Second Half Run Helps Secure The Owls Third Straight Win, 77-72 Over Harford

In a matchup against Division I Harford Community College which featured 8 ties and 11 lead changes by the final horn, the Prince George's Community College men's basketball team emerged victorious over the visiting Fighting Owls, 77-72, in a game where each possession proved crucial.

Signs of a tight contest were visible early as teams traded baskets from the jump, with neither team going up by more than 6 at any point during the first half. Harford made sure things were extra close at the end of the half, finishing a layup right as time expired to cut into the Owls thin lead and make it a one-point game at the break, 41-40.

Prince George's sophomore Jasir Tremble (Washington, D.C./Theodore Roosevelt) led all scorers at the break with 17 points on 7-of-14 from the floor. Saveon Jackson (Kentland, MD/KIPP College Prep) was next for the Owls with 9 points and had already tacked on 7 rebounds to go along. Despite the Owls shooting a respectable 44% from the floor during the first half, the team uncharacteristically struggled from range, hitting on just 1-of-9 attempts beyond the arc. Prince George's, however, took advantage of their free throw opportunities (10/12) while Harford never had an attempt from the charity stripe at the break.

Both teams continued to claw in the second half but it was Harford who came out strong, taking momentum and the lead for several minutes before Prince George's swung the score back to their favor when a Tremble jump shot put the Owls back in front, 53-51 with 13 minutes on the clock. Tremble's bucket was in the beginning portion of a 15-0 run for the Owls which culminated with Prince George's taking a 62-51 lead. Harford responded with an 8-0 stretch themselves to once again keep things tight at 62-59 with under 9 minutes to play. Harford came to within 2 points of Prince George's (73-71) at the 2:34 mark but Prince George's hit just enough of their free throws to maintain the lead as time ticked down. Avery Scott (Glenn Dale, MD/DuVal) and Deven Dowdie (Fort Washington, MD/Lanham Christian) both corralled huge rebounds in the final minute to give the Owls a second chance while keeping possession out of Harford's hands. With a 4-point lead and the Fighting Owls out of timeouts, Prince George's was able to rely on free throws in the closing seconds to hand Harford a 77-72 loss and improve their own record to 6-1 on the season.

Tremble put together another 30-point performance in the win, finishing with 32 points and 5 rebounds. Jackson increased his stretch of games with 10 or more points to 7 games behind 15 points and 9 rebounds while Scott earned his first career double-double with 11 points, 12 boards. Freshman Jailin Landis rounded out the double-digit scorers for Prince George's with 10 points to go alongside 3 assists and 3 steals.

Prince George's now looks ahead to this weekend featuring two games in two days, beginning with Garrett College in Novak Field House on Saturday, December 9^th at 2 PM.