South River, Lackey Make History: Seahawks Claim First Title, Chargers End 65-Year Drought in Maryland Finals

CATONSVILLE, MARYLAND - The wait is finally over for Henry E. Lackey and South River high schools as each won Maryland state public boys basketball crowns at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County’s Chesapeake Employees Insurance Arena Tuesday evening.

South River, ranked No. 21 in the High School on SI Maryland Top 25, defeated No. 13 Colonel Zadok Magruder, 57-40 in the Class 3A final. Jonah Hall posted a game-high 24 points for South River.

No. 20 Lackey claimed the 2A crown with a 49-44 overtime victory over Wicomico in Butch Waller’s final game as Indians coach. Malik Gordon finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and seven steals for Lackey.

Here’s some takeaways from the third day of the Maryland state public championships:

South River’s Tough Road Ends with History

As he sat with his South River teammates inside the UMBC media room Tuesday evening, Jamie Finn remembered an AAU tournament they played in when they were middle school-age.

“We were down 40 points, and we’re still getting full-court pressed in the fourth quarter,” Finn said. “We’ve been beaten pretty bad. We’ve seen it all.”

It’s been an indoctrination for Finn, Jonah Hall, Xander Dowell and Jaden McDuffie. The payoff came Tuesday with South River’s first state boys basketball championship.

“These guys have given me everything. For them to sit here and be state champs, it’s surreal,” Seahawks coach Darren Hall said. “People poured a lot into these kids, so they had an opportunity to enjoy what high school sports are all about. It’s humbling.”

Darren Hall - Jonah Hall - South River boys basketball — Tuesday was special for South River boys basketball coach Darren Hall (right) and son Jonah. The Seahawks won their first Maryland state title (Class 3A) as Jonah scored a game-high 24 points. Darren, who’s in his seventh full season, is the program’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder. | Derek Tone

It was Darren Hall, who put the South River Shooters with Finn, McDuffie, Dowell and Jonah Hall into that AAU tournament Finn said they “probably weren’t meant to be in.” Darren Hall knew they were ready to become varsity starters two years ago.

The grind ended with a coronation Tuesday. Tied at 13 late in the first quarter, South River (20-7 overall) went on a 29-11 run to take a commanding halftime advantage. The Seahawks led by as many as 24 points in the second half.

McDuffie added 21 points, eight rebounds and four steals Tuesday. Finn, a 6-foot-3 guard, dropped four 3-pointers to finish with 16.

The Seahawks played a tough non-league schedule, including a road match at perennial DMV powerhouse DeMatha Catholic less than 24 hours after playing Anne Arundel County (Md.) league rival Meade. Meade, which beat South River in the league championship game, reached the 4A state semifinals (lost to eventual

South River outlasted then-defending 3A state champ Baltimore City College in overtime last week to advance to its first state title match.

“We want to set the foundation, that’s the goal at the end of the day,” said McDuffie. “We want our to get used to winning.”

Full Circle for Hall and McDuffie Families

It’s about 31 miles from South River’s campus in Edgewater to UMBC. It’s much closer emotionally for McDuffie and Darren and Jonah Hall.

McDuffie’s mom, Amanda Giddings (nee Robinson), played for UMBC where she helped the Retrievers to the America East Conference tourney title and their only NCAA Tournament in 2008.

A week after losing to UCONN in the opening round, Giddings learned that she was pregnant with McDuffie. McDuffie, who was born in December 2008, spent his first months inside UMBC’s old home court inside the Retriever Athletic Center while his mother, who opted not to take a medical redshirt, played.

McDuffie, a two-sport standout, averaged nearly 19 points this season. The 6-3 guard, who will play football at Northwestern University in the fall, made a game-best nine field goals Tuesday.

“I’d been hooping for a while,” McDuffie joked to The Baltimore Sun. “I already got my college hooping experience.”

Thirty-three years after completing a record-setting career at South River, Darren Hall orchestated the program’s greatest season. Hall, the Seahawks’ all-time leader in points and rebounds, returned the Edgewater (Md.) school in 2018 after coaching Annapolis’ junior varsity to the Anne Arundel County title the season before.

