BERLIN- Stephen Decatur’s boys’ varsity basketball team took the next big step in its “unfinished business” season last weekend, beating visiting Wilde Lake, 65-55, in front of raucous sell-out home crowd to win the state 3A-East region championship for the second year in a row.
Last year, the Seahawks reached the state championship game but fell to C.M. Wright in a dramatic last-second loss in overtime. Throughout the roughly one year since, the 2016-2017 campaign was dubbed “unfinished business” by the Seahawk coaches, players and fans because they came so close last year in their first return to the state championship last year and vowed to return to the state final again this year.
Throughout the season, the Seahawks clicked off several milestones along the way including a perfect regular season record, their only loss coming to Virginia’s top team in a holiday tournament in December. Last month, the Seahawks claimed the Bayside Conference championship and earned the top seed in the state 3A-East Region Section II.
Decatur breezed through its first two state playoff games, beating Atholton, 77-43, in its opener last Tuesday before beating Hammond, 64-37, in the Section II final last Thursday. The win over Hammond sent Decatur back to the 3A-East region championship last Saturday for the second year in a row. Fans began lining up for the region championship game about two hours before game time and dozens were turned away as the big crowd anticipated the contest.
Shortly after 5 p.m., the game got underway in the loud, hot gym at Stephen Decatur and the Seahawks immediately fed off the energy. Keve Aluma scored on a turnaround and then Kevon Voyles scored on a nice assist by Aluma, who missed the section championship game with an ankle injury. Gary Briddell then got a steal and converted the layup and scored again on a nice back-door cut on an assist from Aluma and Decatur led, 16-6, after the first period.
After Stephen Decatur’s boys’ varsity basketball team wrapped up the state 3A-East region championship last weekend, Coach B.J. Johnson started his players and staff on the time-honored tradition of cutting down the nets.
Photo by Shawn Soper
The Seahawks went on a quick 6-2 run to start the second quarter, but Wilde Lake started to settle down after falling behind so quickly in the first. Wilde Lake was the number-five seed in the Section I bracket, but took down top-seeded River Hill and third-seeded Centennial on its way to the region championship. Wilde Lake was big and athletic and it appeared once they got over the hype and noise leading up to the game and through the first quarter, they really settled down.
Wilde Lake went on an 8-0 run in the second quarter to cut the lead to 22-16 with just over five minutes remaining in the period. With 1:41 remaining in the second quarter, Wilde Lake nailed a long three-pointer to cut the lead to 23-20. Aluma responded with a three-point play of his own to push the lead back to 26-20, but again Wilde Lake nailed a big three-pointer to cut the lead to 26-23.
A jumper by Aluma made it 28-23, but a pair of free throws by Wilde Lake cut the lead to 28-25 with time running down in the second. However, it what would turn out to be a turning point in the game, Voyles nailed a long three-pointer at the buzzer to push the lead to 31-25 and, for the moment, take the wind out of the sails for Wilde Lake, which had gained so much momentum through the second quarter.
In the third, Wilde Lake hit a three-pointer with six minutes remaining to cut the lead to 35-31. La’Ron Johnson hit a three of his own a short time later to push the lead to 40-32, and another steal and layup by Briddell extended the lead to 10 points at 42-32. Johnson stole the ball and assisted Voyles on a layup and then Voyles hit a three-pointer, again with under a minute left in the period, and Decatur led 48-36 at the end of the third.
Wilde Lake cut the lead to single digits at 52-43 with just over four minutes left in the fourth, but Hayden Frasier nailed a three-pointer to extend Decatur’s lead to 55-43, which brought the big home crowd to its feet. Wilde Lake did not go quietly and cut the lead to single digits again at 59-50 with just over two minutes left, but Briddell found Aluma with a nice assist and Aluma slammed home the dunk to bring the crowd to its feet again and put Decatur up, 61-50, with 1:33 left. The Seahawks took care of business in the final minute and pulled out the 65-55 win and claim the region championship for the second straight year.
The win propelled Decatur into the state Final Four and a state semifinal matchup with Poly of Baltimore at the Xfinity Center at the University of Maryland-College Park on Thursday in a game played too late to be included in this edition.
