Men’s Basketball Capture another Region XX DIII Championship

Men's basketball have captured their third consecutive Region XX DIII Championship after knocking off top rivals Montgomery College. The Owls, who were top seed heading into this tournament, had to match up against the winner of Westmorland/Anne Arundel while Montgomery had to battle CCAC Allegheny in the semis.

The Owls dismissed the host Anne Arundel Community College in their first game of the tournament on Saturday with an 83-76 victory. Patrick Johnson and Augustus Stone led the way for the Owls with 27pts, 9rbs and 23pts, 2rbs respectively. This win solidified the much anticipated finals that everyone was looking forward to after Montgomery got by CCAC Allegheny.

After winning back to back Region XX DIII Championships in previous years, the Owls seemed to be destined for another title. However, Montgomery stood in the way and started the game on a 9-4 run. This trend continued for most of the first half until the Owls were able to tie the score at 31 apiece heading into the break. The second half saw a different approach by the Owls, the team took the lead on a 3 point basket by Stone with less than two minutes played and never looked back. Donnell Graham and Patrick Johnson-Agwu made timely baskets to widen the gap and eventually put the game out of reach with a 10 point lead with under 3 minutes left to play. Although Montgomery tried to slow the game by sending the Owls to the charity strike, the team made clutch free throws to close out the game with a final score of 79-69.

This win gave the Owls their third consecutive Region XX DIII Championship. Johnson-Agwu was named tournament MVP after scoring 21pts and snatching 10 boards in the final. Freshman Donnell Graham also had a great showing in the finals with 27pts, 4rbs and 4ast.

The Owls will travel to North Carolina for the District 7 Tournament hosted by Caldwell C.C. & TI on February 26-27. Caldwell has the #1 seed and will host #4 Oxford-Emory in the first game at 5:00 PM on February 26, while the Owls will tip-off against Davidson County C.C at 7:00. Winners will advance to the Championship game that is schedule for February 27, at 1:00 PM.