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Gwynn Park upends No. 10 Oakland Mills, 52-48, in Md. 2A South final
Md. boys' basketball roundup
Gwynn Park upends No. 10 Oakland Mills, 52-48, in Md. 2A South final
Daniel Henry saw an opening on the left wing and drove to the basket. As a defender banged into his body, the Gwynn Park senior guard deftly banked the ball in the basket and then converted a free throw for the biggest three-point play of the Yellow Jackets' season, and they held on for a 52-48 victory over 10th-ranked Oakland Mills in the Maryland 2A South region final before a sold-out crowd of 1,500 in Columbia.
"I knew they couldn't guard me, so I wanted to take it to the rack," Henry said. "I didn't want to lose."
In a rematch of last year's regional final that was emotionally charged from the opening tip, neither team led by more than seven points. Gwynn Park (17-8) trailed most of the way before rallying for its third regional title in four years and ending Oakland Mills's season with its only blemish against 25 victories.
"It was the craziest place I ever played in my life," Henry said. "The craziest game I ever played in. The atmosphere was just crazy."
The Scorpions' star senior forward, Greg Whittington, finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks despite being the focus of a diamond-and-one defense that also double-teamed Whittington every time he touched the ball.
Still, it was Whittington's three-point shot from the left corner in transition that gave Oakland Mills a 47-44 lead with less than two minutes left.
But guard Brandon Ford (19 points) answered with a quick drive to the basket for Gwynn Park. After a quick miss, Henry hurried down the court, and his three-point play gave the Yellow Jackets the lead for good at 49-48 with just more than one minute left.
"We had been looking for someone to assume the [role of a] third scorer and with three weeks left in the season Daniel Henry stepped up," Gwynn Park Coach Mike Glick said. "He's been the difference our last three weeks."