Tuesday, he watched son Jonah set up South River’s landmark win. Jonah had 17 points, including three 3-pointers in the first half. He finished with five rebounds, three assists and four steals.

Jonah said playing for his father has been “a blessing,” but far from perfect.

“Some nights we’ll fight..I might not talk to him after practice because he makes us run or something,” he said. “But just being able to play for him for 15 years, all the stuff he taught me is truly a blessing.”

Said Darren: “It’s been a honor…it hasn’t been easy, but he’s just mentally tough. I’m just super proud of him.”

Surprising Run Ends for Magruder

Magruder’s championship hopes Tuesday pretty much faded by halftime. The Colonels shot four-of-16 in the second quarter as a one-point deficit turned into a 18-point crater.

Jonah Wertlieb had 13 points for Magruder (24-3), which turned the ball over 21 times (resulted in 29 points for South River). Shane Magnon added a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Malik Gordon - Lackey boys basketball — Malik Gordon was the anchor as Lackey captured its first state boys state title since 1959. He had 17 points and seven steals in the No. 20 Chargers’ overtime win over Wicomico in the Maryland Class 2A final. | Derek Toney

Magnon was the lone senior in the starting five this season for longtime Colonels coach Dan Harwood.

“We had such a great year…we easily could have been 14-10,” said Harwood. “We had a lot of tough teams in Montgomery County and we won a lot of close games starting three sophomores.”

“We like playing with each other… they played hard and know what to do,” said Magnon. “We’re all on the court together, it doesn’t matter if there’s five seniors or five freshmen.”

Back to the Future for Lackey

Henry E. Lackey’s coaching staff wore button sweaters for Tuesday’s Class 2A state championship game. With a blue L with white lining and a basketball on the right side, it was a nod to the past.

In a game where style points lacked on the court, all that mattered for the Chargers was the scoreboard: Lackey 44, Wicomico 42.

The Chargers (24-3) are state basketball champions for the first time since 1959.

“The community is going to be going crazy the next few weeks, the next few years,” said Lackey coach DeShawn Kelly. “It’s just not something you see.”

Lackey captured the 2026 MPSSAA boys basketball state championship. | Derek Toney

The last time the Southern Maryland school celebrated a title the Barbie doll first hit the shelves, a gallon of gas cost roughly 30 cents and Alaska and Hawaii became the America’s 49th and 50th state, respectively. The Chargers won the Class C championship for the second straight year.

Lackey played in three more state finals, most recently in 2006. The Chargers’ breakthrough Tuesday wasn’t easy, overcoming a 13-point first half deficit and losing a seven-point fourth quarter.

"We definitely played our worst half of basketball all season in the first half," said Kelly, whose shot just 12-of-58 (five-of-26 in first half). “We had seen their best, but they had not seen our best and we were still only down six points. So, I was still confident at halftime that we could pull it out.”

Down 36-35 in overtime, Lackey went on a 9-1 run to put away Wicomico. Travis Suggs had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Chargers, and sophomore forward Tyson Swann pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds.

Last season, Lackey lost to eventual state champ Largo in the South Region final after winning the Southern Maryland Athletic Conference (SMAC) title.

The Chargers weren’t accepting anything less than making history this season.

“We knew what we wanted to accomplish form going back-to-back SMAC champions, winning regionals and coming to states,” said Lackey senior guard Sevyn Evans. “We faced adversity, we knew what we came here to do and we just took care of business in the second half and now, we are here.”

Gordon, Lackey Turns the Table

Things looked bad for Lackey when Gordon picked his third foul with 5:05 remaining before halftime. The senior point guard went to the bench and Wicomico ballooned its lead to 22-9 two minutes later.

Though Gordon later questioned the fouls called on him, he had no concerns about his team’s resilience.

“I’m proud of these guys, that’s probably not even the first time we’ve been in that situation,” said Gordon.

The Chargers cut the lead to 24-18, setting up themselves, with Gordon at helm, for a second half revivial. The Saint Mary’s College pledge had 12 points and five steals over the final two quarters and overtime.

