Men’s Basketball Survives Double OT Against Penn Highlands, Advances To Region 20 Championship

40 minutes wasn't enough time to decide a winner during the NJCAA Region 20 Division III men's basketball semifinal contest between the No. 1 seed Prince George's Community College and No. 4 seed Pennsylvania Highlands on Saturday afternoon, February 19^th. It turns out one extra period of overtime wasn't enough, either. 

Ultimately after two overtime periods the Prince George's men's basketball team prevailed over Penn Highland's Black Bears, 114-110 to advance to the Region 20 Division III Championship game. The Owls will await the winner of the No. 2 seeded Anne Arundel Community College Riverhawks and No. 3 Westmoreland County Community College Wolfpack. The two teams play inside Jenkins Gymnasium beginning at 5 PM on February 19^th. 

The Black Bears looked poised to pull off the upset with a slim lead down the stretch before Saveon Jackson stepped up for the Owls, scoring seven straight points for Prince George's in the closing seconds, including a made layup with 3 seconds remaining to send the game to overtime at 90.

The first period of overtime saw both teams lead by as many as 2 points with each program trading baskets. The Black Bears visited the free throw line down one with 3 seconds remaining but proceeded to connect on just one of two attempts to keep things knotted up at 99 after the first five minutes of extra time. The final five minutes saw the Owls overcome two 2-point deficits before a pair of Anthony Perry free throws put Prince George's in front, 105-103.

The Owls defense followed up with a stop and later layup from Perry to increase their lead to four with 1:22 remaining. The Black Bears were able to bring themselves to within one (107-108) with 37 seconds left before an Alonzo Wilkes and-one with 12 ticks left put the Owls back in the driver's seat, 111-107. The Owls would lead by as much as 7 in the closing seconds just before Penn Highlands hit a three at the buzzer to finalize the game at 114-110. Saturday's game marked the first overtime contest for the Owls all year.

Leading the way for the Owls was the all-freshman starting lineup of Saveon Jackson (27 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals), Alonzo Wilkes (23 points, 11 rebounds), Anthony Perry (23 points, 6 rebounds), Reed Rebstock (15 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists), and Dajuan McMillan (11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists).

Following the narrow victory Owls head coach William West referenced the teams low-point of the season, a four-game losing streak to begin the month of February, as to what willed his team through the grueling 50-minute battle over Pennsylvania Highlands. West stated, "Games such as our one-point loss on the road against Harford taught us the lesson we needed to learn which was to finish out as a team." The Owls had four different players score in both overtime periods as they traded baskets with the Black Bears. 

The Owls have a quick turnaround before returning to Anne Arundel Community College on Sunday for the Region 20 Division III Championship, set to tipoff at 3 PM. The Owls are seeking their first Region Championship since the 2018-19 season, West's first year as head of the program.