Cary entered the season having lost 78 percent of its scoring, 79 percent of its rebounding and 83 percent of its playing time from last year.

Not surprisingly, the Imps endured some early season growing pains, but they’re hoping a pair of wins last week could signal a sign of good things to come.

After a 61-44 Tri-Eight win at Lee County on Dec. 18, Cary dispatched Sanderson 55-47 in a nonconference meeting Thursday to improve to 4-5 (1-1 in the Tri-Eight).

“Every game this year has been in the balance with three minutes to play [except Lee County],” said Cary coach Allan Gustafson, now in his 10th season with the Imps. “Every game has been real close, and we’ve lost the majority of them. But we’re getting better. … It’s been a slow process, but every game we’re right there and we’re getting over the hump and making steady improvement.”

Seven of the Imps’ first nine games were decided by six points or fewer, including three by three points or fewer.

“The win over Lee County gave us a good start,” said Cary forward Kevin Windley, who had 18 points, nine rebounds and three steals against Sanderson.

Occasionally, Gustafson said he will draw a scale on the board in the Imps’ locker room and remind his players that good plays will tilt the scale toward victory. Against Sanderson, the Imps made plenty of those in order to ensure their third win in four games.

After a Parker Stephenson 3-pointer gave the Imps a 47-37 lead with 1:10 to play in the third quarter, the Imps went ice cold. They failed to score at all during the next 6:31, a stretch that featured an 0-for-6 effort from the floor and allowed Sanderson to cut their lead to 47-45.

But after a pair of missed Sanderson free throws with 2:38 to play, Cary spread out the floor and worked the ball around the perimeter until it found a good shot.

After 60 seconds of making the Spartans defend, Taylor Payne drove to the hoop. As he sucked a pair post players off the blocks, Payne dumped the ball off to Stephenson, who easily laid it in.

“We were just trying to draw them out and make them pressure us,” said Payne, who finished with 21 points and shot 10-of-12 at the free-throw line. “Once they pressured us, we attacked them off the dribble.”

Up 49-45 with 1:38 left, the Imps closed the game on an 8-2 run to seal the victory.

“We looked very steady on the floor in the last three minutes,” Gustafson said. “Also, on the defensive end, I thought we did a good job.”

Spartan forward Ron Lanier knocked down a 3-pointer with 6:09 to play to make it 47-45, but Sanderson did not score again until 1.1 seconds remained and they were down by 10.

“They outworked us and outplayed us and outcoached us and everything,” said Sanderson coach Mike Shaw. “Really, the bottom line is they just outhustled us.”

The Imps turn their attention this week to The Cary News Holiday Invitational at Cary Academy. Cary, the reigning tournament champions, will open play Thursday against Jamestown Ragsdale at 2 p.m. From there, they’ll return to what’s shaping up to be a grueling Tri-Eight season. Gustafson’s hoping that as the Imps continue to grind out games, it will pay off in the new year.

“The more you’re in that situation,” he said, “you end up pulling out games like [against Sanderson].”