Gordon’s steal and layup got Lackey put in the lead, 25-24, in the third. His 3-point play in overtime gave the Chargers the lead for good at 38-36. After his free throw made it 39-36, his defensive hijinks led to a Wicomico turnover, ending with a 3-point play by Suggs.

"It was tough to sit there and just watch," Gordon said of the last five minutes of the first half. "But these guys just rallied for me. In that third quarter, it was tough, but we found a way back. Then in the overtime we just kept finding ways to score."

End of an Era

There was no fairy tale conclusion for Wicomico coach Butch Waller, who coached his final game Tuesday. Waller is the winningest coach (955-393) in Maryland public school history.

After losing a 13-point first half, Wicomico (21-7) rallied from a seven-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime. The Indians managed only one basket until final 15 seconds of overtime.

"My main disappointment with tonight was that my seniors did not win their final game," Waller said. "The loss for me was secondary.”

Butch Waller - Wicomico boys basketball — Wicomico coach Butch Waller walks back to his team after receiving the Maryland Class 2A state boys basketball runner-up trophy Tuesday. It was the final game for Waller after a legendary 60-year run at the Eastern Shore school. | Derek Toney

Dewar Brunson had 17 points and eight rebounds for Wicomico before fouling out with a minute left in overtime. Tyson Heyward added 11 points and 10 rebounds.

Waller was pleased to see his team playing their best basketball the last few weeks.

“Basketball is a game of runs…I thought we were going to pull it out and I told the players,” said Waller. “It’s the Jimmies and Joes, not the Xs and Os, it’s the players. If it wasn’t for these four guys, I wouldn’t be sitting here no matter how good I’m supposed to be.”

Waller, who started coaching the Indians in 1966 at age 26, made a record 30 state tournament (17 final fours), winning the 2002 Class 2A state title (28-0). Waller, who’s second to late DeMatha Catholic coach Morgan Wootten in all-time wins (1,274) in Maryland, won 14 Bayside Conference titles.

Wicomico senior Darion Collins said Waller always kept a positive attitude.

“Some days you might be down but Coach Waller is going to come through to an and cheer you up,” said Collins. “He’s going to keep the same energy no matter what time or day it is.”

“I’ve had the chance to coach a lot of great young men over the last 60 years. Some of them went on to pay in college, but a lot more of them went on to do some really good things in life,” said Waller. “When I started 60 years ago, I was just looking to coach one season."

Tueday’s Championship Best

Here’s the Class 2A and 3A boys all-tournament teams as selected by Derek Toney

CLASS 2A BOYS

Most Outstanding Player - Malik Gordon, Henry E. Lackey

Gordon rebounded from a foul-plaqued first half to direct the Chargers to their first state championship in six decades. The tenacious 5-foot-11 senior point guard had a game-high 17 points (12 in second half), nine rebounds and seven steals as Lackey rallied from a 13-point first half deficit. Gordon, who will play for Saint Mary’s College of Maryland next season, totaled 23 points, 15 rebounds, 12 steals and 11 assists in Lackey’s final two games.

All-Tournament Team

Dewar Brunson, Wicomico, 5-10, senior, guard

Darion Collins, Wicomico, 6-3, senior, guar/forward

Bryson Mims, Southern-Anne Arundel, 6-5, junior, forward

Tyson Swann, Henry E. Lackey, 6-5, sophomore, center

Travis Suggs, Henry E. Lackey, 6-3, junior, guard/forward

CLASS 3A BOYS

Most Outstanding Player - Jonah Hall, South River

Three decades after his father and coach, Darren, completed a brilliant career at South River, Hall helped authored the program’s greatest moment Tuesday. The 6-foot senior guard finished with 24 points, five rebounds and four steals in title game win over Colonel Zadok Magruder. Hall had 17 points in the Seahawks’ 80-72 overtime win over then-defending 3A champ Baltimore City College.

All-Tournament Team

Osborne Ehana, Frederick, 6-6, senior, forward/center

Jamie Finn, South River, 6-3, senior, guard

Jaden McDuffie, South River, 6-3, senior, guard

Camari Stewart, Baltimore City College, 6-5, senior, guard/forward

Jonah Wertlieb, Colonel Zadok Magruder, 5-11. senior, guard