense and physical battles for the ball. The teams were tied at the half, and Biddeford took three leads in the third quarter – the last when Gabriella Silva’s putback made it 28-27 with a little over two minutes to go.

The Dragons then showed they still have the ability to handle tight moments. Julianna Morin (11 points) scored on a putback to give Brunswick the lead, and Lexi Morin converted a three-point play as part of five straight points to extend the margin to 34-28.

“Lexi and I at halftime, we were like, ‘We need to all be positive, and put all our energy (in), especially the bench,'” Harvie said. “At the beginning, the bench was not talking as much. In the second half, they were amazing, and it was a team effort to win this.”

Biddeford threatened again, as sophomore Jordyn Crump and freshman Natalia Silva (12 points) hit 3-pointers to cut the gap to three, with Silva’s making it 39-36 with around three minutes to play. But again, Brunswick had the answer, as Emma Duffaud hit a 3 with 2:20 to go, and Fortier made one on the next possession to push the lead to 46-37 with 1:44 to go.

“Those three seniors, Eva, Lexi and Kyra, when it mattered, they kept making plays,” Dragons Coach Sam Farrell said. “It was Lexi getting rebounds, and Eva getting loose balls, and then you get a sophomore like Julianna, we were going through her.

“When you have every kid on the floor make a play, that’s the big thing. … That’s what we’re trying to teach these young kids. Don’t flinch. Relax.”

Brunswick’s half-court defense stymied the Tigers, holding to them to eight straight misses between their final lead and Crump’s 3-pointer, but Biddeford Coach Jeannine Paradis said the biggest difference came at the line, where Brunswick went 15 for 24 while Biddeford finished 5 for 13.

“If we make our shots (and) we limit their (free-throw attempts), this game is different,” said Paradis, who also got 11 points from freshman Mia Mariello. “They shot a little bit better down the stretch than we might have, but … we’ve always talked about how you can’t put teams on the line and expect to win.”

Especially not against a Brunswick team that has a new look but looks like the same difficult matchup it’s always been.

“I definitely think people were going to underestimate us this season,” Lexi Morin said. “But I wouldn’t. I wouldn’t.”