BUCKSPORT – Since they were already locked into a 290-mile round trip to Bucksport and back, on a school night no less, the Houlton boys basketball team figured they’d better make it worthwhile.

So the 9-0 Shiretowners did just that, despite some early foul and injury troubles, a big third-quarter rally by the host Golden Bucks, and bad foul shooting in the fourth quarter – to post a solid 69-56 victory and keep their unblemished record intact.

“Yeah, this was a good test for us because it’s a 145-mile trip to play another good Class B team in the top eight,” said Houlton coach Jerry Adams. “This was a good game to gauge how we stack up.”

Judging from Tuesday night’s effort, the Shiretowners are stacked with talent: like power forward-turned-center Frank DiStefano, who is just starting to realize his potential.

The 6-foot-5 junior used a head fake/power move combo – a much-practiced addition to his repertoire in the paint – to score at will early. DiStefano, whose reddish hair and build are reminiscent of graduated star forward Lucas Ritchie, had a Ritchie-like effort with 18 of his game-high 26 points in the first half and eight rebounds.

“Frank’s the best-kept secret in Eastern Maine basketball right now,” Adams said. “He’s probably the best post player around, but he doesn’t know how good he is yet.”

He’s starting to find out.

“I wasn’t expecting to play center, but David [Carter] transferred and I was kind of thrown in,” DiStefano said. “I felt a little pressure to fill Lucas’ shoes. I guess it wasn’t until our fourth or fifth game… I looked at my stats on the bus and I couldn’t believe it. I was like `Wow, I did that?’ ”

And as far as him being a secret, well, the secret’s out.

“Our scouting report said he was their best player and he certainly was tonight,” said coach Larry Deans, whose Bucks drop to 4-5.

Between DiStefano and senior guard Michael Weston, who shot 89 percent from the field en route to 18 points, the Shires threatened an early rout. But that was before the Bucks regrouped at halftime.

Deans’ switch to a zone defense and suddenly-accurate perimeter shooting resulted in an 11-0 Bucks run to start the half. That, combined with a 4-0 run that ended the first half, turned a 41-28 Shires lead into a 43-41 Bucks’ edge.

But shortly after a timeout, the Shires responded by scoring 10 of the final 14 points in the third quarter. The turnaround was spurred by an unlikely source: forward Jacob Cowperthwaite, who canned back-to-back shots after having managed only two points in the game’s first 19 minutes.

After Bucksport took its fourth and final lead of the game (52-51 with 6:04 to play), Houlton scored the next 12 points to take control.

“I think we got tired, even after our big run, and they started hitting the boards better [13-11 second-half edge after the Bucks outboarded them 19-12 in the first half],” Deans said. “The bottom line is they’re a very good team. They’re a better team.”

Buzz Simpson led the Bucks with 25 points, while Josh Clough finished with 13 points and 14 boards.

Houlton lost reserve guard Kyle Hipsley to a severe left ankle sprain in the second quarter. He will have it X-rayed Wednesday.

Shiretowners 69, Bucksport 56

Houlton (9-0) Bucksport (4-5)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Thomas 1 2 2 6 4 Austin 1 1 0 0 2

Adams 0 0 1 2 1 Atherton 0 0 0 0 0

Trojanowski 0 0 0 0 0 Gray 0 3 0 0 0

Weston 8 9 1 1 18 Gilman 0 0 0 0 0

Cowprthwte 3 11 1 2 8 Simpson 10 20 0 2 25

Jones 1 2 0 1 2 Clough 4 8 5 5 13

Sleeper 3 6 0 0 8 C. Harvey 3 6 2 2 8

Hipsley 0 1 0 0 0 Giroux 1 1 0 0 2

DiStefano 10 17 6 10 26 J. Harvey 3 11 0 0 6

McGary 1 3 0 1 2 Gifford 0 1 0 0 0

Austin 0 0 0 0 0 Jellison 0 0 0 0 0

Totals 27 51 11 23 69 Totals 22 51 7 9 56

Houlton 21 41 51 69

Bucksport 15 32 47 56

3-pt. goals: Houlton (4-9): Sleeper 2-3, Weston 1-1, Cowperthwaite 1-5; Bucksport (5-15): Simpson 5-10, C. Harvey 0-1, J. Harvey 0-2, Gray 0-2

Attendance: 339

Preliminary: Houlton 67-60