Marion first-year head coach Sammie Lewis preaches the importance of getting a fast start whenever possible in league action. It's safe to say his team came through in spades on Friday night at Fidelity Bank Arena. That's when Lewis's Patriots scored the game's first 10 points and led by as many as 26 points in the fourth quarter in a 61-45 victory over their south Crittenden County neighbors from West Memphis. Marion improved to 18-6 overall and 6-2 in the 5A East with its 12th consecutive victory over West Memphis, and the Patriots have claimed 14 of the past 15 meetings with the Blue Devils. Marion improved to 18-6 overall and 6-2 in the 5A East behind junior Chandler Randle's game-high 19 points with 7 rebounds. Junior Dexter Higgins, Jr. hit for 12 points with 4 assists, and senior Mikell Lewis finished with 14 points and 6 boards. West Memphis got 14 points from LaDarrius Brown, 12 from D.J. Craig, and 6 from Anthony Vaughns. Randle opened the scoring with a corner three-pointer on Marion's opening possession, and he followed the triple up with a contested layup after a Higgins steal to give the hosts a 5-0 bulge. Lewis pushed the Marion lead to 7-0 with a layup, and the senior came up with a steal in the backcourt that he turned into a three-point play with 4:49 left to give the Pats that 10-0 lead with 4:49 left in the first. A pair of Randle free throws with 3:46 left in the second stanza gave Marion its first 20-point lead (30-10) of the night, and the hosts led 34-16 at halftime. Marion pulled down seven offensive rebounds in the third quarter to lead 46-27 entering the fourth quarter. WHAT'S NEXT? Marion continues 5A East play on Tuesday night with a trip to Nettleton. The girls game will tip around 6 p.m., followed by the boys at approximately 7:30. You can watch the Marion-Nettleton girls and boys games for free on the MPAN YouTube channel, at MarionPatriots.com, or on the MPAN mobile app. 5A RESULTS FROM 2/7 Marion 61, W. Memphis 45 Valley View 53, Batesville 43 Nettleton 69, Searcy 47 Greene Co. Tech 66, Paragould 53 5A EAST STANDINGS ON 2/10 SCHOOL CONF. RECORD Valley View 8-0 Nettleton 7-1 Marion 6-2 Greene Co. Tech 5-3 W. Memphis 3-5 Paragould 2-6 Searcy 1-7 Batesville 0-8 Top four teams make state tournament March 4-8 at Greene Co. Tech. 5A EAST GAMES ON 2/11 Marion at Nettleton Greene Co. Tech at Searcy Valley View at Paragould Batesville at W. Memphis