Owls Defeat CCBC Catonsville In Regular Season Finale While West Earns His 50th Victory As Head Coach

The Prince George's Community College men's basketball team closed out their 2021-22 regular season on Saturday afternoon with a 92-86 win over visiting CCBC Catonsville. The Owls earned a much-needed win after their recent four game skid to head into next weekend's Region 20 Tournament with a bit of momentum. Prince George's improved to 11-11 to finish the year at .500 while their conference record stayed at 5-8.

Finishing games have been the Owls weak point as of late with each of their last three games ending in defeat by an average of 4 points. Head coach William West wasn't about to let his team make that same mistake again on Saturday as his squad stepped up down the stretch, keeping the game just out of reach for the Cardinals who weren't able to make it a one score game in the closing minutes as the Owls offense continued to score. 

Other than an early four-point lead and later tie by the Cardinals, the Owls lead for the majority of the game. After jumping in front 10-7 with an Anthony Perry three-pointer at the 17:04 mark in the first half, the Owls never dropped the lead the rest of the way. Freshman Saveon Jackson returned to the starting lineup for the Owls and provided an immediate presence on both sides of the ball as he led his team with 11 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals at halftime to send the Owls into the locker room with a 47-34 lead. Jackson was a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc at the break.

Prince George's kept the pedal on the gas in the second half, extending their lead to as much as 16 before the Cardinals began to mount a comeback near the end of the game. Clutch shots and free throws from the Owls kept the game out of reach for Catonsville, something that had been missing for Prince George's as of lately.

A balanced attacked for Prince George's resulted in four different Owls finishing in double-digit scoring as freshman Alonzo Wilkes picked up another double-double during the win with 12 points and 12 rebounds. He also added a new season-high 7 blocks. Sophomore Deonta Dunlap poured in 20 points while grabbing 5 rebounds. Jackson finished with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. Freshman Reed Rebstock recorded his second straight double-digit performance with a new season-high 15 points while collecting 6 rebounds.

The Owls win also marked a milestone for coach West who picked up his 50th career victory as head coach of Prince George's Community College. West, who was named interim head coach of the Owls ahead of the 2018-19 season, has now finished 22-7 (2018-19), 17-6 (2019-20), and currently stand at 11-11(2021-22) during his three seasons at the helm (the 2020-21 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). One of only two NJCAA Division III programs in the state of Maryland, Prince George's typical regular season schedule sees the Owls play a bevy of Division I and II programs. West consistently has had his teams play up to the challenge and meanwhile has dominated Region 20 Division III opponents under his command. Since becoming head coach in 2018-19, the Owls are a combined 20-1 against Region 20 Divisional opponents, including postseason. The Owls lone loss occurred over a year ago on Sunday, January 23^rd, 2021 when Prince George's lost in the Region 20 Title game to Anne Arundel Community College, 84-79.

Taking a moment to reflect on his time as head coach, West, who also served as an assistant coach under Brian Johnson for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, stated, "I want to thank each player that I have had the privilege of coaching these past three years that have led to me achieving this, each player owns a percentage of this. Coaching at Prince George's Community College is an honor and hopefully I have 450 more of these in me."

West later mentioned of the upcoming tournament and his team's performance during the win: "Last night our guys had no idea I was on the cusp of reaching this benchmark and we played one of our most complete games of the season. This is the right time to have a good game leading into regions where it's all a one-game season."

With the regular season now wrapped up, West has turned his attention to the region tournament once again. Hosted by Anne Arundel Community College, the Owls have the #1 seed locked up with a perfect 5-0 division record and will await the winner of #4 Pennsylvania Highlands and #5 Butler County Community College on Friday, February 18th to see who Prince George's will face the following day in the semifinals. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:30 PM inside Jenkins Gymnasium.