Only one point separated the District 12-8A front-runners when the teams met six weeks ago, with Western edging Cypress Bay by a point after almost blowing a 10-point halftime lead.

Western, playing in front of a tense, packed crowd in its gym, once again built a big halftime lead of 11 points, eventually leading by as many as 16 midway through the third quarter.

But the Wildcats were left hanging on for dear life late in the game, weathering a huge Cypress Bay rally for a 50-46 victory in a thriller Tuesday night.

Western improved to 14-5 and 7-3 in district play. The Lightning dropped to 13-4 and 6-3.

“I think the key for us was preparation,” Western coach Steve Todd said. “We try to prepare for situations like this, when we got in a slump. We made the play when we had to, but the turnovers [23 to Cypress Bay’s 13] were horrible. But you overcome that with selective shooting and rebounding [Western outrebounded Cypress Bay 28-19].”

The Wildcats seemed comfortable at 42-26 with 2:37 left in the third quarter following at three-point basket byMark James.

James, who finished with 11 points, needed to convert two clutch free throws with 5.3 seconds after the Wildcats were staggered by a 14-2 Lightning spurt that pulled the visitors to within two, 48-46, with 1:46 left.

The Wildcats started pulling away late in the first half, leading by as many as 11 for their 34-23 halftime lead. Austin Katz scored half the team’s first-half points with 17, including 12 in the first quarter. The 6-5 guard finished with a game-high 23 points, along with 10 rebounds.

Cypress Bay’s Ross Udine led the Lightning with 18 points, including a three-pointer in the final minutes to pull his team to within two at 47-45 with two minutes remaining.

• CB (13-4): Udine 18, Baach 7, Antoine 7, Medina 6, Michel 2, Barnes 2, Joson 2, Wingard 1, Jurko 1. WEST (14-5): Katz 23, James 11, Artaza 9, Hessney 5, Delucca 1, Royes 1. Halftime: WEST 34-23. Three-pointers: Udine 3, Artaza 3, Pollack. Rebounds: Katz 10. Steals: James 4

MORE BOYS’ BASKETBALL

• Dillard 66, Coconut Creek 39 - DIL: Clayton 7, Johnson 2, Green 10, Adams 11, Parson 6, Burns 6, Wright 21, Anderson 3. CC: Richardson 12, Patterson 1, Josey 3, Mardis 4, A. Thompson 12, J. Gomes 2, Watson 2, Thompson 3. Halftime: DIL 35-23. Three-pointers: Clayton, josey, A. Thompson. Rebounds: Adams 11. Assists: Parson 7. Steals: Adams 6

• Blanche Ely 76, Northeast 30 – ELY: Gosier 6, Thomas 16, Tejada 4, Labadi 2, Cameron 13, Allen 12, Lee 20, Jackson 3. NE: Alerte 3, Wilshire 5, Longham 6, Simonson 2, Osceola 3, Martin 9, King 3. Halftime: ELY 48-21. Three-pointers: Lee 2, Cameron, Osceola. Rebounds: Thomas 15. Assists: Cameron 10. Steals: Tejada 3, Cameron 3, Lee 3.

•  TERRA 73, Hialeah Educational Academy 29 - TER (11-10): Morales 3, Fernandez 10, Munoz 7, Grant 2, Novo 5, Guttierez 6, Melamud 5, Mayor 3, Escuti-Tremblay 2, Guzman 8, Schau 11, Parra 4. HEA: Robert 19, Juliom 5, Michaels 2, Jean 3

•  Palmer Trinity 46, Archimedean Conservatory 15 - PT (6-11): DaGrosa 10, Bonet 8, Marley-Minto 7, Chumbley 5, Becker 4, Dorsy 4, Portrondo 4, Pico 2, Bakes 2. AC (2-15): Margetis 11, Bennett 2, Gantzios 2. Halftime: PT 29-9. Three-pointers: DaGrosa 2, Chumbley, Marley-Minto. Rebounds: Becker 5. Steals: DaGrosa 3. Assists: DaGrosa 5. Blocks: Marley-Minto 2