A three-game skid to open the season left the Cicero-North Syracuse boys basketball team quite eager to turn it around before it got even worse.

That’s exactly what the Northstars did in Friday night’s home opener against Johnson City, as the visitors from the Section IV ranks never could stop C-NS’s attack in a 93-50 romp.

While the Northstars’ opening slate – at Webster Thomas, against Nottingham in the Peppino’s Classic at Henninger, against Fayetteville-Manlius at the Carrier Dome – had a high degree of difficulty, it still frustrated C-NS fans, something that, on this night, wouldn’t be repeated.

Steadily, the Northstars gained a 20-9 edge on the Wildcats, but that was just the warm-up. Over the next two periods, C-NS tore Johnson City apart on the defensive end, scoring 58 points in those 16 minutes and putting the game far out of reach.

Mike Tricarico, scoring 16 points, led four Northstars in double figures. Brian DeMonte chimed in with 14 points, while Xavier Brown and Deshawn Stevens managed 12 points apiece.

All 11 players that saw action for C-NS got at least one field goal. Troy McIntyre had eight points, while Nathan Tyrrell had seven points. Austin Perry and Darnell Rucker managed six points apiece.

C-NS meets Christan Brothers Academy (head coach John Haas’s alma mater) on Tuesday, its last action before hosting the Dec. 27-28 Holiday Classic and a strong field that includes Liverpool, West Genesee and New Hartford.