NORTHAMPTON — The No. 7 Northampton girls basketball team had flashbacks to last year’s near 30-point loss to Walpole in the MIAA Division 2 Round of 32 after the first quarter of Friday night’s rematch with the N0. 2 Timberwolves – this time in the D2 Elite Eight.

The Blue Devils had given up 18 points and found themselves down 11. Head coach Perry Messer didn’t mince his words in the huddle.

“If you’re gonna play defense like this, we’re going home,” he told his team.

They responded by giving up 12 points in the second, 11 in the third and 11 in the fourth (which would’ve been eight if it weren’t for a meaningless deep 3 at the buzzer from Walpole). Northampton’s lockdown defense, along with Ava Azzaro’s fourth-quarter takeover, the sharp shooting of Bri Heafey and a clutch Emme Calkins 3-pointer, helped the Blue Devils to a 55-52 win that advanced them into the Final Four.

“They’ve understood right from the get-go, if you want to win, you’ve gotta play defense,” Messer said. “Defense travels, and it gives us a chance to win no matter what. I wouldn’t wanna be coaching anyone else. This group is fun to be around. I love how they play and interact with each other. We gotta find a way to get to [the state final on] Saturday. That’s all. And we’ll work our best at doing it.”

Northampton plays No. 6 South High Community of Worcester in the state semifinal round on Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. at Chicopee Comp High School. The winner punches its ticket to the Division 2 state championship, which will be held at the Tsongas Center in Lowell this weekend.

Messer’s message after winning an emotional game? Stay in the moment, and realize there’s more work to be done.

“You can’t take this opportunity for granted, that’s what I’m trying to get through to them,” he said. “You can be a freshman and sit there and say, ‘Oh, well freshman year I made it to the Final Four,’ and you may never get back. You never know… What you have right in front of you is the best opportunity. Take advantage of it while you have it. You’ve earned this, but don’t be satisfied with it.”

In order to continue their run into the title game, the Blue Devils will have to get by South High, a team fresh off a 25-point drubbing of No. 3 Notre Dame (Hingham) in the quarters.

Because that game took place on Saturday, one day after Northampton’s, Messer and members of his coaching staff took the trip to watch their future opponent.

“We got a chance to see them in person and put together our scouting report,” he said.

His initial thoughts were pretty simple: South High is one of the most athletic teams they’ve seen this year. The Colonels are physical, and like to play with lots of pace on both sides of the ball. Offensively they try to get up shots as fast as possible, and defensively they try to speed up their opponent.

But one thing that jumped out to Messer is the size advantage Northampton has. Azzaro typically plays the three or four spot for the Blue Devils, with either of the two freshman bigs, Anna Oravec or Liv Joensen, at the five. All of South High’s rotational players are either Azzaro’s size or smaller, which means Northampton could have the edge in rebounding and in the paint.

That won’t matter if the Blue Devils can’t take care of the ball against South High’s several variations of a 1-3-1 trap, however.

“They’re gonna trap you, that’s for sure,” Messer said. “Whether it’s a full-court press, three-quarter court or half court, they’re trapping you – especially if you’re up top or in the corners. They rely on controlled chaos, and they want you to turn the ball over. They’re gonna run, shoot 3s and try to get to the basket on you. We gotta play disciplined. The youngsters have been through a full season, so they aren’t freshmen anymore. They’ve graduated beyond that. We’ll be ready for it. Are we gonna handle it and execute? That’s gonna be the big thing.”

In two of South High’s three state tournament games, it has scored 70 or more points. In each of those three contests, the Colonels’ opponents played zone, which led to them knocking down 3s from all over the floor.

They likely won’t get those same looks against Messer’s defense.

“I haven’t seen any games where teams have played them man-to-man, which you know what we’re gonna do,” Messer said. “We’ll see how they run their offense with somebody getting up in their face. If you’re gonna shoot against us, you’re gonna have a hand in your face. And if they make them, all you can do is tip your cap.”

While South High is certainly a different challenge, Northampton has seen teams with a similar playing style. The Valley League, with a handful of strong teams, has primed the Blue Devils for moments like Tuesday.

“We get three games a year against Central, we play Springfield International, Longmeadow – all really good, athletic teams,” Messer said. “The style they play is very similar. Our league prepares us for this kind of stuff.”

Perhaps an underrated aspect of Tuesday’s game is simply the location of it. The neutral site is Chicopee Comp, not even 20 miles away from Northampton High School yet an hour drive from South High Community.

Messer made it quite clear that “the court is the same length and the basket heights are the same” regardless of where the game is played, but also noted the benefits of being in a gym his entire team has experience playing in.

On top of that, being less than a half hour away will draw more Northampton fans to the game.

“If we would’ve had to travel back to Boston or to Worcester, it is what it is… But it’s nice to have a gym that everyone is familiar with,” Messer said. “The other nice part is that it’s close for the fans. Fans don’t have an excuse about traveling. Hopefully they’re gonna be there supporting us and cheering the kids on.”