Cardinals Drop Another Close Game

On February 7, the Cardinals men's basketball team took on the College of Southern Maryland, losing a close game 93-90. 

After getting off to a great start, the Cardinals found themselves in a tough battle against the Hawks. A two-point lead at half for the Cardinals would not be enough to keep the Hawks down, as the Cardinals would lose a heartbreaker, 93-90. 

In the first half, the Cardinals would get off to a hot start thanks to two Austin Smith (Randallstown High School) layups and a Jalen Yates (Baltimore City College) three pointer. A layup from Christopher Johnson (St. George's High School) would see the Cardinals build an 11-point lead with 13 minutes left in the half. The Cardinals would go back and forth with the Hawks, with Christopher Johnson leading the way with 12 points in the half. A layup by the Hawks would tie the game at 42-42 with 13 seconds to go. The Cardinals would finish the half strong thanks to an Austin Smith layup as time expired, giving the Cardinals a 44-42 lead at the break. 

In the second half, Jalen Yates would start off hot, converting a layup, free throw, and three-pointer within the first two minutes. With eight minutes to go in the half the Cardinals would find themselves down eight points. Four points from Keith Bullock (Cardozo High School), a three-pointer from Jalen Yates, and a Christopher Johnson layup would shrink that deficit to three with 6:22 to go in the half. Two minutes later, two more free throws and a layup from Keith Bullock would see the Cardinals pull ahead 79-78 with just under four minutes to go. The Hawks would go up back by seven with just a minute left, leaving the Cardinals with a tall task. A clutch three-pointer from Jalen Yates and a Christopher Johnson would bring the Cardinals back to a two-point deficit. Down 93-90 the Cardinals would inbound the ball where Maurice Smith (Newton High School) attempted a half-court game tying three-pointer that would be just short as the ball hit off the rim. The Cardinals comeback attempt would fall short as they would fall 93-90. 

The leading scorer for the Cardinals was Keith Bullock, getting a double-double with 20 points and 13 assists, shooting 63% from the field. Christopher Johnson finished with 19 points along with six rebounds. Jalen Yates finished with 18 points, shooting 50% from behind the three-point line. Off the bench, Chizitere Opara (Largo High School) finished with a personal season high of 11 points.  

The Cardinals are now 10-14. Their next game is against Howard Community College at home on February 13 at 7pm.