Boys’ Basketball: Glenelg Country Dragons Pull Off Last-Second Win Against Gilman

Wednesday was senior night at Glenelg Country School.

Before the game, the Dragons and their fans honored the team’s three graduating seniors – guard Jim Moxley, guard Ben Koffel, and starting point guard Ben Jordon.

Wednesday night was supposed to be a time of reflection and celebration, but the visiting 11-17 Gilman Greyhounds had something else in mind.

The Greyhounds, led by Ryan Ripken’s 28 points (six 3-pointers), took the lead early in the second quarter and began to pull away from the Dragons. Gilman led by as many as 10 points in the game, but that was before Glenelg Country’s Isaiah Miles took over in the second half.

The junior forward, who scored just four points in the first half, caught fire in the game’s final two quarters, scoring 19 of his team-high 23 points in the second half to go along with 16 rebounds. But in the end, the game’s real hero was sophomore guard Warren Powers, who scored the team’s final five points, including the game-winner with just 4.6 remaining as Glenelg Country won in dramatic fashion, 63-61.

“I thought it was good for us to have the adversity just to test out character and to build some character,” said Glenelg Country coach Kevin Quinlan. “But I think we could have made our lives a lot easier. We missed a lot of easy shots in the first half.”

The Dragons actually led early in the first quarter, but every time Glenelg Country appeared poised to pull away, Ripken hit a big 3-pointer to keep Gilman in the game.

The Dragons were up 8-5, and then Ripken hit a 3-pointer to tie the game, 8-8. Glenelg Country went up 12-10, and then Ripken hit a 3-pointer to take the lead, 13-12.

But the Dragons answered right back with a three of their own from sophomore guard Kevin Boyd, who finished the game with nine points.

Glenelg Country led by three points after the first quarter, 16-13.

Then Ripken opened the second quarter with his third 3-pointer of the game to tie the game, 16-16.

“You can’t give him open looks,” Quinlan said. “He is an awesome shooter.”

Though the Dragons would retake the lead, 22-20, with a shot from Boyd, the celebration would be short lived. The Greyhounds ended the half on an 8-3 run to take a slim three-point lead into halftime, 28-25.

The Dragons needed a spark in the second half and they got it from Miles, who caught fire in the third quarter.

After being a non-factor in the first 16 minutes of Wednesday’s game, scoring just four points during that span, Miles scored an impressive 11 points in the third quarter.

“He just erupted in the second half,” Quinlan said.

The Dragons needed every point they could get out of Miles to keep up with Ripken and the rest of the Greyhounds, who still managed to outscore Glenelg Country in the third quarter, 16-14.

Gilman led by as many as 10 points in the third, but Glenelg Country narrowed the gap by ending the quarter on an 8-3 run to cut the Greyhounds lead to just five points.

Gilman led 44-39 entering the fourth quarter.

Powers, who ended the game with 20 points and 14 rebounds, started the quarter strong, driving to the basket and drawling a foul. He made 1-2 from the line to cut the Greyhounds lead to four points, 44-40.

Then Ripken hit his 6th 3-pointer of the game to extend the Dragons’ deficit to seven points, 47-40.

Just when it seemed like the game was slipping away from Glenelg Country, Jordon, the senior, hit a huge 3-pointer to keep the Dragons in the game.

Ripken hit a pair of free throws to increase the Greyhounds’ lead to five points, 49-44, but Jordon’s three had inspired his team.

The Dragons proceeded to go on a 10-4 run, capped by freshman Chancellor Barnard’s mid-range jumper that tied the game 53-53 with just 3:44 remaining in the game.

Once again Ripken hit a pair of free throws to give the Greyhounds the lead, 55-53, but the Dragons were far from done.

Jordon, who scored six of his eight points in the fourth quarter, drove to the basket, hit the tough shot, and drew the foul. The senior guard hit his free throw to give Glenelg Country its first lead, 56-55, since it led 22-20 in the second quarter.

Miles then hit a tough shot under the basket to extend that lead to three points, 58-55.

The Dragons appeared to be in control.

That was until Gilman’s Cyrus Jones hit a tough 3-pointer with 2:13 remaining in the fourth quarter to tie the game, 58-58. Jones finished the game with 25 points.

Powers went on to score the next three points in the game to give Glenelg Country a slim lead, 61-58, but then Jones struck again.

The Gilman guard drove to the hoop, hit an off-balance shot in the lane, drew the foul, and made his clutch free throw to tie the game, 61-61.

The Dragons called a timeout with just 21.2 left in the game.

Glenelg Country inbounded the ball to Jordon. The point guard dribbled around, taking the remaining seconds off the clock. Then he passed the ball to Powers, who drove to the hoop and put up a tough shot, in traffic, with just 4.6 remaining.

The shot fell, giving the Dragons the 63-61 lead.

Gilman inbounded the ball with just enough time to throw up a desperation heave, but Jordon stole the ball as time expired to seal the win.

Glenelg Country pulled off their second fourth quarter comeback in their last five games, beating the Greyhounds 63-61.

With the win the Dragons improve to 22-3, while Gilman falls to 11-18.

This article has been edited to correct the final play of the game.