LAKEWOOD — The Cougar boys showed they can pour on the points in spurts, but the droughts did them in versus Archbishop Murphy.

Trailing by as many as 10 points on different occasions, Lakewood went on 12-0 and 9-2 runs that lasted no longer than two and a half minutes, but failed to get the job done, losing a Cascade Conference game to the Wildcats 52-49, Feb. 9.

“It comes down to preparation,” said Lakewood coach Matt Hart about his boys’ dry spells on offense. “We came out flat and spotted them a 10-point lead at halftime — you just can’t do that.”

Archbishop Murphy took advantage of Lakewood’s lethargic first half to the tune of a 27-17 halftime lead, but that quickly evaporated when the Cougars opened the third quarter with a 12-0 run to lead 29-27 inside the first three minutes. Hart changed the defense to a full-court pressure, which forced turnovers on the first five Wildcat possessions.

“They started making adjustments and when you double one guy, another is open,” Hart said of his press that usually handcuffs opponents for roughly six minutes per game. “They beat it a couple times and we had to go with something different.”

After making their run, the Cougars struggled to score, with the exception of Tre’ Haslom, who kept the score close.

“I thought Tre’ had an exceptional game offensively for us,” said Hart of the junior forward who finished with 12 points.

With six minutes remaining in the game, ATM scored seven straight points to earn a 48-40 lead. The game looked out of hand with less than 90 seconds left, but senior Cameron Fry scored five points in as many seconds from a three-pointer and an inbounds steal and layin.

“He’s kind of our go-to guy in big situations like that,” Hart said of Fry, who had a game-high 15 points. “He’s hit a lot of big shots for us in the past.”

The Cougars had a chance to tie the game with the ball and 8.4 second remaining, but a three-point shot was short.

Lakewood (6-11 overall, 5-6 Cascade) dropped to No. 3 in the 2A District 1 seedings, while ATM (6-5 Cascade) rose to No. 2 — which holds home-court advantage in the first round.

“We can still get that home-court,” Hart said. “I think it would be great for this community and these seniors to play a district game at home, and if we win out, that is still a possibility.”

Lakewood has games with Sultan and South Whidbey remaining.