SOMERS — Now that’s more like it.

Just two days after turning in a disappointing season opener, the UW-Parkside men’s basketball team had its way against a lower-level opponent in blasting Northland International, 92-60, in a non-conference game Tuesday at the DeSimone Gymnasium.

“Forget about the wins and losses, especially early in the year,” said Parkside coach Luke Reigel, whose team lost in overtime against NCAA Division III Concordia on Sunday. “Let’s worry about how much better we can get day to day.”

Whether it was first-game jitters or just a lack of experience in the opener, the Rangers (1-1) looked completely different than the team that played on the same court just over 48 hours prior. Parkside allowed just two field goals in the first 12 minutes and didn’t commit a single turnover in the first 18 minutes in what quickly became a blowout.

Northland International (4-1) entered the game undefeated and was coming off of a 69-point victory over St. Louis Christian on Saturday.

“I was happy with the progress we made,” Reigel said. “The most important thing for us is when we talk to these kids, they soak it in. They want to learn and you can see they get better because of it.”

Parkside (1-1) jumped to a 28-4 lead on back-to-back baskets inside the paint from Grant Johnson and built a commanding 49-17 advantage at halftime. On the opening possession of the second half, Johnson came up with a steal and a delivered a monster, two-handed jam putting any thought of a Pioneer comeback to rest.

The Rangers opened up their biggest lead, 63-25, on a putback from junior college transfer Dwayne Edwards with 14 minutes, 23 seconds remaining. Parkside went with its depleted bench from that point on.

Freshman wing Jeremy Saffold finished with 20 points and five rebounds, while Johnson tallied 16 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and two assists. Saffold and Johnson each played just 23 minutes. Edwards had 14 points and five rebounds off the bench.

Parkside is still missing key freshmen Steve Jaskulske (knee), Kevin Senechalle (ankle) and junior forward Craig Cunningham (hamstring) to injury. Jaskulske took part in warm-ups and was in uniform during the game, but is still at least a week away from making his much-anticipated Parkside debut.

“There’s a chance we’re going to get healthier (soon),” Reigel said. “Now, we have to find time for them to practice.”

The Rangers play four games in a span of eight days, beginning Saturday at Concordia-St. Paul (Minn.) The game was rescheduled for a 9 p.m. tipoff because Concordia-St. Paul is hosting a NCAA Division II women’s volleyball regional.

Concordia-St. Paul opens its season against the Rangers. The Golden Bears feature an imposing frontcourt in 6-10 Brent Barz and 6-11 Dan Vandervieren.

“They’re huge,” Reigel said. “They’re going to be a tough matchup.”