Calvert Hall and McDonogh were victors yesterday on the final day of the Towson Catholic Tip-Off in boys basketball at Loyola College.
The No. 8 Cardinals posted what coach Mark Amatucci called a "quality win" by 57-48 over No. 17 Woodlawn, while No. 11 McDonogh defeated Bullis Prep, 54-47. In both games, the victors staged strong second halves to prevail.
Host Towson Catholic stayed with National Christian, the Washington area's ninth-ranked team, before bowing, 55-50, to finish 1-1 in its tournament.
Senior guard Jack McClinton shined in the second half to pace Calvert Hall (5-0) over Woodlawn (1-2). McClinton had 23 of his game-high 27 points in the last 16 minutes, including 14 points in a decisive third period.
McClinton relishes his role as the team's go-to player.
"I waited my turn, and now I'm the go-to-guy and I love it," said McClinton.
"My confidence is there and while I started slow tonight, I knew I would get it done in the second half."
Said Amatucci: "Then, we could trap and run, and play our game against a team that gave us our first real challenge thus far. Up to this game, we had not really been challenged and we responded in the second half against a very athletic team. This was a quality win."
After losing 60-49 on Friday to Montrose Christian of Rockville, the No. 1 team in the state independent poll, McDonogh, bounced back with a victory over Bullis Prep.
"I'm glad we got to play two really good teams like that," said McDonogh coach Matt MacMullan. "It helps to get ready for our league [Catholic League/Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference.]"
Mike Popoko, a 6-foot-5 senior forward, led the Eagles (2-1) with 25 points. He was the only Eagle in double figures.
Junior guard Jon Brick tossed in nine points for the well-balanced Eagles, who struggled offensively in a 22-22 first half but turned it up in the third period.
"I thought we played well overall in the first half, but we didn't shoot well," said MacMullan. "We had 25 turnovers against Montrose, but we handled the ball much better tonight. I told the kids to keep playing the way they had been, playing unselfish, and that our shots would start falling."
They did in the Eagles' 18-point third period that left them with a 40-31 lead going into the final eight minutes.
Popoko started things with a three-pointer and Brick's layup made it 31-24 McDonogh. Making three of four free throws, Popoko gave his team a 34-29 lead.
After a basket by Bullis' Travis Lay cut the lead to 34-31, the Eagles scored six unanswered points to close the period. The two-pointers came from Darrius Heyward-Bey, Brick and Anthony Lott.
Taking the nine-point lead into the final period, MacMullan showed his team's versatility by going to a smaller, quicker lineup with four guards. McDonogh's full-court pressure resulted in a 13-point lead at 48-35 midway through the final period.
Jerome Johnson, a 6-9 junior, led Bullis with 16 points, followed by 13 from Tanard Jackson.
In the final game of the night, Towson Catholic (2-2), which routed Oakland Mills, 63-26, Friday night, trailed 49-45 with just over a minute left before National Christian pulled away by sinking six straight free throws.
Abdullah Jalloh led the Eagles (3-1) with 21 points and 10 rebounds and Patrick Ewing Jr. had 10 points and eight rebounds.
Derek Wise had 13 points and Carroll Mitchell added 11 for the Owls.