The three-year basketball slump at Atholton is finally over.

The Raiders defeated visiting Glenelg, 64-60, last night to improve to 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the Howard County league.

A year ago, Atholton was 3-20. It had won only nine games over the previous three seasons.

"This is a bright team that listens. We played with a lot of energy and effort," said Atholton coach Jim Albert. "We played hard on defense. The first three games we won we held teams to under 50 points, and it appeared we were going to do it again."

But Glenelg guard Janero Marchany got hot in the fourth quarter, leading the Gladiators to a 17-3 finishing run by sinking four three-point baskets. He hit five three-pointers overall and scored a team-high 17.

After a 15-0 Raiders run late in the first quarter and early in the second quarter, Atholton held a comfortable 15- to 20-point lead until the fourth quarter.

Micah Mbah made a layup off an assist from Craig Sauers for a 61-43 Atholton lead. But the Gladiators cut that to 62-57 with 18 seconds to play.

That's when Atholton beat Glenelg's full-court man-to-man pressure with a long inbounds pass followed by Fred Graham's layup with nine seconds left.

"That [inbounds play] was a good coaching move by Atholton," Glenelg coach Jeremy Snyder said. "That play was big because we had just forced a couple of turnovers. Atholton is a good, disciplined team. We made a run at the end because we decided to play, and every kid was on the same page. Why did it take us so long? We need to do the right things defensively."

The Gladiators fell to 2-3 overall and 1-3 in the league, but all three losses are by four or fewer points.

The Raiders had a big advantage in turnovers, committing just 12, while Glenelg had 18. They also had an advantage at the foul line, making 15 of 19; Glenelg was 8-for-10.

"We've been shooting well at the foul line," Albert said.

Atholton was led offensively by Sauers, a 6-foot-2 sophomore guard who had 17 points, four assists, three rebounds and played with the poise of a senior.

"We got cocky at halftime and didn't pick up our defense in the second half," said Sauers, who came to Atholton from River Hill this year because of redistricting.

Mbah, Atholton's top scorer from last season, scored 14 points and had seven rebounds. DeMatha transfer Jonas Vitkas had 10 points and eight rebounds. And senior guard Kevin Daciek scored 11.

Sophomore Jim McQuilkin and senior Carson Nickell shared the point guard spot and handled the ball well for the Raiders.