When Newman cranked up the pressure and the tempo, Fulton just couldn’t keep up.

The Comets used a huge first-half run to pull away from the Steamers in a 64-27 nonconference win over their former Three Rivers Conference foes Tuesday in Sterling.

Newman (4-1) nabbed 30 steals and forced 33 turnovers, had more offensive rebounds than Fulton had total, and went on a 32-2 run over a 9-minute, 51-second span of the first and second quarters to take control.

“Honestly, it was just staying calm, helping each other out. Our passes were really good, and we had a lot of good assists to each other. Once we play together and stay calm, I feel like that’s when we play well,” Newman’s Gisselle Martin said. “When everyone touches the ball and starts making shots, we’re all going to contribute during the game, and that’s going to help us in the long run during the season.”

The Comets led 8-5 after a 3-pointer by Fulton’s Breleigh Hayton with 1:39 left in the first quarter, but a putback by Veronica Haley, three straight 3s by Lucy Oetting, Martin and Paizlee Williams, and a steal and coast-to-coast layup by Elaina Allen pushed the Newman lead to 21-7.

A 19-0 run to open the second featured three second-chance baskets by three different players, a fast-break layup by Anna Propheter, and some crisp ball movement to find open shooters.

Newman scored 13 points off of 26 offensive rebounds on the way to a 42-25 rebounding advantage.

“It’s really nice to have that, and it’s all about boxing out,” Haley said. “When we’re all boxing out, it’s a lot easier to rebound. When we’re communicating and boxing out well, we can get those rebounds and putbacks, or get those rebounds and pass it back out really easily to our shooters. It’s all about communicating, knowing where everyone is at all times, and I think we communicated really well today.”

Defensively, four different Comets had at least four steals, and Newman forced at least six turnovers in each quarter, finishing with 18 fast-break points.

“That’s just the communication and ball-pressure that we have. The more we communicate, the better our defense runs, and that’s just how we got it done,” Allen said. “Our coaches always say defense is what wins games, and I totally agree with them. I think tonight, we showed it.”

“Unfortunately, we just didn’t see the ball well enough, we rushed too much,” Fulton coach Mike Menchaca said. “It was 13-7 at one point when we were calmed down and slowed down, but when we play fast, we’re not quite there. We’ve also got to have confident shooters. We knew they were going to try and trap us when that ball go to the wing or corners, and we held it too much. And obviously not having a lot of size, that hurts a little bit when you’re trying to battle for boards.”

Fulton (1-2) came out of halftime with some energy, using a 15-5 run to cut into the deficit, but Haley had back-to-back putbacks before Allen scored on back-to-back steals to start the fourth quarter and kick off the continuous clock.

Haley’s double-double of 13 points and 14 rebounds (9 offensive) led the Comets, and she also had three steals. Allen had 12 points, seven steals, five rebounds and two assists, and Martin had 11 points, eight rebounds, seven steals and three assists. Propheter finished with 12 points, four rebounds and four steals, Williams added eight points, four steals and two assists, and Oetting chipped in six points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Hayton had eight points, five rebounds and three assists for Fulton, and Ella Folk hit a pair of 3s and grabbed five rebounds. Haley Smither added four points and four rebounds, Wrenn Coffey had four points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals, and Brianne Brennan chipped in two points and four boards.

“We were coming off a long trip and played a tough one [Monday] night, and I think our legs were gone a little bit, and it took us a while to get going and get comfortable,” Menchaca said. “But we wanted that type of game, physicality and speed. We knew Newman was going to contest everything, and that’s the level of defense we want to get to.

“We’ve only got seven varsity players, and one’s hurt, so we just don’t have a whole lot depth-wise. But we’re learning, and I think there’s a lot of potential here, it’s just a matter of getting them on the right path and the right page and working together.”