EVERETT — The Archbishop Murphy boys basketball team was hungry for a win — and maybe a little respect — Tuesday night.
In a matchup of the top two teams in the Cascade Conference, senior Davon Fleming had a game-high 13 points to lead the Wildcats to a 47-42 victory over King’s in front of a raucous crowd at Archbishop Murphy High School.
“The difference was that we wanted it more,” Murphy senior JJ Quinlan said after the game. “We played as a team tonight.”
The Wildcats (7-0 league, 9-3 overall) swept the season series with the Knights, and — barring a collapse — appear to have the inside track for the Cascade Conference title.
In the final 45 seconds of the game, Nick Hardy and Zach McDonald hit 3-pointers from the left corner to pull King’s to within two points at 44-42, but Fleming sealed the win from the free-throw line, sinking three of four attempts inside the final 15 seconds.
“It felt great, showing that the first game wasn’t a fluke, that we’re actually a good team,” Fleming said.
In the teams’ previous meeting, Archbishop Murphy defeated the Knights 45-43 on Jan. 7.
Despite that win and an undefeated league record, the Wildcats played with the intensity of underdogs, erasing a 9-2 deficit late in the first quarter with a pair of 3-pointers from Fleming and sophomore Paris Felder.
“Now everyone knows we’re for real,” Murphy senior J.D. Melton told his teammates after the game.
Melton finished with four points for the Wildcats, junior Casey Wagner had nine and Felder chipped in seven.
Murphy took its first lead of the game three minutes into the second quarter and never trailed again despite several Knights’ rallies.
The teams battled back-and-forth the rest of the way, with seven points the largest margin Archbishop Murphy was able to create.
“We had a lot of different guys step up and play well,” Wildcats coach Greg Turcott said. “I thought that was a factor in the first game, too. We’re playing nine (guys), and we’ve got a deep team that keeps fighting and keeps playing.”
Senior Kyle Talbot scored six of his eight points right after the intermission to help the Knights tie the score at 29 midway through the third period.
Karl Clocksin had 10 points to lead King’s and fellow junior Ryan Hoff, who missed the first game between the teams with a hand injury, scored nine — all on 3-pointers.
“King’s is really, really good — I can’t say that enough,” Turcott said. “They’re well coached and they have great players. … Every kid on the floor can really shoot.”
Both teams played uptempo games on offense, moving the ball around aggressively. That led to several turnovers and defensive stops on both ends of the court.
“Teams can hang with us for the first three quarters, but the fourth quarter we start pulling away,” Quinlan said. “That’s a staple of Archbishop Murphy basketball right now.”
Both of the Knights’ losses this season came at the hands of Murphy, but King’s will have to wait until next year for revenge.
As one of just two Class 1A teams in the Cascade Conference, King’s is assured a postseason berth in the district tournament. Archbishop Murphy is a Class 2A school, and must finish in the top three to clinch a district berth.
Getting better each game and finishing strong is something Turcott said he has emphasized with the Wildcats.
“Those teams that are really clicking at the end of the year, they keep winning,” he said. “We just have to keep improving.”
At Archbishop Murphy H.S.
King’s912813—42
Murphy8151014—47
King’s—Hoff 9, Clocksin 10, Hardy 6, Mar 2, Talbot 8, Brugger 0, McDonald 3, Berg 4, Coshow 0. A.Murphy—Melton 4, Felder 7, Fleming 13, Wagner 9, Quinlan 4, McCann 0, Smith 5, Woolman-Otis 3,Hards 2. 3-point goals—Hoff 3, Hardy 2, McDonald 1, Felder 1, Fleming 1, Wagner 1, Smith 1. Records—King’s 7-2 league, 12-4 overall. Archbishop Murphy 7-0, 9-3.
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