The inaugural Arundel boys basketball showcase turned into a display of Howard County dominance on Saturday evening.
Three Howard County teams — Atholton, Centennial and Reservoir — combined to sweep the trio of games at Arundel High School and all three wins came by nine or more points.
Reservoir (2-0) kicked things off with a 66-57 victory over Huntingtown (1-1) behind a game-high 18 points and 12 rebounds from Seth Henry. Centennial (2-0) then knocked off Glen Burnie (0-2), 64-54, behind a huge game from Isaiah White (26 points, 10 rebounds, 7 blocks). And to close out the day, Atholton (2-0) used a balanced scoring effort to cruise past host Arundel (1-1), 68-51.
Reservoir 66, Huntingtown 57
It took Reservoir most of the first quarter Saturday to get going against Huntingtown, but once the Gators found their stride, they distanced themselves enough to cruise the rest of the way to the nine-point win. Capitalizing on a 14-0 run that spanned the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second, Reservoir built a lead that it never lost on the way to its second straight win to open the year.
"They were doing a great job of sharing the ball and looking for each other when we went on that run," Reservoir coach Mike Coughlan said. "But just as important was that we were defending, getting turnovers and that allowed us to go. To me, it was the defense that was taking care of the offense."
It wasn't a game without a few bumps in the road, though, for Reservoir. After Huntingtown had fallen behind by as many as 17 points late in the first half, the team regrouped to close the second quarter and open the third with a 10-0 push to get within seven, 31-24.
But that's as close as things would get. The Gators found answers from a number of different guys, led by Seth Henry's double-double (18 pts, 12 rebs). Johvon Garcia (13 points) and Jon Mierzwa (12) also had strong games.
Afterward, Coughlan talked about how, despite the win, there is still plenty to improve on.
"These games are more about building habits for the big games later in the season and in the playoffs, and they need to know that second half wasn't good enough," Coughlan said. "We give up 37 points like we did in the second half today and we're not going to beat teams like (Centennial). I'm not going to make excuses for them and we need to make sure that we are ready for what's ahead."
Re (1-0, 2-0): Henry 18, J. Garcia 13, Mierzwa 12, Omoragbe 10, Phillips 6, G. Garcia 4, Obering 2, Gaines 2.
Hu: Bryan Easton 17, Brandon Easton 16, Albert 8, Reid 6, Tavares 4, Woodburn 2, Hooper 2, Greenwell 2.
Centennial 64, Glen Burnie 54
Isaiah White is quickly announcing himself as one of the area's best players and Glen Burnie saw exactly how dangerous the Eagles' senior can be on Saturday.
White exploded for a career-high 26 points, while also adding 10 rebounds and 7 blocks, to lead the way for Centennial. Thirteen of his points came in the first quarter alone, as the Eagles established a 20-11 lead after those opening eight minutes.
"It just kind of evolved. I wasn't really thinking too much about it as I was getting going," White said in terms of his scoring output. "It was really more about helping our team anyway I could. I just like feeding off the rest of the team and we're proving that once we get rolling, we're pretty hard to stop."
Glen Burnie hung around for awhile, trailing by just two points midway through the second quarter at 22-20. But Centennial found another gear to close out the half and begin the third quarter, putting together an impressive 28-2 run that effectively put the game away.
Centennial's Elijah White, Isaiah's younger brother, also had a career game. The sophomore guard delivered 14 points off the bench. Isaiah White said the duo is appreciating the chance to suit up together this winter.
"This could be the last time we ever get to play together, so I'm just relishing it all. I'm trying to be a good leader, trying to be a good big brother and someone he can look up to," he said.
In the loss, Glen Burnie was paced by 15 points apiece from Dayvon Cuffey and Raquan McCain.
C (1-0, 2-0): I. White 26, E. White 14, Brown 8, Strothers 6, Clemens 6, An 2, Wilson 2.
GB: Cuffey 15, McCain 15, Watkins 6, Santos 4, Richardson 4, Treen 3, Biscoe 3, Powell 2, Avent 1, Mouzon 1.
Atholton 68, Arundel 51
One night after needing a buzzer-beating shot in overtime to beat Long Reach, the Raiders made things a little easier on themselves.
A 14-0 run midway through the first half was the difference maker in turning a three-point Atholton deficit into a 13-point lead and setting the stage for the runaway win. Jake Waterworth led the charge with 15 points in a game that saw 12 different Raiders score.
"It's tough to play 15 guys like we did tonight, but I give our guys credit because they all compete for minutes. How ever many minutes they get on the floor is up to them and what they do in practice," Atholton coach Jared Albert said. "And I've talked before about being able to play different styles this year because of our depth … yesterday's game was different than today's game in terms of our approach. I like our versatility right now."
Atholton also had Brandon Willis and Noah Mendelsohn score in double figures with 11 points each.
Ath (1-0, 2-0): Waterworth 15, Willis 11, Mendelsohn 11, Washington 8, Kwong 5, Kelly 4, Carter 3, Rodgers 3, Mercilliott 3, Roman 2, Mason 2, Myers 1.
Arundel: Whitfield 8, Joyner 7, Thornton 6, Mason 5, Holland 4, Mack 4, O'Hara 4, Smith 4, McRobie 3, Colvin 2, Joyce 2, Orosz 2, Stanford 2.
Other scores:
Glenelg Country 95, Old Mill 56
GC (0-2, 2-2): Longpre 22, D. Williams 17, Bernetti 16, Burnett 14, Tverijonas 8, Hightower 5, Walsh 5, Wilson 4, M. Williams 2.
OM: Hagan 14, Wilkerson 14, Eubanks 12, Denton 6, Edwards Jr. 5, Tyson 4, McCullom 1.
Half: 40-27 GC.
Mount Carmel 71, Chapelgate 52
MC: Erebor 18, Nolan 16, Jenkins 15, Jefferson 9, Webb 9, Mathis 4.
CCA (2-0, 4-4): Frierson 27, Hughes 10, Grandy 7, Madden 3, Ball 3, Jolly 2.
Half: 37-30 MC.