By Seth Lakso, Globe Correspondent

The Plymouth South boys' basketball team had history on its side Thursday night when it rallied from 17 down after three quarters of play to top Nauset, 60-53, in overtime in Eastham.

The Panthers (2-1) accomplished a similar feat last season, rallying from 10 down to Nauset with two minutes to play for the win in regulation.

"I think that win [last season] stuck in the kids minds," said Plymouth South coach David Costa. "History was on our side, but to come back from 17 down took a lot of hard work from my kids too."

Junior guard Mike Nele led the Panthers with 18 points, 14 in the second half and overtime. Through three games, he's been the Panthers' most consistent threat, averaging 21 points a game.

The Panthers spent much of the game trying to confuse the Warriors (0-4) with different defensive looks, but abandoned the tactic for their usual full-court man-to-man defense after falling behind, 48-31, at the end of the third.

"We went from playing a lot of zone back to our normal [defense] and started generating some turnovers and once we got the momentum we didn't look back," said Costa.

Sophomore guard Jack Browne (12 points) was instrumental in the comeback, connecting on three fourth quarter 3-pointers to help Plymouth South finish regulation on a 20-3 run.

Sophomore Sam Letendre (14 points) hit a jumper with 20 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game at 51 and complete the comeback.

Browne's hot shooting from behind the arc continued in the extra frame, where he connected on a fourth 3 to help the Panthers pull away.