North County boys basketball waited so long for this.
The bumping victory music in the locker room, intertwining with teammates’ cheers. The grins and smacking high-fives exchanged in the hallway. The knowledge that defending county champion South River walked into the Knights’ gym on Wednesday night the last unbeaten team in Anne Arundel County and exited defeated, 81-73.
There could be no better proof that the Knights are truly a team on the rise. By delivering South River its first county loss, North County (10-3) puts itself back in contention to clinch a spot in the county championship next month, though it’ll likely need to win out.
The idea that the Knights could make history like this seemed such an impossible dream one year ago.
“We won five games total in my varsity career,” senior Jackson Catlin, who scored 20 points Wednesday, said. “To have 10 wins now means a lot.”
South River’s depth threatened North County on paper, but the Knights expressed their own balance through different players stepping up at different times to score and defend.
“Not everyone can be a 20-point scorer. What we need is for someone to fill the need at a certain moment. Over the years, they were resistant to accepting roles,” North County coach Trumaine Johnson said. “But they’re seeing success come and they’re buying in.”
Victory, though, nearly unraveled into another nightmare.
The ability to burn an opponent’s towering lead to ashes has been the Seahawks’ superpower this winter, enabling them to not only survive close games but polish them off with a comfortable advantage.
South River (13-1) seemed poised to do the same again, slashing North County’s 23-point edge to two by the end of the third quarter. One night earlier, the Knights led Meade by 14 points but failed to stop the Mustangs from building momentum and ultimately fell in overtime.
“We didn’t want that feeling again,” Nash Avery said.
Staying poised trumped everything for the Knights then. As long as they played their style, they could still win this. They chased shooters off the arc, forcing South River to beat them inside.
Catlin tipped the scales with a 3-pointer and layup, and Avery followed behind, ripping down a rebound as often as hit hit a field goal.
“Jackson’s struggled these last few games, but we had a nice conversation about just being confidence in himself,” Johnson said. “He’s a really good shooter and he showcased that on the biggest of stages.”
South River slipped too far out of reach to counteract the Knights, who ate up time scoring late in the shot clock.
It was truly over when Avery rushed the court to slam dunk.
Avery, a 6-foot-8 freshman, led the Knights to their dominant status in the first frame – a combination of choking defense, fast breaks and equally speedy baskets.
Without as many chances to drive inside, South River opted for more perimeter shots. Most bounced away. Knights junior Carlo Pineda, meanwhile, drilled two from downtown and from just inside the arc, all while fading away.
North County led 25-12 by the first buzzer and 34-15 at its first-half peak. Still, the Seahawks would not fold. Notably, while South River whittled the gap to 15 by halftime, Avery watched from the bench after a collision with junior Jaden McDuffie on the first play of the quarter left both boys lying on the floor for several minutes. McDuffie returned soon after and sealed the first half with a make from the far corner.
That put South River down by 15. But to the Seahawks, that wasn’t enough.
Despite Catlin, Avery and Pineda stitching a 10-2 run to its lead at the top of the second half, it still crumbled.
Seahawks junior Jonah Hall plucked loose balls and fed teammates the chisel to break the Knights down. With leading scorers Jamie Finn and McDuffie still heavily marked, others stepped in at the rim. As the lead shrank, the juniors’ power grew. Hall and Finn each drained 3-pointers and McDuffie tied it at 59 with a layup.
Josiah Bryant’s two free throws were all that saved North County’s lead at the third quarter buzzer.
When it was all said and done, a warm smile crossed Johnson’s face after.
“This is all I ever wanted for them,” he said, “to be happy in the end.”
`South River — 12 18 29 14 — 73
North County — 25 20 16 20 — 81
SR: Jaden McDuffie 17, Jamie Finn 17, Jonah Hall 13, Alec Ehrenfried 11 Jake Evans 5, Liam O’Hare 3, Hank Oxendine 3, Korey Warren 2, Jackson Suggs 2
NC: Jackson Catlin 20, Nash Avery 19, Carlo Pineda 12, Travis Blake 8, Donavyn Proctor 4, Isaiah Rich 3, Josiah Byrant 7, Darrien Miller 2, Kevin Burks 2
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