Cougars hold off Owls for first win of season
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
45 | 50 | 95 |
|
|
53 | 47 | 100 |
Prince George's Community College
| Game Statistics | Prince George's Community College | Frederick Community College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (30-57) | (36-62) |
| Field Goal % | 52.6% | 58.1% |
| Rebounds | 24 | 25 |
| Assists | 2 | 1 |
| Turnovers | 7 | 13 |
Article written by Bill Cauley, Frederick News Post
When Prince George's Community College called a timeout after scoring a basket to make it a three-point game in the last minute of Tuesday's game, it unknowingly gave Frederick Community College's men's basketball team a quick chance to reflect on its first six games this season.
All of those games were winnable, yet the Cougars couldn't find a way to hold on, losing all of them and stinging the team.
So during the timeout, FCC resolved not to let it happen a seventh time
"Today, they weren't going to take anything less than winning a basketball game," FCC coach Emonte Hill said.
Sure enough, the Cougars held their ground during the last 51.4 seconds, pulling a way for a 100-95 win.
"We knew it was going to be a rocky start this season, but we didn't anticipate this," Hill said. "Now, I think this team is starting to trust each other."
Tuesday's game played out somewhat similar to the first six. FCC (1-6) looked strong in spurts, enjoying some good runs to get workable leads that it was unable to keep.
The Cougars were up 41-31 with three minutes to go in the first half, their biggest lead of the game.
Prince George's cut it to 44-37 at halftime. During the first 10 minutes of the second half, the lead flip-flopped eight times before FCC regained the advantage for good, 72-71, on a drive to the hoop by Dashon Bell with nine minutes to play.
The Cougars went on to open up an 87-79 lead with 5 minutes, 30 seconds left in the game. FCC maintained that edge over the next two minutes before Prince George's started yet another run.
With 51.4 seconds left on the clock, PG's Patrick Johnson-Agwu hit two foul shots to cut the gap to 95-92. The Owls quickly called a timeout.
Hill took his players aside, reminding them of what's happened to them in previous situations.
"We're starting to understand how important it is to do the little things," Hill said. "It's hard to win in this league unless you know how to do the little things, how to respond to runs."
When FCC emerged from the timeout, it carefully worked the ball upcourt. With 30 seconds left in the game, Morris Robinson drove for a layup and a 97-92 lead.
Prince George's missed a shot with 21.6 seconds to go, Bell yanked down the rebound and was fouled. He hit both free throws for a 99-92 lead.
Marquette Brown let go a 3-pointer for PG with 11.1 seconds to cut FCC's lead to 99-95, and the Owls took their final timeout.
Prince George's fouled Rashard Lewis seconds later. He hit one of his two shots to clinch the win.
"These guys are starting to learn that if you take possessions off and get lazy, teams are going to come back on you," Hill said. "Things are slowly coming together."
Josiah Jones led FCC with 25 points, Jacob McIntosh had 17, followed by Lewis with 15 and Robinson with 11.
