De La Salle is peaking at the right time.

The Pilots struggled to a 7-15 record during the regular season, but the state tournament is a new season and the Pilots are making the most of it, downing Cousino 61-47 in a Division 1 district title game at Lake Shore on Friday night.

“It feels good to get this first one under our belt since we were up and down during the regular season,” De La Salle coach Denarryl Rice said. “I told them we had the pieces to make a run in the tournament and we’re coming together at the right time now.”

The Pilots used an aggressive defense that gave the Patriots problems in the first half. That pressure led to a 19-10 lead after one quarter behind 13 points by Armoni Portis.

“He led the way early on and carried it over from our last game,” Rice said. “He’s playing his best basketball at the right time now.”

Cousino settled down in the second quarter, and behind six points by Noah Saunders, outscored the Pilots 13-10 in the frame, cutting De La Salle’s lead to 29-23 at halftime.

“I was worried about the pressure,” Cousino coach Joe Kohl said. “We’re very young and I thought we handled it well at times, and we were only down six at halftime.”

The third quarter belonged to De La Salle as Phonix Glassnor scored 14 points, including three triples, and Portis added a triple as part of seven points, leading the Pilots to a 24-5 run and a 53-28 lead heading into the final quarter.

“Phonix is our engine and our leader,” Rice said. “We follow his lead. He had a slow first half, but the team picked him up. The third quarter he came out with a purpose to be more aggressive, and he knocked down some shots.”

Said Kohl: “(De La Salle) was lights out in the third quarter and it killed us, I think they shot 100 percent from the 3-point line. Phoenix Glassnor is what he is, and he’s a stud.”

Cousino made a modest run in the final quarter, cutting the Pilot lead to 58-44 on two free throws by Nicholas Farr with 1:14 left, but would get no closer.

“They did not give up,” Kohl said. “These kids have been going hard all season, and I think I have five sophomores on here and only one senior that gets significant minutes. Our age showed a little bit, and I hope this experience gets us a little hungry for next year.”

Glassnor led the Pilots with 24 points, while Portis added 20 points. The win improved De La Salle’s record to 8-15 overall.

The Pilots move on to the regional semifinals next week where they face surprise district champion Troy Athens who, at 9-15, defeated Royal Oak to win their district. The game will be played at Troy High School.

Cousino was led by Farr with 16 points, while Saunders added 14 points and Kingston Nessel finished with eight points.

“Nic (Farr)’s come a long way this year,” Kohl said. “The last five or six games his leadership has been great. He’s stepped up for us all season and he’s going to be a huge impact for us next year.

“(Saunder’s) has been the presence in the paint for us all season,” Kohl added. “He’s a big guy with a big heart. He will be missed.”

The loss ended the Patriots season at 15-8 overall. Kohl said he hopes this experience will help his young squad heading into next season.

“I’m proud of them,” Kohl said. “I hope we build on this and the hunger stays. A lot of these kids are going to be here next year and over the summer. Hopefully they learn from this experience and next year we’ll be ready to take that from De La Salle.”