Parkville Rolls Over Poly, 69-48

It had been almost two weeks since the Parkville Knights took to the floor, and the rust showed early on in Monday evening's MPSSAA Regional Quarterfinal game at home against the Poly Engineers. Thanks to an outstanding defensive effort, the Knights were able to keep a comfortable lead until the offense found their range, allowing them to pull away to a 69-48 victory over the Engineers.

"It had been awhile since we played an actual game, but I thought we played really good, under control defensively in the first half, which helped us to get the lead," said Parkville coach Rod Norris.

Get the lead they did, and right away.

Jamal Williams scored 5 of his 18 points right out of the gate to help Parkville jump on top 7-0 three minutes into the game. A steal from Jamal Debreaux and nice dish to Dante Knight upped the Knights' lead to 11-3, in what looked to be the score after one quarter. That was before Poly's Shawn Henson hit a miraculous buzzer-beater to end the quarter.

It looked as though Poly would commit its 8th turnover of the quarter when a wayward pass was headed out of bounds in the left corner as time was running out. Henson somehow jumped out of bounds, grabbed the ball, and hurled it behind his back in the vicinity of the basket. As the buzzer sounded the ball somehow ended up going through the net, cutting the Parkville lead to 11-6.

Isaiah Tripp, who led the Knights with 19 points, scored 5 straight to start a 10-2 Parkville run, and Williams converted on a three-point play to finish the run, upping the lead to 21-10.

A three-pointer from Sterling Miles, who gave the Knights valuable minutes off the bench with 11 points, was followed by a drive and dish by Williams, in which James Milton finished with an emphatic two-handed slam, and at the break Parkville led 28-16.

A three by Williams and a bucket from Tripp gave Parkville a 16-point lead early in the third, but the Engineers would not go away quietly.

When Kye Hodge (15 pts) converted on a tip-in with 1:30 left in the third, the lead was down to 39-30, and Norris had seen enough. Coach called a timeout and let his players know their effort needed to be better.

Isaiah Tripp heard Norris loud and clear.

Tripp drove aggressively and converted on a short jumper to make it 41-30. He got out quickly after a Poly miss for a layup and then came up with a steal, resulting in two free throws, which he converted for 6 straight points and a 45-30 lead.

"After that timeout we came out in an extended zone, got a couple steals and Isaiah really came through for us," said Norris. "That was the turning point in the game."

Tripp was pleased with his performance as well. "I always try to get my teammates involved and take my shots when they come," he said. "Tonight I was able to capitalize on my opportunities."

That spark at the end of the third was all the Knights needed, as Williams scored 12 points early in the fourth and the Parkville lead never dropped below 17 points.

Milton finished with 10 points and 13 rebounds while Dennis Hughes had a nice all-around night with 4 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals.

Hodge added 7 rebounds to lead the Engineers on the boards, while Henson and Wil Wyche finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Next up for Parkville is Aberdeen, which defeated North Harford 55-43 this evening. Parkville will host that game on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

In other action in the area, Loch Raven was beaten by Patterson Mill 68-53, bringing an end to the Raiders' season.