Wins don't get much sweeter than the one No. 15 Long Reach posted over Atholton, 60-56, in last night's Howard County boys basketball championship game.

Three weeks ago, the Raiders (18-5) routed the Lightning, 75-45, ending Long Reach's 30-game home winning streak.

Long Reach (21-2) more than avenged the loss by winning its second Howard County title since the inception of the championship game and did it by beating the defending champion on its home court. The Lightning won the inaugural Howard final in 2006 and went on to win the state Class 3A title the same year.

"We had a winning streak going at home before I got here," said senior guard Deon Queen, a transfer from Chesapeake-Anne Arundel, who led Long Reach with 17 points.

"After that [30-point] loss, Coach [Al Moraz Jr.] just practiced defense, defense and intensity and keeping our poise.

"After we thought it about it, we came back, played hard and won the next 10 games."

Last night, the two teams stayed close from start to finish, with Atholton holding a 31-29 halftime lead on a basket by Deyon Cook, who led the Raiders with 18 points. Anthony Jones added 16 points and six rebounds.

Atholton's Shane Brown tied the score at 42 with a three-pointer with two seconds left in the third quarter. The game was tied at 44 and 48 in the fourth before the Lightning went on a 9-0 run capped by Julius Fambro's put-back to make it 57-48 with 2:30 remaining.

pat.omalley@baltsun.com