APEX — After an 0-4 start to Tri-Eight play, Friday night’s win over rival Cary was just the right medicine for the Apex boys’ basketball team.

Led by a 22-point performance from big man Weston Murphy, the Cougars defeated the Imps 75-68 to earn their first conference win and gain some much-needed momentum as they head into the meat of the conference schedule.

“It got us really pumped up,” Murphy said. “We’re going to come out hungry next game.”

At times, it looked like Apex (4-9 overall, 1-4 Tri-Eight) was about to run away with this one. The Imps went on a scoring drought at the end of the third quarter that lasted more than four minutes. Meanwhile, the Cougars went on an 11-0 run that stretched their lead to 17 before Cary’s David Fryar scored in the final seconds to cease the famine.

Cary (7-7, 2-2) refused to go away, gradually nipping into a seemingly comfortable Apex margin throughout the fourth quarter.

The Imps couldn’t get it within five, however, until the final minute when Kevin Windley’s put-back made it 71-67 with 11.7 seconds left.

Things then got interesting, though, when with 3.8 seconds left and the score at 73-67, the Imps’ Taylor Payne was fouled on a 3-point attempt. Payne made just one of the three free throws, and Apex answered with two from Connor Belicic to put the game out of reach.

“They made a great comeback. They didn’t quit,” said Apex coach David Neal. “But they always do. They play with resiliency until the final buzzer.”

The Cougars were able to stave off the Imps’ comeback thanks in part to effective, if not brilliant, free-throw shooting. They went 18-of-22 from the line in the second half.

Apex also eventually found a way to beat the Imps’ full-court pressure and get the ball down low to Murphy, who scored 16 of his 22 points in the second half.

“I thought he played great,” Neal said. “Once we were able to beat the press and get it across, they didn’t have an answer for him.”

The Cougars were also paced by the play of Adam Perry, who scored 18 points, including two key 3-pointers and five consecutive points that sparked the Cougars’ third-quarter run.

The Imps were led by Parker Stephenson, who scored 17. Also in double figures for Cary was Payne with 15.

Apex could potentially turn this into a winning streak if it maintains some momentum. The Cougars’ next two games are against Fuquay-Varina and Lee County, the two teams below Apex in the conference standings.

Either way, the first conference win — over its archrival, no less — was huge for the Cougars’ confidence.

“It was just what we needed, for sure,” Neal said. “Our backs were against the wall.”