Spalding bounces back, 70-50 No. 5 Cavaliers regain 1st by beating Calvert Hall -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published February 13, 2002 It can be said that the worst time to play the Archbishop Spalding boys basketball team is after it has lost a game. Spalding lost at Mount St. Joseph, 71-62, on Sunday and fell out of first place by a half-game behind Calvert Hall in the combined Baltimore Catholic League/Maryland Interscholastic Athletic A Conference. The Cardinals invaded Spalding's gym in Severn last night and the host Cavaliers regained first by a half-game with a rousing 70-50 victory. A strong second half in the paint by the Cavs' 6-foot-11 junior Will Bowers (15 points, 10 boards and four blocked shots) and 6-6 Gus Durr (six points, five rebounds and two blocks) propelled the victors. It was the fifth time after a loss this season that the No. 5 Cavaliers (24-5) won their next game. Spalding (12-3 league) will be regular-season champion if it wins at home Sunday over Cardinal Gibbons. No. 6 Calvert Hall (21-7) slipped to 11-3 in the league and has games with Mount St. Joe and Towson Catholic left. If the Hall wins both, they would tie Spalding at 13-3, but Spalding would be champion and top seed for next week's tournament by virtue of going 2-0 against Calvert Hall this season. "It's the mark of a championship team that we have bounced back after every loss this season, " said Spalding coach Mike Glick. Last night, the Cardinals broke from tradition and started with a 2-3 zone rather than their pressure man-to-man, and the teams stayed within two to three points of each other in the first half. It was 10-10 after the first period and Spalding held a 24-23 lead at the break. With Calvert Hall shooting only two-of-14 from the floor in the third period - one of the field goals a three by Gary Neal (team-high 18 points) - it was outscored 19-8. Spalding hit 7-for-13 shots and closed the quarter with a 10-0 run for a 43-31 lead. Guard Landy Thompson pumped in a pair of threes in the third. He lit it up for 11 points in the final eight minutes to finish with a game-high 22 points while the big men . "The key was going big and inserting Gus [Durr] into the lineup with a box-and-one, and we drove inside and got a lot of blocks and rebounds that led to a lot of transition buckets, " said Glick. Copyright © 2002, The Baltimore Sun

Sizzling St. Joe cools No. 2 Spalding, 71-62 19-for-22 close at line seals seventh straight league win for Gaels -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published February 11, 2002 Suddenly, Mount St. Joseph is the hottest team in the combined Baltimore Catholic League/Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference. The No. 8-ranked Gaels boys basketball team reeled off its seventh straight league win and ninth overall yesterday at home in Irvington by upsetting No. 2 Archbishop Spalding, 71-62. "We've been taking care of business lately," said Gaels point guard J.J. Outlaw. "It's all about wins and where you get seeded for the tournament." Outlaw's eight straight free throws were part of the Gaels' 19-for-22 in the final eight minutes as they pushed a 44-40 lead after three quarters to the eventual nine-point victory. For the game, Mount St. Joseph shot 30-for-39 from the line against the foul-prone Cavaliers. "Losing Cory Hudson, who is our best rebounder, really hurt us in the first half," said Spalding coach Mike Glick, who lost Hudson to fouls for good with five minutes left in the game. Hudson was held scoreless. Two other starters, 6-foot-11 Will Bowers and point guard Landy Thompson, played most of the fourth quarter with four fouls. "It was the first time this season that Cory got into foul trouble, but give a lot of credit to Mount St. Joe." Improving to 9-5 in the league, the Gaels (20-7 overall) knocked Spalding (23-5) out of first place at 11-3. No. 5 Calvert Hall (21-6) is 11-2 in the 16-game schedule. Calvert Hall, a 72-35 winner over Loyola (3-11, 11-16) yesterday, visits Spalding tomorrow night. St. Maria Goretti (18-9) is right behind Spalding at 10-4 and a game ahead of the Gaels after its 71-59 victory at Cardinal Gibbons (5-9, 14-16) yesterday. Beset by early season injuries that included 6-6 Anthony Fair, Mount St. Joseph started its winning streak after losing at home to Calvert Hall, 56-50, on Jan. 18. Since then, the Gaels have improved in nearly every facet of their game, including their foul shooting and inside game with 6-6 sophomore Will Thomas. "Once we got past those injuries and made adjustments, we've been playing as well as anybody in the area," said Gaels coach Pat Clatchey, whose team had shot 6-for-19 at the line in a 67-61 loss at Spalding on Jan 13. The development of Thomas, who had 16 points and 15 rebounds yesterday, has helped the Gaels surge. "I might be a little biased, but I think the kid is the best sophomore player in the area," Clatchey said. "But it just wasn't him today." Thomas' dunk followed Outlaw's first two free throws in the last quarter to give the Gaels a 48-40 lead. Thomas got the ball on a penetration and pass from Outlaw, who had 10 of his team-high 19 points late in the game. The last of Keon Lattimore's 18 points boosted the Gaels' lead to 58-49 with 2:23 remaining. A follow by Thomas with a minute left put the game out of reach at 62-51, despite Spalding's frantic finish. Thompson scored 12 of his game-high 24 points for Spalding in the final quarter, including 10 of the Cavs' last 13 in the final two minutes. Matt Latonick had the other three on his fifth three-pointer of the game. Copyright © 2002, The Baltimore Sun

Boys basketball: Bowers super for Spalding Will Bowers scored 11 of his 22 points after regulation to lead No. 2 Spalding to a 76-71 double overtime victory over visiting Towson Catholic yesterday. Bowers, a 6-foot-11 center, scored seven straight points in the second overtime to help Spalding erase a five-point deficit with two minutes left. Included in the spurt was Bowers' first career 3-point field goal. he also added nine rebounds and four blocked shots. Also for Spalding (21-4, 9-2 in the Catholic League), Matt Latonick had four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points; Cory Hudson had 14 points and 14 rebounds, and Landy Thompson had 12 points and four assists. "It was a fantastic basketball game," said Spalding coach Mike Glick, whose team had posted a 20-point triumph over Towson earlier this season. "Both teams played extremely well." The Cavaliers host St. Frances tomorrow at 7:30.

