Groton responded to the challenge inside a packed Roncalli Gym Tuesday night.

The Tigers built a double-digit lead and then fought off multiple comeback attempts to grab a 50-40 win over Aberdeen Roncalli in Northeast Conference boys’ basketball.

The contest featured a typical Groton-Roncalli atmosphere, as fans from both sides made their presence felt in an electric environment.

“Whether it’s here or at our place it always is,” said Groton coach Brian Dolan. “We knew it was going to be a grind. It doesn’t matter how good you play or how poor you play, it’s going to be a close game down the stretch and that’s what it was tonight.”

It appeared that Groton had the game under control, leading 33-18 midway through the third quarter. However, things changed in a hurry as Roncalli found some offense, thanks in part to its pressure defense.

The Cavaliers eventually closed the margin down to six points early in the fourth quarter.

“We had a good battle to get back within six,” said Roncalli coach Dan Gallagher. “I thought our defense really turned it up to be able to get back within six.”

The Cavaliers got to within six points three different times, and each time, Groton responded with points to push the margin back to eight.

“We couldn’t catch a break tonight,” said Roncalli’s Aiden Fisher. “Every time we scored, they scored right back.”

The first response came via a 3-pointer from Keegen Tracy to push the lead to nine, before Fisher converted a three-point play to slice the deficit to 40-34 with 5:15 remaining.

The next response came 15 seconds later when Ryder Johnson made a backdoor cut for a tough layup. It was play that Gallagher saw coming and called it out, but it could not prevent the score.

“Brian had some good play calls, getting that back door,” Gallagher said. “It helps if I know, but it doesn’t help if the guys aren’t ready for it.”

Roncalli had one last chance, cutting the margin to 44-38 on a drive by Fisher with 1:25 remaining. However, Karson Zak made two free throws to extend the lead and the margin never got under eight the rest of the way.

“That’s been a struggle of ours, learning how to finish up games,” Dolan said, “and I think you saw it again tonight.”

Johnson, who had been quiet early in the game, came up big down the stretch with eight fourth-quarter points to help secure the win.

“All year I’ve kind of been playing my game, playing within the offense,” Johnson said. “Early in the game it wasn’t coming to me, my teammates were scoring, playing good. In the fourth quarter I got my chance, so I took advantage.”

Whether on the football field or on the basketball court, Johnson knows how special the Groton-Roncalli contests are.

“It’s just a rivalry. They’re all fun. It’s all intense,” Johnson said. “Both teams want to win. You hate losing, because you won’t hear the end of it. It feels good when you get the win, for sure.”

While Johnson was leading the Tigers down the stretch, Fisher was keeping Roncalli afloat, scoring seven points in the final quarter.

“I feel like the first half I really wasn’t trying to force up shots. I was just trying playing my game,” Fisher said. “In the second half I knew we were down, so I needed the ball in my hands.”

Gallagher expects nothing less from the team’s senior leader.

“Aiden really just kind of in a way took over,” Gallagher said. “He became the game changer that he can be.”

Fisher led Roncalli with 10 points. The Cavaliers received nine points from Parker Grieben and eight from Cam Olson out of the post, most coming in the opening half.

“Getting the ball to the post was a key going into it,” Gallagher said, “it’s just we weren’t as consistent as we want to be with it.”

Johnson and Zak each had 14 points, and Tracy followed with 12 for the Tigers, who improved to 9-4 on the season.

“Keegen got out in transition in the third quarter, and Karson got us off to a quick start, and then Ryder cleaned it up in the fourth quarter,” Dolan said. “All three guys in double figures and we’ll take that any night.”

In the end, the Tigers made enough plays to finish off an intense battle over a longtime rival.

“We knew it was going to be a good game. We knew they were going to play tough,” Johnson said. “They weren’t going to give up, so we just knew we had to come in here and play our game, and finish strong.”

Meanwhile, the Cavaliers were left to ponder what might have been.

“It’s one of those deals, you can feel it,” Gallagher said. “It’s just when you’re that close and you see it kind of drift off, it’s tough. It’s hard.”

Roncalli, 6-8 on the season, plays at Milbank on Friday, while Groton hosts Deuel Thursday before playing at Vermillion on Friday.

“This group I know is going to get better every game, because it’s a new group,” Dolan said. “They’re a talented group and they work their tails off, and I’m excited to see where we are in a month.”

GROTON (9-4): Keegen Tracy 5 1-2 12, Ryder Johnson 5 4-5 14, Becker Bosma 1 0-2 2, Karson Zak 5 3-4 14, Gage Sippel 4 0-1 8. Totals 20 8-14 50.

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (6-8): Jesse Hernandez 2 0-0 5, Aiden Fisher 4 1-1 10, Sam Franks 1 2-2 4, Brody Weinmeister 2 0-0 4, Parker Grieben 4 0-1 8, Parker Grieben 4 1-2 9. Totals 17 4-6 40.

Groton 11 23 37 50

Aberdeen Roncalli 11 14 25 40

3-point field goals – Tracy, Zak; Hernandez, Fisher. Total fouls – Groton 11; Aberdeen Roncalli 16. Rebounds – Groton 32 (Johnson 10, Sippel 9); Aberdeen Roncalli 22 (Fisher 7). Turnovers – Groton 22; Aberdeen Roncalli 14. Assists – Groton 12 (Tracy 4, Zak 4). Blocked Shots – Groton 3 (Sippel 2, Johnson); Aberdeen Roncalli 2 (Franks, Olson).