The previous three meetings, all Douglass’ wins, prior to Tuesday’s contest had been decided by just six total points. Tuesday proved no exception, as the Eagles hung on for a 50-48 win in Upper Marlboro and handed the Yellow Jackets their fourth loss in the last five games.

At no point did this one even feign the appearance of a potential comfortably-sized win, and neither Tyrone Massenburg nor Mike Glick expected any less. Given the way the past two years of this rivalry has gone, there would be no reason to anticipate anything else.

“Always,” Massenburg said. “Man, Coach Glick is a good coach. They’re always ready to play, our kids are up to the challenge and it always comes down to be a game that’s decided in the last minute. That’s what you coach for, you know, rivalry games, games against good competition. They’re a good team. We’ve been fortunate the last couple times and it’s a good rivalry.”

Neither team got off to a particularly strong start, namely on the offensive end. Douglass (5-5 overall, 4-2 3A/2A/1A League) missed all five of its 3-point attempts in the first quarter — the Eagles finished 5-for-18 from 3-point land — while Gwynn Park (5-4, 3-2) went 3-for-9 from the floor and the second quarter began with neither side in double-figures. The offense would slowly pick up from there, though it would remain a defensive struggle throughout.

“I knew I just had to be patient,” said Keyonte Frager, who led all Douglass’ scorers with 12 points despite shooting just 33 percent from the field. “Just look to open things up for my teammates, like [Cameron Hayes] and let them get to the hoop, be patient.”

Hayes lived up to Frager’s praise, scoring five straight during a 10-0 run midway through the second to turn a 14-13 deficit into a 21-14 advantage that the Eagles would never relinquish. Twelve times throughout the remainder of the game the Yellow Jackets would draw it back to a single-possession game or a tie, but Douglass didn’t budge, countering with a Frager 3-pointer here or a Hayes free throw there. Together, the two scored 22 points while Hayes made 5-of-7 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to keep Gwynn Park at bay.

“I’m proud of Cam,” Frager said. “Cam came through big. We needed that.”

With leading scorer Evan Joiner struggling to find open looks, or just get the ball in his hands at all, Glick turned to Isaiah Martin for any semblance of offensive production. The 6-foot-7 senior scored seven of the Yellow Jackets’ 11 third quarter points and 18 of the final 48, but it wasn’t enough. Two botched close-range attempts towards the end aided Douglass in preserving its lead, and Gwynn Park’s once solid 4-1 record dropped even further to 5-4.

“It’s a great rivalry,” Glick said. “They do a great job, Coach Massenburg does a great job. They’re a very, very good program and in every sport we play every game is a one or two point game. It’s a great rivalry, a healthy rivalry.”

tmewhirter@gazette.net

Douglass 50, Gwynn Park 48

Douglass (5-5, 4-2): 8 15 12 15 — 50

Gwynn Park (5-4, 3-2): 8 11 11 18 — 48

SCORING

Douglass: Keyonte Frager 12, Cameron Hayes 10, Donnell Robinson 8, Van Dunson 7, Anthony Byrd 4, Javaughn Talley 3, Tyler Smith 2, Kyle Green 2, Trevor Johnson 2.

Gwynn Park: Isaiah Martin 18, Cedric Hines 10, Evan Joiner 9, Marquis Holland 5, Mike Pegram 4, Anwar Mack 2.