At line, Spalding draws up victory Cavs hit 14 foul shots in 4th to top Mt. St. Joseph, 67-61 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published January 14, 2002 The Archbishop Spalding boys basketball team overcame visiting Mount St. Joseph's torrid second-half shooting by hitting 14 of 16 free throws in the final quarter to post a 67-61 victory yesterday in Severn. The third-ranked Cavaliers (16-3) finished the game 22-for-26 at the foul line, compared with 6-for-19 for No. 10 Mount St. Joseph. "It was our best performance of the season at the line," said Spalding coach Mike Glick, whose team went to 5-1 in the combined Baltimore Catholic League and Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference. "Our foul shooting, which has been up and down, was the difference in the game. It was imperative we make our foul shots because they didn't miss in the second half." Mount St. Joseph (10-6, 2-4 BCL-MIAA), which has dropped three in a row and four of the past five, stayed in the game by shooting 11-for-22 from three-point range. Will Bowers, the Cavs' 6-foot-11 junior, scored 11 of his game-high 17 points in the second quarter, when Spalding built a 19-point lead. Then came the Gaels' threes. Five of them came in the third quarter when they turned a 32-21 halftime deficit into a 43-40 lead to start the fourth. Keon Lattimore normally doesn't shoot threes, but he hit two along with Corey Copeland. J.J. Outlaw (13 points) hit the fifth. "When we lost the big lead, and it was dead quiet in our gym. I thought we were in deep trouble," Glick said. Glick focused a zone defense on Lattimore to start the fourth quarter, and Landy Thompson got hot, hitting a three to give Spalding the lead for good at 44-43. The Cavalier scored eight of his 11 points in a two-minute stretch. With two minutes left, the Gaels made another run as Kyle O'Connor, Outlaw and Copeland hit threes to cut a nine-point deficit to four. But Spalding kept hitting their foul shots.

Spalding surprises Dunbar, 79-62 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Pat O'Malley Sun Staff Originally published December 16, 2001 Suddenly back from a 15-point deficit, No. 5 Dunbar got lit up by guard Landy Thompson in the fourth period and visiting Archbishop Spalding went on to rout the Poets, 79-62, last night in boys basketball. Thompson, a senior transfer from defunct Newport Prep, fired in 19 of his game-high 32 points in the game's last eight minutes. Third-ranked Spalding (6-1) took a 52-50 lead into the last quarter of a matchup of Baltimore Catholic League and Baltimore city powers. The Cavaliers outscored the Poets 27-12 in the final period at their storied gym. It was Dunbar's first loss at home in three years. "Once we got back in the game, the one guy [Thompson] hit the big threes that broke our backs," said Dunbar coach Eric Lee, who estimated the Poets' home winning streak to be in the 20's but was unsure of the exact number. "We fought, we fought and we fought, but once we got back, he hit the threes. And that was the difference right there." Thompson, who was 7-for-9 from the floor in the fourth period and sank both of his free-throw attempts, drained three consecutive three-pointers with a two in between to give the Cavaliers a 63-55 lead with 5:28 left. The lead went to 10 at 65-55 on a jumper in the paint by 6-foot-11 sophomore Will Bowers, who fouled out on the next play with 3:30 remaining. Bowers left with 10 points, nine boards and one block. Six-foot-5 senior Cory Hudson had 11 points and maintained the boards in Bowers' absence, finishing with a game-high 11 rebounds for the Cavaliers. Gus Durr added 13 points and six rebounds for Spalding, which held a 36-18 advantage in rebounds and out-shot the Poets, 48 percent to 35 percent. Down 35-25 at the half, Dunbar fell behind by 15 with 5:30 left in the third period. A technical on Lee sent Thompson to the line, and his free throw made it 44-29. "At first I didn't know too much about them [Dunbar] and all week the guys have been telling me, they're one of the best teams in Baltimore," said Thompson, who is from Germantown. "I felt like I had to prove myself because nobody really knows me around here. I had to prove myself against one of the best teams in the area." Dunbar (2-2) got treys from James Taylor and Jujuan Robinson - who tied for team-high scoring honors with 17 points each - and Jason Garland in its surge. Robinson went to the line with 1:03 left in the third period and hit the second of two to cut Dunbar's deficit to 52-46 after Spalding coach Mike Glick got what he asked for - a technical foul. "I was proud of the way our kids responded after I got the technical foul," said Glick, who then watched Robinson hit a short jumper after the free throw to make it 52-48. "I usually don't get technical fouls, but I felt that one was needed in that situation. They showed a lot of composure in the fourth quarter." Durrell York's stick back at the buzzer made it 52-50. York (13 points) was fouled on the play. Even though he missed the free throw with no time left, the Poets had momentum going into the final period, which Thompson then shifted to Spalding . "Landy is a great playmaker and he is getting better and better each game," said Glick. "He's getting more comfortable with our players and, with Jesse Brooks, gives us one of the best backcourts in the area. "This is a gigantic win for our kids and for Anne Arundel County. It shows that great basketball is played in other places than Baltimore." Copyright © 2001, The Baltimore Sun