After watching a pair of second half comebacks fall just short, Highlands boys basketball coach Brett Lamb was excited to see the Highlanders finish the job on Friday night against Murphy.
Highlands scored the final six points of the game over the last 58 seconds of the fourth quarter to claim a 57-53 win.
“Our guys are really young, but they are learning every game and they are getting better every game,” Lamb said. “We had a big comeback against Hiwassee Dam and we couldn’t pull it out, and then kind of the same thing against Brevard, where we cut an 18-point lead down to four but we couldn’t finish. Tonight we finished.”
The two teams played a back-and-forth first half, with neither side leading by more than five points. At the intermission the score was deadlocked at 26-26.
Murphy opened up a lead in the third quarter thanks to a successful press defense and a few quick turnovers by the Highlanders. Jesse Kephart’s layup off a steal pushed the Bulldogs’ advantage to 43-35 late in the third.
“We have two starting guards that are both sophomores and sometimes we get a little bit ahead of ourselves, but once we saw what (Murphy) was doing with the press I thought we adjusted well,” Lamb said. “That goes back to our maturation as a team and learning as the season goes on.”
Highlands kept the game close early in the fourth quarter before taking control in the final four minutes.
Reid Carrier buried a contested 3-pointer to cut the Murphy lead to 50-47 with just over three minutes to play. A bucket by Connor Briggs pulled Highlands within one point before the teams traded baskets ahead of the final minute.
Carrier knocked down a pair of free throws to tie the game at 53-53 with 49 seconds on the clock.
Following a Murphy turnover, Highlands executed an old-fashioned pick-and-roll play that left forward Gig Chalker defended by a Bulldog guard. Chalker backed the smaller man under the basket and dropped in a layup to put Highlands ahead 55-53 with 16 seconds left.
Murphy missed an attempt to tie the game before two free throws from Carrier sealed the contest in Highlands’ favor.
Coming off a career-high 29 points against Brevard, Carrier paced the Highlanders with 26 points on Friday.
“Reid is a kid that is in the gym before school, at 7 a.m., every morning just getting shots up and working on his game,” Lamb said. “He has a lot of talent and he is starting to grow into that role as a go-to scorer.”
Chalker finished with nine points, Briggs added eight and Dillon Schmitt chipped in six for Highlands.
Kephart finished as Murphy’s leading scorer with 21 points. Isra Smith was the only other Bulldog in double figures with 10.
“Murphy is a good team, and they have a kid that’s out with an injury that will really add to their offense when he comes back,” Lamb said. “Tonight was definitely a good win for our guys against a quality opponent.”
Highlands (2-6 overall) will be back in action on Friday night at Franklin.
Murphy 57, Highlands 44
Highlands was able to stay within arms reach of Murphy for three quarters on Friday night, but the Bulldogs earned a 57-44 victory.
The Highlanders got off to a fast start and jumped in front 15-10 after the first quarter as Hayley Borino and Jordan Carrier each hit 3-point shots in the opening minutes.
Murphy used its size in the second quarter to erase the deficit. Forward Torin Rogers took control of the Bulldogs’ offense and scored eight of her game-high 23 points in the period as the visitors pulled ahead 29-24 at the half.
After an even third quarter, Rogers proved to be too tough to handle as the Bulldogs pulled away.
Borino led Highlands with 20 points. Carrier added 11 and Julia May Schmitt tallied eight points in the defeat.
Highlands (4-4 overall) will travel to Franklin on Friday.