Maurice Dixon
@WriturRece | mobasketball27@gmail.com
DECATUR (GA) – The SWD Showdown didn’t end until after midnight but Therrell and Southwest DeKalb made it worthwhile.
With both teams battling for the temporary title of superior ‘Panther’ in this season-opening showcase, the visitors from Therrell outlasted Southwest DeKalb 58-52 in overtime on November 9.
Ra’Sean Frederick led all scorers with 19 points and fellow seniors Roman Son and Cameron Fortson added 13 and 11, respectively, for the GHSA Class AA defending champions, who also won their sixth consecutive game dating back to last season.
With an eight point lead (48-40) halfway into the fourth quarter, Therrell was in position to comfortably close out the game but in the final three minutes Southwest DeKalb put together a 10-2 run, which was capped on a baseline drive and layup by Jarrett Walton (six points) for a 50-50 score with 20 seconds remaining.
After head coach Eddie Johnson called a timeout, Therrell had 10 seconds to get off a potential game-winning shot but the Panthers failed to attempt a shot to beat the buzzer.
However in overtime, Therrell regained the momentum when Son found Calvin Miller (seven points, three steals) for a jumper that tied the score at 52 and triggered the game-sealing 8-0 run, which was capped on an alley-oop slam by Robbie Armbrester (six points).
Although the best dunk of the game came from Southwest DeKalb’s Eugene Brown III, who threw down a one-handed putback slam early in the second quarter that sent many sitting in the bleachers into a frenzy. The 6-6 Ohio State commit finished with a team-high 14 points and Jacorry Gist added 11 and three steals.