NEGAUNEE — After rallying out of an early hole and building a lead midway through the third quarter, the Escanaba boys’ basketball team let one slip away in a 52-43 season-opening loss at Negaunee Tuesday.

The Eskymos, playing with a mainly new cast, trailed 14-9 after the first quarter and 28-24 at the half before fighting back to tie the score 39-39 going into the fourth quarter.

Negaunee built a small lead early in the fourth before the Eskymos cut their deficit to 44-43 with just over four minutes to go. That’s when the Miners took control of the game, utilizing their experience to make key plays down the stretch.

“We just didn’t execute the last four minutes,” Esky coach Tracy Hudson said. “We’re a young team and we learned a lot. We showed we can compete with the best in the U.P., and we learned from a very savvy team how to close out games.”

The Eskymos struggled to shoot the ball in the final frame, going just 1 of 7 from the field and 2 of 6 from the free throw line.

“Negaunee has been in close games more than any team in the U.P. the last three years and I think that really showed,” Hudson said. “They were more opportunistic. I’m really proud of my kids. We didn’t do a lot of the little things and I felt Negaunee did a lot of more the little things. It was a fun game to watch and a fun game to be a part of.”

Peyton Fedell led the Eskymos with 15 points. Carter Hudson added 10 points, seven rebounds, three steals and two assists.

Jason Waterman had a game-high 26 points for the Miners, while Jakson Sager added 12.

Esky committed 15 turnovers, while the Miners had 14.

“It was two really good teams going at it,” Hudson said. “Our young guards are going to learn a lot from this game. When we showed our inexperience, Negaunee made their runs. We just have to go back to practice and get better.”

Esky, which won the jayvee game 66-31 and the freshmen game 46-43, visits Kingsford Friday.

Escanaba 9 15 15 4 — 43

Negaunee 14 14 11 13 — 52

Escanaba — Frazer 7, Fedell 15, Smale 9, Hudson 10, Maki 2. FT: 3-10; F: 20; Technical foul: Frazer. Fouled out: None. 3-point field goals: Fedell 3, Frazer 1, Smale 1, Hudson 1.

Negaunee — Waterman 26, Sager 12, Lindberg 2, DuShane 3, Kumpula 5, Munson 4. FT: 15-19; F: 11; Fouled out: DuShane. 3-point field goals: Waterman 4, Sager 1.