The Mariner Tritons wasted little time taking command against Estero Monday night in the first round of their Christmas Tournament at Frank Morris Gymnasium.

The Tritons broke out to a 23-6 first-quarter lead and extended it to 36-15 by halftime and coasted the rest of the way for a 66-29 victory.

“We got control early and in a game where the outcome was decided so early I thought we did a good job of sharing the basketball and playing well together,” said Tritons coach James Harris.

Five Tritons scored in double figures, led by sophomore Rick Moore’s 12 points. Senior Justin Emmons just missed a double-double with 11 points and eight rebounds. Junior Kendrec Ferrara added 10 points and seven rebounds while senior Nick Marrero and junior Tyler Bender each contributed 10 points.

The Tritons (7-1) advance to the semifinal round against Venice at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

In earlier tournament games Monday, East Lee County clipped Island Coast 66-61; Venice downed Dunbar 69-58 and Charlotte belted North Fort Myers 75-46.

Tuesday’s schedule begins with Island Coast against North Fort Myers at 2:15 and Dunbar against Estero at 4 in consolation bracket games, followed by the semifinals with East Lee County and Charlotte tipping off at 5:45 before Mariner and Venice in the finale.

Estero 6 9 12 2 – 29

Mariner 23 13 16 14 – 66

ESTERO 29 – McFadden 5, Driggers 7, Arcario 9, Brennan 4, Walsh 2, Warner 2. Totals: 11 1-5 29.

3PG: McFadden 1, Driggers 1, Arcario 3, Brennan 1.

MARINER 66 – Stamps 2, Bender 10, Marrero 10, Moore 12, Minto 2, Guerrier 7, Ferrara 10, Emmons 11, Swearingen 2. Totals: 22 12-18 66.

3PG: Bender 2, Marrero 2, Moore 4.

East Lee County 66, Island Coast 61: Island Coast came back from a 12-point halftime deficit to make a game of it at the end only to fall to East Lee County in the final seconds.

The Gators (6-5) had a poor second quarter, limited to six points, but started the second half on a 9-0 run to get back in it.

“We had a terrible second quarter,” said Gators coach Greg Coleman. “We can not play like we did in the first half and expect to beat a good team.”

Tim Dal Bon led the Gators with 18 points while Patrique Chery added 15 and the pair accounted for seven of the team’s 10 three-point baskets. Terrell Griffin chipped in with 11 points and Greg Orellana pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds.

The Gators trailed by one point with 30 seconds remaining, but missed an open shot.

East Lee hit two free throws to go up by three.

The Gators’ final possession ended with a turnover, handing the Jaguars the win.

John Carr led the Jaguars (9-2) with 21 points.

Island Coast tips off against North Fort Myers at 2:15 p.m. Tuesday in the consolation bracket. East Lee goes up against Charlotte at 5:45 p.m. in the semifinals.

East Lee 16 17 15 18 – 66

Island Coast 15 6 25 15 – 61

EAST LEE 66 – Joseph 7, Carr 21, Simmons 7, Santo 6, Seegar 2, Ward 15, Touiseant 2, Blanc 6. Totals: 26 10-16 66.

3PG: Joseph 1, Carr 1, Ward 2.

ISLAND COAST 61 – Chery 15, Dal Bon 18, Griffin 11, Harding 5, Orellana 4, Rees 6, Morris 2. Totals: 22 7-11 61.

3PG: Chery 3, Dal Bon 4, Harding 1, Rees 2.

Girls Basketball

Ida Baker 69, Boca Raton 66: Ida Baker made a total of 17 steals, which helped establish an early lead to force Boca Raton to play catch-up the rest of the way in the first round of the Wellington Holiday Classic in Fort Lauderdale.

Four Baker players scored in double figures, led by Alicia Emmons with 24 points, Jessey Placher with 12, Shanelly Brown with 11 and Ali Nicloy with 10.

The Bulldogs (8-6) play Estero in the semifinals Tuesday.

Ida Baker 20 15 11 23 – 69

Boca Raton 14 16 13 23 – 66

BAKER 69 – Nicloy 10, Emmons 24, Placher 12, Del Negro 9, Brown 11, Ramsey 3. Totals: 24 19-34 69.

3PG: Brown 2.

BOCA 66 – Daniels 25, Andrews 2, Bukovich 7, VanBourgodian 12, McWilliams 4, Ianka 4, Isaksson 2, Levy 2, Maloney 8. Totals: 28 4-8 66.

3PG: Daniels 5, Bukovich 1.

Palm Beach 54, Mariner 16: Mariner never got off the mark, trailing 28-8 after the first quarter of play, en route to an opening-round loss to Palm Beach in the Ely Holiday Classic in Palm Beach.

The Tritons (2-14) slip into the consolation bracket and await their opponent for a 5 p.m. game Tuesday.

Mariner 8 2 4 2 – 16

Palm Beach 28 9 12 5 – 54

MARINER 16 – Mo. Bono 2, Gibbs 3, McClure 3, Taylor 4, Griffin 4. Totals: 5 6-10 16.

3PG: none.

PALM BEACH 54 – Zavithsanos 5, Davis 5, Robertson 5, Gadson 3, White 4, Pierre 4, Bell 8, Robertson 18. Totals: 24 2-4 54.

3PG: Zavithsanos 5, Davis 1, Robertson 2.

Island Coast 30, Seacrest 24: Mary Mahone led Island Coast to victory over Seacrest with a game-high 10 points in the opening round of the Canterbury Christmas Tournament.

The Gators (8-4) play for the championship Tuesday against Evangelical Christian.

Seacrest4 12 2 6 – 24

Island Coast6 6 12 5 – 30

SEACREST 24 – McFarland 2, Bales 5, Burtcher 8, Murray 5, Hurtado 4. Totals: 10 4-12 24.

ISLAND COAST 30 – Blackman 8, Mahone 10, Duis 2, Mims 3, Ortiz 7. Totals: 12 5-9 30.

3PG: Ortiz 1.