Eagles surge late to win first state championship
Albury spearheads Northeast’s offensive outburst in fourth quarter
COLLEGE PARK — Cam Albury started crying at 4.7 seconds on the clock.
The Northeast senior couldn’t stop the tears from falling, he said. Albury had just performed near miracles, almost single-handedly wiping out a double-digit St. Charles lead and firing what become the game-winner of the Class 3A state championship game. The Eagles together had just scored 31 points in under eight minutes.
He also pulled off what almost no little brother in the world could say he did. After the coronavirus pandemic stole his older sibling, Jaylin’s, chance at a state title — the tournament was called off shortly before the Eagles were set to play a state semifinal at the Xfinity Center — Cam Albury wore his brother’s warmup shirt for luck.
The Spartans’ Hail Mary flew into Eagles senior Shamar Johnson’s hands, and in moments, Albury laid flat on the court, buried under his favorite people in the world in the happiest moment of his life. For the first time in history, the Eagles played for a state championship and battled back from a deep deficit to win it, 69-66.
Albury poured in 15 points in the fourth quarter to flip the lead toward Northeast for good, a cap on his 25-point night and his record-breaking three years. Every day since that day in 2020, he and the incoming Eagles imagined what winning a state championship could be like. Nothing about the college arena packed with Northeast fans screaming down from above, hugging his teammates, putting his hands on the wooden trophy or letting a medal slide over his head could match those dreams.
“My emotions are still not in check. I got so much going through my mind, but we ended our career with a W. Not a lot of people can say they did that,” Albury said.
After March 12, 2020, Northeast coach Roger O’Dea turned the pain of the tournament cancellation toward the future. The moment he met Albury, Johnson, Chase Buttry, Jadyss Fifer, and later Stacy this season, he had “no doubt” fate would lead the Eagles back to College Park. He was so sure, that he had “Cut the Net” printed on warmup shirts, along with the initials for junior Titus Simeona’s late mother.
But fate didn’t grant them an easy road.
This year, the Eagles stumbled early to Crofton and Meade. Then in January, Severna Park beat Northeast at the buzzer.
They could have folded, O’Dea said. Instead, Northeast turned things around.
So when St. Charles tossed Northeast down by a dozen points through the third quarter, the Eagles would not surrender.
“We were never out of this. It’s not new for us,” Fifer said. “We could keep our composure because we’ve seen this type of situation before. It just happened to be in the biggest game of our career this time, but we handled it like any other game.”
The Spartans reveled in the raucous applause of its crowd,
going into the final eight minutes up 50-38. Johnson blocked the sound out.
“I told my guys we got this. We’d been through this adversity,” Johnson said. “We were doing too much in the third quarter. I just had to bring the energy and lock in.”
The 6-foot-5 forward hit St. Charles like a sudden summer shower with seven points to counter the four the Spartans had to offer.
When Northeast later called timeout, O’Dea looked to Albury and placed the basketball in his hands.
Each time Albury came up court, the Eagles fanned out, isolated Spartans defenders and rendered them useless. He knew he drew attention, and Fifer and Johnson could use that. He knew they could pop to the 3-pointer in that setting, too.
“But we didn’t go to that. Cam just took over,” O’Dea said.
St. Charles disappeared within the Eagles’ traps. Albury cut to Fifer and the senior flew in for a layup, also drawing the foul. His free throw tied it at 65.
And then, the Spartans defense blipped, just for a second. It didn’t pack in on Albury; he couldn’t believe it. He charged.
“I just got to the paint, put up my left hand,” he said, “and it went in.”
Northeast overcame early foul trouble to lead 15-9 after one quarter on the strength of a Fifter 3-pointer and Albury’s late putback. The Eagles cruised to 23-14 before the Spartans roared back to life.
Spurred by Shamir Taylor, St. Charles lashed
Northeast back with an 11-3 run, cutting the lead to just 30-28 at halftime. When play resumed, the fouls piled up.
The Spartans first crept in, tilted the board with some free throws. Then, their conquest was not so quiet. Guard Xavier Buchanan unloaded a pair of perimeter rockets for St. Charles, now leading 42-35.
Fouls continued to mount on the Eagles while their offense struggled to make baskets. When shots did fall — a 3-pointer from Johnson in the final minute of the third, for instance — the impact withered almost instantly when Buchanan struck one in response.
But the 12-point deficit Northeast took to the fourth quarter wasn’t enough to hold it down. The Eagles had too much on its side.
“This is for [Cam’s] brother. We dedicated this season to Diane Simeona. In 2020, we dedicated the season to my father. We had a lot going for us tonight,” O’Dea said. “A lot.”
Northeast — 1516831— 69
St. Charles — 9192216— 66
NE: Albury 25, Johnson 20, Fifer 17, Stacy 5
SC: Buchanan 31, Taylor 22, Selby 5, Brown 4, Webster 4