Boys' basketball: Murray erupts in second half to beat West

Murray • David Collette sat on the bench, kicking himself for getting into foul trouble so early Tuesday night. He watched the first quarter come to an end as his team battled West. Then the second. With two fouls, Murray's 6-foot-8 center knew he had to sit until the second half.

"I immediately got started thinking about the third quarter," Collette said, "what I had to do to step up."

He wasted no time in the third quarter putting that plan into action. He scored on a post move on the Spartans first possession, and hit a 3-pointer on the next. He scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half. Murray turned a two-point halftime deficit into a 79-61 win after outscoring the Panthers by 20 points in the second half.

"David's 3 was huge," said guard Riley Grandinetti, who led Murray with 21 points.

West couldn't come back after a 15-point run by the Spartans that bridged the third and fourth quarters.

Murray and West are now tied atop the Region 2 standings with records of 5-1, the home team winning their two matchups. West beat Murray 51-45 on Jan. 7. The Spartans have won six straight since the loss.

Coach Jason Workman said Murray was ready for the rematch.

"When you lose that first one, if you want to win a region championship, you count the games and you count the days until that next one," he said.

The Panthers were led by star guard Tyrell Corbin, who scored 22 points but shot just 6-of-18 from the floor.

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