Laurel's Marcus Hebron led all scorers with 19 in the victory over Oxon Hill
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***Click here for interviews and game highlights***

By James A. McCray III
Prince George's County, Content Manager

Going into the third quarter, the Laurel Spartans boys' basketball team held a comfortable 23-11 lead over the visiting Oxon Hill Clippers.

Laurel's Marcus Hebron sat on the bench early in the third quarter and soaked in a well-earned rest, and as Hebron sat, Oxon Hill immediately went on an 11-4 scoring run to cut the lead to only five points at 27-22.

First-year head coach Antoine Gaither looked towards Hebron, called him into the game, and Hebron answered by scoring Laurel's final eight points in the third period allowing the Spartans to go on an 8-0 run to close the quarter and in essence close the game, going on to a 56-40 season-opening win.

"I had to make a play," Hebron put simply on his thoughts during the third quarter.

Hebron scored a total of 10 points in the third quarter and finished with a game-high 19 points on the night.

"That is what he is supposed to do," Gaither said of Hebron and his performance."That is what I expect out of him as my senior leader. Every night I expect him to give us his best and be one of the best players on the floor."

Hebron and the Spartans (1-0) took control of the game in the second quarter as they held Oxon Hill to two points, that courtesy of an Avery Jasper jumper with 1 minute 38 seconds remaining in the half.

Although Laurel scored six points in the quarter itself, going into the half with a 23-11 lead provided just enough cushion to earn the victory.

"We'll take any wins we can get right now," Gaither said. "We have a lot of room to grow, the kids gave a great effort, it was a great first night, we had a few opening-game jitters, but hopefully we will come out a little better Friday."

Oxon Hill (0-2) was led in scoring by Ray Gatling as he also notched a game-high 19 points, all coming in the second half. The Clippers managed to get within five points of the Laurel lead mid-way through the third period, but that is as close as Oxon Hill would get.

"We just didn't execute the way we should have," Oxon Hill head coach Richard Little said. "We just didn't hit shots and didn't execute on defense. ... Laurel is a smart team; I knew they were not going to make too many mistakes. I have a young team, but it's alright. We're going to take it and keep working, and hopefully these young kids will be alright."

The win not only secured Laurel its first win of the season, but also secured Gaither his first win as the head coach of the program.

"I am glad to get it out the way," Gaither said. "Now, I hope that first loss doesn't come for a long time."

tmccray@digitalsports.com


Laurel 56, Oxon Hill 40

Oxon Hill    --    9   2   11   18
Laurel        --   17  6   12   21

Individual scoring:
Oxon Hill: Gatling 19, Jasper 7, Venson 6, McGuine 4, Johnson 2, Saunders 2

Laurel: Hebron 19, Beale 11, Blackson 9, Wood 6, Hendricks 5, Burns 2, Johnson 2, Agua 2

Three-point goals:
Oxon Hill: Gatling 2, Jasper

Laurel: Blackson, Hendricks