Great Mills, MD – Chopticon and Great Mills got together for a SMAC game Jan. 29. The conference aspect wasn’t the only thing riding on the game however; these two teams are fierce county rivals. The rivalry proved to be true as both teams kept the score very close.
Great Mills Forward Parren Barnes (34)moves for position.
In the first quarter, both teams learned the others defense very fast, and scored points very quickly. The Braves were doing everything they could to shut down the Hornets inside scoring game, while the Hornets played relentless man to man defense. Both teams adjusted their offenses, and the score going into the second quarter was 14-13 in the favor of Great Mills.
The second quarter showed the Hornets struggling to score, while the Braves made the extra passes to find open teammates. Chopticon started the quarter on a 12-0 run. Great Mills did not score a basket until 6 minutes had passed in the quarter. Then they made a small run of their own, and pulled the game to within 6 going into halftime, 28-22 Chopticon.
After the halftime break, the Hornets came out with more ferocity than they had in the first half. They held Chopticon to only 4 third quarter points, and scored 12 of their own. The scoring breakdown of the quarter was senior forward Parran Barnes scoring 6 of his 7 points, and Justin Owens scoring all of his 6 points this quarter. Great Mills held a small 1 point lead going into the fourth and final quarter.
In the fourth quarter, both teams heated up, and the game reached its climax point with 22.5 seconds left with the score reading 47-44 in Chopticon’s favor. Great Mills senior guard Trevon Porter drove into the lane, was fouled, and threw a desperation lay-up. The ball went through the net and gave Porter a chance for a three-point play. Porter made his free throw, and tied the game with 22 seconds left.
Chopticon took possession of the ball, and drove down the court, playing for the last shot. Senior guard Nik Hughes drove to the basket and was fouled. His shot did not go in but he had two chances with free throws. After his first shot rimmed out, Great Mills called a 30 second timeout to set up one last play. When Hughes took his second shot, it went in. The score stood at 47-46 Chopticon. With 8 seconds left in the game, Porter drove the length of the court, penetrated the paint and drew all of the defenders towards him, leaving forward Marvin Mackle wide open in the paint. Mackle fielded the pass, and his layup went through the net as the buzzer sounded giving his team the upset win over county rival Chopticon.
Chopticon was led in scoring by senior guard Pierre Mitchell, with 26 points. His teammate Austin Raines contributed with 12 points. The Hornets were led in scoring by Mackle, who finished with 13 points, and senior guard David Oliveras who finished with 12 points.
Contact Max Tayman at news@thebaynet.com