POULSBO — The Poulsbo Panthers basketball team allowed only one Cavalier point in the first quarter and never looked back, beating Kingston Junior High School 67-43 in their home opener.

James May scored 20 and Mychal Harris added 18 as the Panthers never really allowed Kingston into the game.

“A big lead early got to (Kingston) and got them out of sync,” said Poulsbo coach Clary Carlsen. “All the kids got a chance to play and we put pressure on from the beginning.”

The first quarter was in itself an 18-1 run for Poulsbo, whose swarmy defense swatted away passes for quick scores. Kingston had trouble even getting the ball up court.

“We just didn’t play as a team,” said Kingston Coach Tony Chisholm. “There was no leadership, we didn’t get any rebounds. The team effort was poor.”

Kingston was able to battle back in the second, outscoring the Panthers 14-11 with a few three-pointers and better offensive drives to the basket. But Poulsbo’s full-court press was relentless.

“We’ve worked on the press breaks,” Chisholm said. “But they just stunned us. We’re really going to work on it.”

By the third and fourth quarters, Poulsbo again came with a run-and-gun style — either scoring from the perimeter or getting the ball to the post for a basket.

“Clary (Carlsen) has a good team,” Chisholm said. “A bunch of athletes.”

“I’m looking forward to practice — we’ve got a lot of work to do” Chisholm added.

As for the Panthers’ full-court style of play, Coach Carlsen admitted it is not necessarily his coaching that made the Poulsbo players tough end-to-end.

“We’ve only worked on the press for about 15 minutes three days,” Carlsen said. “When they get the opportunity to pressure, they get excited about it — a chance to get a steal and a lay-in. I’d say they get a little more excited about that than playing defense.”