Wilde Lake breaks away from Howard, cruises to victory
At halftime on Monday, Wilde Lake boys basketball coach Jay McMillan emphasized the importance of having high hands when closing out to shooters, forcing them to penetrate.
His team put that on display down the stretch of the third quarter when Howard needed a basket. Wilde Lake wouldn’t allow that, sprinting out to contest and forcing a turnover. Off the mistake, Kain Corkeron pushed the pace in transition and found Nathan Hiteshew in the corner.
Hiteshew drained a 3-pointer just before the third-quarter buzzer, capping off a 9-0 run to close the period. Wilde Lake carried that momentum home for an 83-68 win, its ninth in a row.
“Our defensive effort and defensive intensity increased,” McMillan said. “We started making the right drops, slides and rotations. Also, rebounding the ball and finally identifying the shooters that they have because they have been shooting very well recently.”
Both teams were prolific from behind the arc in the first half, each converting on eight 3-pointers. Corkeron spearheaded Wilde Lake’s offense with 24 of his gamehigh 30 points in the opening 16 minutes. He knocked down seven triples, consistently finding space curling around high screens.
“It feels amazing,” Corkeron said. “Not every night is like that of course, so you’ve got to see the good in it. Also, you can’t expect that every night. Tonight, I was on, so just those hours in the gym and it’s all about repetition.”
Swinging the ball from side to side, Howard also found success behind the arc. The Lions got 3-pointers from multiple players including Pete Hagen, Griffin Garner and Ronald Alford. Neither team could slow down the opposing offense and Wilde Lake held a narrow three-point advantage at the break.
Despite being undersized, Howard secured more 50-50 balls and contested rebounds early in the third. Isaiah Omole played an integral part in that success on the glass, giving the Lions a 47-45 lead midway through the third. Then Wilde Lake (16-3, 12-2 Howard County) began to impose its will inside , spearheaded by Xavier Gilliam and Dylan Gooden with Gilliam scoring six of his 20 points in the period.
“Xavier has been our rock,” McMillan said. “He’s our leader. We have a great group of guys, but he’s our leader. He works his tail off. I’m very excited and so thankful to have him on our team. He does all the dirty work, keeps the guys locked in and has attention to detail, knowing everyone’s responsibilities and where they’re supposed to be. This is what we expect, but it’s always beautiful to see him do what he does. Hats off to him.”
Their efforts built a 52-47 lead. Howard (7-9, 5-9) ended the spurt with a Hagen 3, but the momentum was brief. Over the ensuing five minutes stretching into the fourth quarter, Wilde Lake executed a 15-0 run playing stifling defense, also imposing their will inside. Gooden and Gilliam scored the opening six points of the fourth, pushing the Wildecats’ lead to 17, as Howard’s interior defense suffered without Omole, who got injured in the third quarter.
“On the glass, they make it very difficult,” Howard coach Michael Twardowicz said. “Without Isaiah, we’re a little bit undersized with just Pete down there. My guys have played hard all year. Trying to teach them to play well for 32 minutes. We play well for 24-26 minutes. We’re a young team, but to be able to compete with a team like Wilde Lake, we need to be able to find a way to make it 30-32 minutes. I felt we played a good 24-25 minutes tonight.”
Howard broke the near-five-minute scoring drought on a jumper from Garner midway through the fourth. However, the deficit proved too large and the Wildecats finished with a season-high 83 points.
“Winning is fun, getting hype in the locker room after a big win with the guys, nothing beats that,” Gilliam said. “Nobody wants to lose. Something that our coach always says is pain and discipline or pain and disappointment. You’ve got to sacrifice in the moment to receive the outcome that you want.”
Other boys basketball scores
South River 81, Chesapeake-AA 43: Blake Burrows poured in 24 points and Cash Herndon was right behind him with 21 to lead the Seahawks. Trashaun Timmons added 16 points to the win.
Severn 47, Friends 27: Kingston Price scored 15 points and Sean Harvey backed him with 11 in the Admirals’ win. Kendrick Curtis led Friends with 11.
Centennial 53, Hammond 43: The Eagles (9-9) won their second in a row as Josh Frazier led the way with 19 points and Tyler Longwell added 15. For Hammond (6-13), Justin Campbell had 14 points while Kamari Fassett had 10.
Glenelg 54, Atholton 43: The Gladiators (7-9) had three double-digit scorers with Matt Dalton leading the way with 14 points. Zach LaFountain had 12 points, while Will Piwowarski had 11. For Atholton (8-10), Amir Shaheed had 16 points, while Camden Thibeault had seven.
Long Reach 79, Reservoir 64: The Lightning (16-2) won their sixth game in a row as RJ Barnes Jr. erupted for a season-high 28 points. Cameron Valentine chipped in 11 points, while Christian Dean had 10. For Reservoir (12-5) Irby Hunter had 25 points, while Jacobi Jones added 12.
Oakland Mills 60, Mt. Hebron 54: Dejuan Taylor led the way with 20 points for the Scorpions (9-10) while Kamal Francis added 17 and Nick Smith had nine. For Mt. Hebron (5-14), Cooper Strohman finished with a team-high 16 points. Gabe Cobb scored 13, while Kenny Akinlosotu added 12.
