Daquan Davis, Bryce Lindsay combine for 45 points in No. 1 St. Frances boys basketball’s 66-60 win over No. 4 Mount Saint Joseph

The St. Frances boys basketball team goes into each game unsure who may be primed to carry the offense.

Often, it’s a quarter by quarter proposition.

What makes the No. 1 Panthers special this season is that they are selfless, have a wealth of options and consistently do well to find the one player who has the hot hand.

Sunday afternoon at No. 4 Mount Saint Joseph, it was senior guard Bryce Lindsay early and sophomore guard Daquan Davis late. Paired with aggressive team defense and timely plays from others, the Panthers held steady for a 66-60 win over the Gaels in Irvington.

Davis, who ran off 11 straight points late in the third quarter, led St. Frances with 23 points, while Lindsay finished with 22. St. Frances, winners in six straight, improves to 26-3 overall and 9-0 in the Baltimore Catholic League. Mount Saint Joseph, which got 19 points from junior forward Amani Hansberry, is now 19-5 and 7-4 in the BCL and saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end.

As the season heads for the home stretch, the Panthers have separated themselves from the rest of a talented field in the private leagues. Their depth and having multiple offensive threats stand out the most for coach Nick Myles.

“That’s the best part of our team. It’s the most confusing part but it’s the best part,” he said. “You never know whose day it’s going to be. You got to figure out and when we do, we just try to go through that guy.”

The win gives the Panthers the two-game regular-season sweep against the Gaels as it also claimed a 72-67 home win on Dec. 23 that featured a strong performance from junior guard Carlton Carrington.

On Sunday, Lindsay provided them with some separation when he hit two 3-pointers in the final two minutes of the first quarter for a 19-12 advantage.

With a 43-35 lead late in the third quarter, Davis made his biggest contribution. He hit three consecutive 3-pointers from the left side and added a fourth with seven seconds left in the quarter for a 54-40 lead.

“We pride ourselves on whoever has the hot hand keep feeding them,” said Lindsay. “I came out hot in the first half, so my guys, coach Nick kept feeding me, and then Daquan came out with the hot hand, so we ran the same play until they stopped it.”

The cushion proved vital as the Gaels made a charge in the fourth quarter. Hansberry’s inside play, Austin Abrams’ (14 points) two three’s and the all-around play from Bryson Tucker (14 points) led the rally. With 1:31 left, Ace Valentine (12 points) hit a 3-pointer and then, after a stop on defense, Tucker took a feed from Abrams for an easy layup that cut the Panthers’ lead to 64-60 with 1:20 left.

But the Gaels turned the ball over on their next two possessions and junior guard Jahnathan Lamothe sealed the Panthers when he converted two free throws with eight seconds to play.

With the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference playoffs set to start Feb. 21, followed by the BCL playoffs beginning March 2, the Panthers have proved they are the team to beat.

“They just have a lot of offensive weapons, especially out on the perimeter — multiple guys that can handle the ball, multiple guys that can make plays, multiple guys that can make shots,” said Mount Saint Joseph coach Pat Clatchey. “We played them the first time and Bryce Lindsay had two or three points. ... So it’s sort of like, whenever you play them, somebody is going to step up, and today it was Bryce and Davis.

“I thought our guys played hard. We made a run and it was a four-point game and then we had two plays where we didn’t get a shot.”

Both teams return to action Monday with the Gaels traveling to Glenelg Country for a 6 p.m. game, while St. Frances hosts McDonogh at 7.

SF: Carrington 4, Lindsay 22, Johnson 6, Davis 23, Lamothe 6, Robinson 5

MSJ: Abrams 14, Hansberry 19, Tucker 14, Valentine 12, Wingfield 1

Half: SF, 37-28