A fast start was enough to propel Tahlequah to a 43-38 win over Grove Tuesday night in Grove. The Class 5A, 15th-ranked Tigers, now winners of two straight, improve to 10-8 overall and 6-3 in the Metro Lakes Conference under head coach Duane Jones. Senior point guard Michael Murphy paced THS with 15 points, nine of those during the first half on three 3-pointers, and the Tigers took a 23-10 advantage into halftime. The Ridgerunners (7-8, 3-6) stormed back in the third quarter and got to within 31-28, but Tahlequah was able to hang on over the final eight minutes behind six points from Murphy. Murphy had four of the Tigers' five 3-pointers, his final one coming in the fourth quarter. Kooper McAlvain followed Murphy with nine points and had the other 3, Jaxon Jones finished with eight, and Hayden Wagers had seven. Tahlequah will host 5A, No. 18 Coweta (8-10, 5-4) in its return to the TMAC on Friday. The Tigers, who dropped a 54-50 decision to Coweta on Dec. 11, defeated Skiatook in their last home outing on Jan. 15.