It was what you'd expect from any Frederick Douglass-Gwynn Park boys' basketball game - a packed house, tons of intensity and a game that went down to the wire.

Douglass, which led by 17 points midway through the third quarter, warded off a late Gwynn Park rally and earned a 59-52 victory on its home court Monday night in Upper Marlboro. The county rivals meet again in the season finale Feb. 17 at Gwynn Park, and that game should be just as wild as the one they played Monday.

The Yellow Jackets climbed out of their deep hole late, rallying in the second half and cutting the deficit to four in the waning minutes.

"They're a good team, and we knew they were going to come back," Douglass coach Ty Massenburg said. "We did a good job of weathering the storm."

Sweat-soaked Gwynn Park coach Mike Glick lauded his players for rallying from their early struggles.

"We showed a lot of grit, a lot of determination in the way we battled back," Glick said.

Douglass junior forward Kavon Glover led all scorers with a 24-point performance. Senior guard Brandon Ford scored 19 points to lead Gwynn Park.

Glover played the final 5:11 with four fouls, staying tough on defense but keeping his foul situation in mind.

"He played conscious of the four fouls, but he stayed aggressive enough to make a play on defense when he needed to," Massenburg said. "He stayed aggressive on offense, too, and that helped us down the stretch."

In the waning moments, Glover nailed two big shots for Douglass (11-5 overall, 7-5 County 3A/2A/1A League). The first came midway through the fourth quarter, not long after a Ford bucket had brought the Yellow Jackets within five points at 44-39. Glover countered with a sweet fallaway jumper that kept the Douglass fans in the game.

The second came about 90 seconds later, after Gwynn Park (9-7, 8-4 County 3A/2A/1A League) had made it a four-point game. Glover's turnaround jumper in the lane gave the Eagles some much-desired breathing room. Glover was strong in the first half, helping Douglass establish a 13-point halftime lead.

Senior forward Tion Barnes was responsible for all six of Gwynn Park's first-quarter points, keeping the game close for the bulk of the period before the Eagles ended the quarter on an 8-0 run.

Douglass held a 14-6 lead entering the second period, and it expanded that lead to a high of 17 points before a couple of late Gwynn Park hoops made it 26-13 at the break.

The Eagles again expanded their lead in the third quarter, taking a 36-19 advantage after a basket from Teron Elias with 4:08 left in the period. But Gwynn Park scored 11 of the final 16 points in the period, cutting Douglass' lead to 41-30 entering the fourth quarter.

Douglass 59, Gwynn Park 52

Gwynn Park (9-7, 8-4) 6 7 17 22--52

Douglass (11-5, 7-5) 14 12 15 18--59

Gwynn Park: Brandon Ford 19, Tion Barnes 12, Marcel Boyd 6, Brian Hall 4, Nick Walton 4, Daniel Henry 3, Kevin Miles 2, Hershel Grant 2.

Douglass: Kavon Glover 24, Timmone Whatley 14, Marvis Davies 7, Michael Cunningham 5, Jeffrey Calhoun 4, Teron Elias 3, Ryan Phillips 2.