Lakeland High School’s boys’ basketball team made the most of its only meeting with a certain cross-city rival on Friday night.

The Cavaliers entered the Kennel that held a large crowd at King’s Fork High School and jumped out to an early lead, then made the plays necessary to leave with a 57-47 victory over a young, hard-working Bulldogs squad.

“We didn’t match their intensity at the beginning of the game,” King’s Fork coach Josh Worrell said.

Lakeland led 15-9 after the first quarter, 29-18 at halftime and 40-31 after three quarters.

“They did a good job of attacking the basket and knocking down shots at key times,” Worrell said. “We could never get any closer than six or seven (points), but it never got any higher than 11 or 12, so it was always in striking distance.”

Cavaliers coach Clint Wright said he thought his team played hard but was concerned that its stamina would be low after having played at Deep Creek High School the night before.

“I felt that the game versus Deep Creek took something out of us,” he said, and he knew from personal experience that playing in the intensified atmosphere of a cross-city contest can sap energy all by itself.

Nevertheless, “I was well-pleased with the way that we handled adversity,” he said.

Wright saw his team’s play on defense as the key to winning the game.

“Our goal was just to cut off half of the floor, to make them play typically on one half,” he said, noting Lakeland was somewhat successful at this. “I just think our defensive positioning helped limit some of the moves they were making.”

Cavaliers senior forward Deonta Knight had a big game, with 23 points, 15 rebounds, four assists and two steals, but Worrell was pleased with how his team limited Knight’s teammates.

“We just didn’t do enough offensively to take advantage of our opportunities,” Worrell said.

But at this early point in the season, Worrell is taking the opportunities to help build the Bulldogs bit by bit, so they can peak later in the season.

He is coaching a team significantly different from the one that went 19-10 in the 2014-15 season, falling to I.C. Norcom High School in the Group 4A South region and 4A state title games.

Standout senior guard Keith Stagg transferred in the offseason to Quality Education Academy in Winston-Salem, N.C. Senior center Chris Roscoe is not back with the team this year, and senior guard Deshaun Wethington is participating in indoor track.

Among the players that have returned, “Rontre Pope is really the only guy who got consistent minutes last year,” Worrell said of his sophomore guard.

Others returners with some experience from last season include senior guard Drequan Wilson, senior guard Donjawnez Stancel and junior center Raemaad Wright.

King’s Fork should also get some good production from sophomore guard James Hatton and senior forward John Spearman, while freshman guard Leontre Bailey is a promising up-and-comer.

“We’re going to be a team that’s balanced throughout the year,” Worrell said. “I don’t have a go-to guy at this time.”

The scoring-by-committee approach has been working well for the Bulldogs, who are 4-1.

“So far, the first five games, these new kids, the young kids, they’ve really played hard,” Worrell said. As for the 2015-16 Bulldogs overall, “they’ve been very unselfish with the basketball. I believe the team can be very good.”

They will face a different challenge than any of their predecessors at King’s Fork as the latest realignment has put them in Conference 17 with a whole new slate of conference opponents.

The most notable of those opponents is Lake Taylor High School, which Worrell said might be the best team in the state at the 4A level.

On Tuesday, King’s Fork visits Grassfield High School, while Lakeland (4-2) hosts Hickory High School.