Chapelgate 65, St. John’s Catholic Prep 63:
The Yellow Jackets had four players in double figures led by Julian Ludwig with 21. Jaylen Marbley had 11 while Zef Fuanya and Timi Akisanya each had 10, including Akisanya’s go-ahead basket with four seconds remaining.
Perry Hall 66, Western Tech 62: The Gators hit 10 3-pointers and held on for the win. Trystan Ofoh led with 22 points. Stefan Macakanja scored 17 points and Malik Pemy chipped in nine.
South Carroll 74, Catoctin 44: Micah Puckett poured in 21 points and Owen Scott backed him with 17 to lead the Cavaliers to the win. Ian Straley chipped in 10 points.
Westminster 60, Liberty 57: The Owls became the first Carroll County team this season to beat the Lions. Chance Byrnes led Westminster with 17 points, four rebounds, four assists and three steals. Willy Anye had a season-high 13 points to go with nine rebounds. Jah Donald grabbed nine rebounds and blocked four shots. Cole Jerrigan led Liberty with 15 points. Michael Tombs and Tyler Downs each scored 10.
Girls basketball
Havre de Grace 43, Joppatowne 32: Freshman Ryleigh Curry had 13 points and sophomore Savannah Lawrence scored 10 in the Warriors win. Senior Carla Dunson added eight points, five rebounds and three steals, while junior Azareya Whiting had seven
points, six rebounds, four assists and four steals.
Manchester Valley 51, Winters Mill 25: Emma Penczek scored 17 points to go with eight steals to lead the Mavericks (15-4). Reese Kresslein chipped in eight points and two steals, Autumn Stottlemire had seven points and four rebounds, Casey Meredith had four assists and three steals and Luetta Seipp finished with six rebounds.
Westminster 61, Liberty 39: The Owls led 25-6 in the first quarter and cruised to the win. Maddie Stauder had a game-high 20 points. Maddy Gassman chipped in 15, Emily Conklin scored nine and Kaylen Battle had eight.
Catoctin 54, South Carroll 42: In the loss, Harley McKee and Shannon McTavish had 15 points each for the Cavaliers.
Gerstell 50, Garrison Forest 39: Playing without two starters because of injuries, the Falcons got seven points each from Kate Roberts and Mimi Delone. Kendall Williams led the team with 15 points and Annie Jackson had 12. Both added five assists. Eniyah Stinnette had seven points and 16 rebounds.
St. Mary’s 90, Friends 51: The Saints improved to 23-0 behind 28 points from Bailey Harris. Alexandra Vandiver added 18 points, Baily Walden scored 15 and Mia Novak added 14.
South River 65, Chesapeake-AA 33: Samie Clarke led the way for South River with 14 points and nine rebounds. Ryleigh Adams and Kiera West each posted a double-double, with Adams finishing with 11 points and 10 rebounds and West getting 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Century 41, C. Milton Wright 32: Mia Graff had an all-around standout night with 24 points, 10 rebounds and six steals. Mackenzie Mowder scored 10 points in the win and Harli Hamlett added five for the Knights (10-8).
Fallston 44, Aberdeen 38: Ayla Galloway had her 18th straight double-double with 21 points and 16 rebounds. Lindsey Dettloff had nine points followed by Natalie Wirth with six points and eight rebounds. Renae
Gent also grabbed eight rebounds.
Harford Tech 64, Edgewood 28: Amya Goodsell led Tech’s offense with 19 points, 14 rebounds, six assists, six steals and three blocks. Anyia Gibson chipped in 11 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Jordan Strang had 10 points and nine rebounds, Jessica Castro had eight points and four steals, and Sophia Mace had seven points and five rebounds.
North Harford 57. Rising Sun 46: Jenna Amhrein led the Hawks with 23 points, five rebounds, five assists and six steals. Caroline Nicholson posted a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Lillian Duffy added nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
Hammond 59, Centennial 25: Sara Yarnell dominated for the Golden Bears (14-5) with 18 points and 21 rebounds. Hannah Chambers also had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Nia Green had 12 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Oakland Mills 52, Mt. Hebron 30: Chloe Grenway and Destiny Macharia scored 14 points for the Scorpions (11-6). Grenway hit four 3-pointers while Macharia made three as Oakland Mills shot 56% from behind the arc. For Mt. Hebron (8-8), Pearl Prasartkarnka had nine points.
Reservoir 36, Long Reach 26: Alissa Young scored 12 points to lead the Gators (6-10) in the win and Leah Lauer scored nine. Jaiden Bryant had 14 points for Long Reach (2-16).
River Hill 49, Marriotts Ridge 34: The Hawks (16-3) won their third game in a row with four players finishing in double figures. Mannat Gill and Taylor Shane shared the team-high with 14 points. Dylan Watson added 13 and Camille Nesmith added 10. For Marriotts Ridge (7-12), Kerri Lee had 14 points.
Howard 63, Wilde Lake 15: Gabby Kennerly scored a team-high 24 points for the Lions (18-1) in the win. Meghan Yarnevich chipped in 11 points, while Samiyah Nasir added 10. For Wilde Lake, (0-14) Alyssa Dorsey had nine points.