Down The Stretch

In the week leading up to yesterday's Class 2A girls basketball semifinal, Aberdeen coach Brandi Barnes talked about how much her team learned from its trip to last year's state tournament. Then, a major case of stage fright was the prime cause of an 18-point loss to Hammond in the state semifinals. Yesterday, in the Eagles' return trip, Aberdeen didn't look nervous at all, but a slew of turnovers and missed opportunities were the culprits in a 40-37 loss to Walkersville at UMBC. The Lions (23-1)

DENVER - If Hakim Warrick ever decides to give up basketball, he might want to consider a career as a ballet dancer. For the better part of 40 minutes last night, Syracuse's 6-foot-8 junior forward was so smooth, so graceful, it felt like his movements were choreographed to go with orchestra music. Warrick scored 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds in Syracuse's 72-70 second-round victory over Maryland, but he just as easily could have been playing the lead in Swan Lake. Maryland's post players stood flat-footed for much of the evening as Warrick soared for rebounds, hung in midair to nail jumpers and glided through the lane to finish off a fast break with a ferocious dunk.

The clock was ticking, and Raheem Scott was getting desperate. Coppin State needed a basket in a bad way last night, and with a minute left in the game, things looked bleak. Scott, the Eagles' point guard, dribbled to his right, then back to his left, but everywhere he turned, he found himself surrounded by Florida A&M defenders. But out of the corner of his eye, Scott spotted teammate Darryl Roberts at the three-point line. He had told Roberts, a freshman, that he might look for him if the play broke down, and so without hesitation, Scott passed the ball in his direction.

In their first game since being ranked No. 11 nationally in Tuesday's USA Today, The Sun's top-ranked Mount St. Joseph was ripe for the taking last night in Irvington as No. 3 St. Frances came calling. Shooting just 28 percent in the first half (8-for-29) compared to the Panthers' 50 percent (13-for-26), the Gaels found themselves down by 10 at the half. But a furious third quarter led by Louis Birdsong and Dejuan Goodwin's hot hand from the foul line in the last eight minutes enabled the Gaels to avoid the upset and post a 60-51 victory.

Close games are supposed to be won by experienced teams, but don't tell that to South Carroll girls coach Al Skierski and his young Cavaliers.The Cavs opened the fourth quarter on an 8-2 run to get by the senior-filled Westminster Owls, 55-48, last night in Winfeld.It was the county opener for both Girls basketballteams, as South Carroll evened its mark to 5-5 on the season while Westminster fell to 5-6."The girls stepped up and played very big in the end," said South Carroll Al Skierski.

College Park -- Sophomore Alex Jackson dropped in two from the line with a minute left in the game and then made a put-back with 30 seconds on the clock to give Randallstown a four-point lead and ultimate 65-60 win over Fairmont Heights of Prince George's in last night's Class 2A state final at Comcast Center. "It's Alex's first year with us as a sophomore and he's worked hard to learn our system," said Rams coach Kim Rivers of Jackson, who tied Kim English for team-high scoring honors with 17 points each.

Robert O'Kelley and Wake Forest showed No. 21 Clemson that experience might be overrated.It was O'Kelley, a sophomore, and several freshmen who made the biggest shots down the stretch as the visiting Demon Deacons outplayed senior-loaded Clemson, 64-61, yesterday in the Atlantic Coast Conference.O'Kelley hit four three-pointers, including one that turned into a four-point play, after halftime. And Craig Dawson, one of four freshmen on the floor in crunch time, hit four free throws in the last eight seconds to seal the victory for Wake (11-4, 2-1)

As far as Old Mill coach Paul Bunting is concerned, the Patriots are 2-0 this season.The Patriots picked up what Bunting calls their second victory of the season last night by downing host Chesapeake-AA, 68-60, in the quarterfinal round of the Class 4A East region playoffs.The win earned Old Mill, a team with an 11-13 overall record, a chance to play host to Annapolis in tomorrow's 7 p.m. region championship."We've said all along that we can go 0-22 during the regular season and it doesn't make a difference," said Bunting.

For most of last night's game at McDonogh, No. 1 St. Frances struggled with its perimeter shooting, but with about six minutes left and her team trailing, Dawnae Roberts drilled a 20-footer to ignite a spark within the Panthers. Less than two minutes later, TaNika Jeffers hit another three-pointer to tie the game. Ma-Khida Hankins and Roberts combined to go 10-for-10 from the free-throw line down the stretch as the Panthers pulled out a 56-51 victory over the No. 2 Eagles in Owings Mills.

Until Sonique Nixon raised his hand in the second half an asked to be counted, it seemed that no one wanted to win between Coppin State and UMBC, two teams going through early-season identity crises.The Retrievers trailed by eight points five minutes into the second half when Nixon, their junior center, began to assert himself. He scored 11 points during a seven-minute span in which UMBC (2-1) outscored the Eagles 18-7, and the visitors went on to a 76-68 victory at the Coppin Center last night.