HCC finds Bright spot in win over rival Allegany

January 21, 2008|By JACK HILL III / Staff Correspondent

Sophomore guard Kelvin Bright scored a game-high 33 points to lead the Hagerstown Community College men's basketball team to an 89-84 Maryland JuCo Conference victory over rival Allegany College at the HCC athletic complex Sunday.

HCC (14-4, 7-2) got its third straight win, snapping the three-game winning streak of Allegany (8-10, 7-4).

"We got a big victory," Bright said. "The history of Hagerstown and Allegany goes back a long way. People were talking about it before the game. We played good as a team and we got everybody involved. My teammates worked hard to get me the ball. My shots were able to fall."

Bright was one of the five players who scored in double figures for the Hawks. Will Taylor had 14 points and Q'Monte Matheny had 12 and Tyrone Hicks and Anthony Perez each scored 10. John Long pulled down 13 rebounds, Sheridan Price grabbed eight rebounds, Taylor had five rebounds and Hicks had three assists.

Perez sank a 3-pointer with 18:53 remaining in the second half to give HCC its biggest lead at 48-37.

Allegany cut the lead to 55-54 with 12:59 to go in the game on a basket by Ru White, but it would not get any closer than that.

The Hawks made 22 of 34 free throws, including a 19-for-28 performance in the second half.

"I am very happy with my team at this point of the season," HCC coach Ryan Devlin said. "Today, our players just went out and competed. We did a fine job. We have played three games in five days and we won all of them. We came together physically and mentally. We stayed strong and that is the sign of a good team. We just did the basic things and we did them well."

Sophomore forward George DeGroat scored a team-high 29 points for Allegany.

"We put a lot of pressure on George DeGroat," Devlin said. "We tried to take away his baseline. We did that to an extent, but he still got a few baseline baskets."

Tarelle Jackson added 24 points and Ryan Burts had 12 points for the Trojans.

"Hagerstown played well," Allegany coach Mike Baker said. "They did a good job on the boards and they got the second and third shots. The big key was the rebounding. When we were able to play defense the way that we were supposed to do and take good shots, we were able to get back into the game.

"Kelvin Bright is a heck of a player. He can shoot, run, rebound and defend."

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