The Whitman varsity boys basketball team defeated the B-CC Barons in Bethesda on Friday night by a score of 58-53, taking the top spot in the Montgomery County 3A/4A Central Region Standings from their opponents.
The Barons, on the heels of a win at Churchill on Jan. 8, sought to extend their reign over the region in front of a raucous home crowd. They led throughout the first half, aided by Adam Strong-Jacobson’s dominance over defenders under the basket. The 6’6 center finished with 15 points.
At the end of the half, the Barons led the Vikings by 10 points. Whitman began to close the deficit mid-way through the second quarter, but were unable to stop the explosive B-CC offense.
“We just had to be tougher on defense,” said Whitman coach Chris Lun, reflecting on the insights he shared with his team at halftime. “They got a lot more size than we do.”
To overcome this mismatch, the Vikings found their groove from beyond the arc. Forward Sean Curran and guard Titian DeRosa each made three-pointers in the opening minutes of the second half as Whitman mounted a 9-0 scoring run to cut their deficit down to one point.
The visiting Viking fans roared from behind their team’s bench, drowning out the home crowd as their team mounted a comeback that few teams have been able to accomplish against the Barons this season.
With another strike from beyond the arc by guard Will Shapiro, the game was tied at 40 with under three minutes left in the third quarter. By the end of the frame, the Vikings had attained their first lead of the game as the Barons were unable to slow their opponents’ lightning-fast offense.
The Vikings were led by star guards Thomas Farrell and DeRosa, who finished the game with 15 and 14 points respectively. Strong-Jacobson, now faced with heavy resistance under the basket, battled back for the Barons.
“The one thing about Titian is he’s fearless,” said Lun of DeRosa. “He’s not afraid to have the ball in his hands and he knocks them in.”
With only 13 seconds left in the game, B-CC had possession of the ball down by three points. While the Barons were trying to find an open player beyond the arc, DeRosa poked the ball away and gained possession.
Sprinting across the court as a stoppage in play was called, he stood triumphantly in front of the away team crowd and pumped his fist. With one final roar from the Viking fans in attendance, the game was over.
Witman left the court with a 9-3 record and now sit atop the regional standings.
“We love our group, they’re unselfish, they play hard,” said Lun. “Anytime we come to B-CC and get a win, we know it’s well deserved.”