Lake Clifton coach Charlie Moore had a tooth pulled on Tuesday, so he couldn't do much shouting during that night's game against McDonogh.
This wasn't a problem in the top-ranked Lakers' 49-point win, but he had plenty to yell about last night.
His team fell behind by 12 points to 16th-ranked Severn in the first half. Three of his starters were on the bench with three fouls. The improbable began to look possible.
That is, until the fourth quarter, when senior Shawnta Rogers and sophomore Dante Lemmon rallied Lake Clifton past the Admirals, 73-71, in the Severn Christmas Classic before an overflow crowd of more than 500.
Rogers, the tournament's Most Valuable Player, finished with 24 points, 14 rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Lemmon scored 15 off the bench, including nine in the fourth quarter.
Lemmon had six straight to give the Lakers a 58-57 lead with 6:41 left -- the first time they were ahead since 4:15 remained before halftime.
Rogers, the 5-foot-4 senior guard being recruited by several major universities, made a layup after a block by Henry Hurst (eight points, 15 rebounds), but Severn twice got within one point.
"Severn played good. You can't take anything from them," Moore said.
"They can move the ball, they can hit the outside shot, they can break you down and go to the basket."
Lake Clifton held on despite getting little from 6-7 senior forward Guy Butler, who scored one point and grabbed five rebounds before fouling out with 4:33 left. Rogers and senior Ronald Byrd also fouled out.
"I expected it to be a blowout," Rogers said.
The Lakers had greater trouble with Severn senior Alhamisi Simms, who scored 22 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and blocked four shots. Senior John Vereen added 20 points, as Severn made more field goals than Lake Clifton (28-25). The visitors were 17-for-22 from the line.
Severn took its first lead on a three-pointer by Jay Lonnie Booth with 1:39 left in the opening quarter. They went in front again, 23-22, on a basket by Simms and 26-24 on Simms' three-pointer. When freshman Dennard Melton hit from beyond the arc with a minute remaining in the half, the Admirals had a 40-28 lead.
But when Booth, a senior point guard, went to the bench with his fourth foul less than a minute into the last quarter, Lake Clifton had its opportunity.
"He's one of the best point guards in the area," said Severn coach Wayne Fowler, whose team shot 15-for-30 from the field in the first half and 28-for-58 for the game. "When he came out of the ballgame, we lost one of the wheels of our machine."
Lake Clifton went ahead 70-61 on two free throws by Reggie Frazier (eight points, nine rebounds), but Severn made one final run. A basket by Vereen, a free throw from Simms and a three-pointer by Andrew Watts made it 70-67 with 42 seconds left, and a follow by Melton (11 points) had Severn down 71-69. Lemmon made two free throws before Booth scored off an inbounds pass with one second showing.
In the consolation game, McDonogh held Archbishop Spalding scoreless until 2:03 into the second quarter and coasted to a 71-31 victory.
Senior guard Tommy Layden scored 21 for McDonogh (3-3), which made 32 of 68 from the field. Bobby Sabelhaus finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds despite sitting out most of the fourth quarter. Lance Clelland (12 points) and Jason Siegal (11) also scored in double figures.
Senior guard Charles Ross had 13 points for Spalding (4-5), which went 12-for-60 from the field. His baseline drive resulted in the Cavaliers' first points after McDonogh had built an 18-0 lead.
The Eagles shot 50 percent (17-for-34) in the first half and led 36-13. They out-rebounded Spalding, 54-24.