It was a stretch of 12 minutes that Albemarle would give anything to have back. The Patriots started strong. They finished strong. In all likelihood, they just needed more time to make up for the damage that was done.
But obviously that that’s not how things work.
So while Albemarle put together a valiant effort in trying to knock off Potomac in the Group 5A semifinals, it was that 12 minute stretch that spelled the Patriots demise as they fell 66-57 to end their exceptional postseason run.
“We’re not quite as experienced as Potomac is in this situation — they come here to the final four almost every year,” said Albemarle coach Greg Maynard. “In the first half we might have played a little soft and let them penetrate too much on us and so they got a lot of easy baskets. The second half, we played much, much harder. We had opportunities. A lot of our shots that didn’t fall tonight, when we’re playing well, they do. We just could not put together that solid run of scores and then getting stops on them.”
Up 6-2 out of the gate, the Patriots didn’t look bothered by Potomac’s depth and overall team speed. Albemarle looked quite comfortable. But when the Panthers uncorked a 12-3 run in just a few minutes to take a 5-point lead, the Patriots quickly found themselves in trouble. While Albemarle was able to make it a 1-point game going into the second with J’Quan Anderson helping out offensively, Potomac reeled off another run sparked by its transition game and offensive rebounding. Just over two minutes into the second, it was 22-13 for the Panthers.
“We knew we had to get the game at our pace,” said Potomac coach Keith Honore. “They’re very good when they run their set offense. They’re very methodical and deliberate. So we had to get them playing at our pace, get them taking quick shots. We had to rebound. We were very successful with that in the second quarter.”
At the half it was 34-19 as Potomac outscored Albemarle 20-6 in the second frame, shooting 63.6% in the process. The Panthers carried the momentum into the third with the Patriots missing on their first three possessions, allowing the deficit to grow to 20 with 5:32 left in the quarter.
“I give all the credit to Potomac,” Maynard said. “We saw their best today.”
It was at the free throw line that Albemarle started its comeback effort. After Jake Hahn and Austin Katstra went to the line, Justice Taylor came off the bench and helped to cut it to a 16-point game. Then Hahn and Kennedy Brown hit back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the deficit to 47-35 heading into the fourth.
“They weren’t just satisfied with being states, they wanted to win games in states,” Maynard said. “We did that Friday, unfortunately we couldn’t today, but it wasn’t because the players weren’t playing hard. I was really pleased with how hard they were playing.”
In the last quarter, it was Hahn, Brown and a Katstra dunk that made it an 11-point game and got the Albemarle faithful going. Myles Adams-Yates, who carried the Patriots offensively when they were struggling in the middle of the game, was able to put the Patriots into within single-digit striking distance, with just under four minutes to go.
“In the second half I wanted to do everything that I could to help bring my team back,” Adams-Yates said.
But while the Albemarle offense came to life, Potomac kept answering for the next few minutes to keep the lead, and with 53 seconds left, the margin was 10 points. Taylor and Kersey were able to get Albemarle as close as seven points with 17 seconds to go, but the Panthers hit their free throws from there and wrapped up the win.
“It was a tough, tough game,” Honore said. “I thought we did a good job of doing what we needed to do to win the game. We knew (Albemarle) had a run in them. We knew at some point it was going to come. We were able to weather the storm and get out of here with a victory.”
Albemarle was out-rebounded 16-7 at the half, but cut well into the margin in the second at 31-29, still in Potomac’s favor. The Panthers shot 54.3 percent from the field while Albemarle was 36.2 percent and 6-for-23 from beyond the arc compared to Potomac’s 5-for-13 effort.
Adams-Yates led the Patriots in scoring in his final high school game with 15 points. Hahn finished with 12 points and four rebounds. Katstra finished with 10 points and a team high nine rebounds. Brown added seven points, two steals and had zero turnovers.
The story for Potomac was its balance. Three players finished in double figures with Shamar Johnson scoring 13, Jeffrey Gordon 11 and Devon McDonald coming off the bench for 10. Jamal Washington had eight points and eight rebounds. Nana Opoku had eight points, seven rebounds and three blocks.
Albemarle (22-6) finishes its season and graduates key players like Adams-Yates, Kersey, Brown and Taylor, but return with Hahn and Katstra next year.
“I’ve seen them before and I don’t ever want to see them again,” Honore joked about the junior duo.
For the Patriots returners, the loss and impending offseason already has them primed to find a way to one-up the program’s longest playoff run.
“We’re definitely extremely motivated to get back here,” Katstra said. “We don’t want this to be a one time thing. We want it to turn into tradition — Albemarle coming to states.”
