Raptors Come Up Clutch Against Owls

Rockville, MD: On Wednesday, December 11th, the 20th ranked Montgomery College Raptors hosted the PGCC Owls in a Region 20 matchup. The Raptors took a huge lead and were able to withstand a furious Owl comeback to win the game 85-84.

 

In the first half, everything was clicking for the Raptors. They started the game up 14-5 behind a hot start by Isaiah Gill, who scored 14 points in the first half. From there, the lead ballooned to 23 behind some hot shooting (62% from the field and 60% from three) and lockdown defense. The Raptors were able to do this while in foul trouble, with 4 players having 2 or more fouls at the half, and captain Ibrahim Abdulmateen-Robinson only playing 5 minutes because of foul trouble. 

 

The second half was a different story. The Raptors went cold to start the half, only scoring 5 points in the first 5 minutes of the half. The PGCC press was effective, speeding the pace of the game up and causing the Raptors to take too many quick shots. Jailin Landis heated up, scoring 24 of his 34 points in the second half. Both teams were in foul trouble, combining for 51 fouls and 79 free throws. The Owls took their first lead of the game with 1:02 on the clock, going up 3. However, the Raptors were able to stay composed. Ibrahim Abdulmateen-Robinson got to the line off a beautifully drawn up play by Coach Wise after a timeout, hitting two free throws to bring the game within 1. The Raptors got a stop on defense, and Chris Levy got fouled with 8 seconds left and went to the line with a chance to take the lead. He knocked down both free throws, and an airball by Jailin Landis closed the door on the comeback. The Raptors move to 8-1 on the season.