The San Marin High girls basketball team started fast and finished strong Friday night for a 47-31 home win over The Branson School.

“This was a game we needed,” said San Marin head coach Tony Butler, whose Mustangs were coming off back-to-back losses. “We needed this to stop some of the bleeding.”

Mustangs senior Quincy Dean got the game rolling with a 3-pointer — a preview of things to come for San Marin — and she went on to post a double-double, with 12 points and 10 rebounds in a defensive matchup between perennial playoff contenders.

“Boxing out and production on rebounds, that was really the turning point,” Branson head coach Bruce Pruiett said. “San Marin was playing a good defensive game. They were getting back and they were able to kick the ball out for threes. That was a rough game.”

The Mustangs (14-5, 2-1 MCAL) went on a 12-point run during the first quarter, and led by 10 points or more through the rest of the game. Junior Abby Bartholo gave the Mustangs an early boost with eight of her game-high 14 points coming in the first period. The Mustangs got 11 points from sophomore Brianna Nottingham, who made three of the Mustangs’ eight 3-pointers.

“Getting a fast start is something we want to continue to focus on,” Butler said. “That helped a lot and we’re going to need that against some of the other MCAL teams.”

San Marin’s defensive tandem of Bartholo and Eleanna Schram held the Bulls in check, as none of the Branson players reached double-digit scoring.

“Abby Bartholo and Eleanna Schram did a great job defensively on (Branson senior) Avery Myerberg,” Butler said. “Our defense was sound and when we have two or three girls score in double figures, we’re hard to beat.”

After a lackluster scoring performance in the second period by both teams, San Marin still held a 26-14 lead. Branson showed signs it could rally in the second half, but those hopes were cut short. San Marin closed out the game with a 10-5 run in the fourth quarter just as Branson, desperate to create some offense, suffered a major setback.

“We had our chances to get back in the game in the third and fourth quarters,” Pruiett said. “But we were some rebounds and some free throws. So it made the game tough because there were periods of like four, five minutes when it seemed like nobody was scoring, and then they kind of pulled away at the end.”

It was a painful loss for the Bulls (10-8, 1-2), as Myerberg crashed hard to the court as she was fouled during a furious drive to the hoop in the third quarter. Myerberg lay on the floor under the basket for a minute before gently getting to her feet and hobbling around, holding her hip in pain. After splitting a pair of free throws, she went to the bench and did not return, finishing the night with seven points and five rebounds.

The Bulls, who face Tam on Monday, can ill afford another injury to a lineup that has already been struggling without senior Rosie Slayen. Senior center Paige Macy stepped up for eight points and 13 rebounds and sophomore Alyssa Huang added six points.

“(Macy) plays hard and she’s a fierce rebounder,” Pruiett said. “She’s the anchor on our defense in the middle and she did an awesome job.”

Freshman guard Kate Spaulding had three points for Branson in an energetic performance. Senior captain Maya De Santiago added four points.

“(Spaulding) is an awesome player,” Pruiett said. “She’s got a lot of energy and she’s learning to slow down and control that energy.”