Boys Basketball: Chopticon 63, Glen Burnie 59 OT

By Andy States
Content Manager, SMAC

Chopticon's Derrell Armstrong stepped to the foul line to shoot two with less than a minute to play in overtime, the opportunity to essentially seal the victory for his team in front of him. 

But Armstrong missed both, leaving the visiting Glen Burnie Gophers just two points behind. 

"I was just thinking keep my head in the game, can't lose my composure," Armstrong said. "I was hoping there was going to be another opportunity for me to redeem myself."

That opportunity came quickly -- not that Armstrong needed to redeem himself. After the missed free throws, Armstrong stole the ball on Glen Burnie's next possession, was fouled, and knocked down a pair of free throw with four seconds left to lift Chopticon to a 63-59 win. Armstrong scored a game-high 33 points, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:29 left in overtime, as well as the game-tying bucket in regulation to send the game to overtime.

"This is definitely a big win for us," Armstrong said. "Glen Burnie is a very good team. To get a win over a team like that definitely shows us what we're capable of."

It almost didn't happen. After finishing the third quarter with a 40-29 lead, Chopticon (5-0) fell victim to Glen Burnie's full-court pressure in the fourth quarter. The Gophers' Justin Kuntz took the game over, scoring 20 of his team-high 26 points to lead the visitors back into the game and, eventually, the lead. Kuntz's field goal with 44 seconds remaining in regulation put Glen Burnie in front 56-55, good for the Gophers' first lead of the second half. But later, with the clock nearing all zeroes and the Glen Burnie lead at 57-55, Armstrong drove to the hoop and dropped in the tying score to push the game to the extra session.

"They definitely had a good run towards the end of the game," Armstrong said. "I think it shows a lot about our character to be able to stay focused, stay mentally tough enough to pull it out."

Glen Burnie (5-2) trailed just 27-26 at the half after a back-and-forth first half, but managed only three points in the third quarter. But the Gophers' aggressive defense and Kuntz's dominance on the offensive end swung the momentum back through the final period of regulation.

"I got to be happy with the kids' effort," Glen Burnie coach Mike Rudd said. "They battled all the way to the end. On the road, you're not going to get calls there at the end."

Tyler Rudd aided Kuntz in the scorebook, tallying 16 points including a critical three-pointer that pulled the Gophers to within one during their fourth-quarter surge. Danny Murphy scored 11 points, while Shaun Nobile added six.
 
Chopticon entered the game unbeaten through four games, but still had not put together a full four-quarter effort, according to Coach Terry Mumau. And while there was certainly a letdown of sorts during the fourth quarter, the Braves hung in well enough to give themselves a chance to win.

Joel Pease helped to carry the Braves' effort in the first half, and finished with 12 points to lead all Chopticon scorers not named Armstrong. Devon Yates chipped in with six points.

"I think it's a big confidence builder for us," Mumau said. "We just played a couple of games and didn't play real well, didn't play a full four quarters. Tonight there were spurts, there were letups. But when I talk about letups so far this year I'm talking about two-point quarters.

"We let it go at 11, but we still hung in there. We didn't jump ship. Much improvement, and [Glen Burnie] is a very good team. It means a lot to us."

Chopticon 63, Glen Burnie 59 OT
Glen Burnie    11    15    3    28    2
Chopticon        14    13    13    17    6
Glen Burnie: Kuntz 26, Rudd 16, Murphy 11, Nobile 6
Chopticon: Armstrong 33, Pease 12, Yates 6, Warring 4, Blackwell 3, Herbert 2, Thompson 2, Thomas 1