HAGERSTOWN, Md. - The Harford men's basketball team advanced to the 2016 NJCAA Region XX Championship Game with a 19-point win over rival Baltimore City on Friday. The 89-70 victory gave Harford and head coach Mike Smelkinson win No. 20 and sent the Fighting Owls to their second consecutive regional final.

In a battle that was back-and forth for the first 34 minutes, Harford pulled away on the strength of two season-long weaknesses. The Fighting Owls were 26-for-30 from the free throw line, a stripe that had at times been the team's kryptonite, and outrebounded the larger, more athletic Panthers 49-26.

The win over BCCC is Harford's first since 2008. It avenged last year's Region XX Final, which the Panthers won on a last second layup, 81-80. First-Team All-Region XX performer Aaron McDonald led all scorers with 25 points with four triples and a perfect 5-for-5 from the line.

Three other Fighting Owls netted double digits including two guards off the bench. Davonte Williams and Jay Johnson totaled 14 and 13 points, respectively, while Cedric Hines chipped in with a dozen. Jalen Thompson pulled in 12 rebounds and six others grabbed at least four in the win.

A BCCC 3-pointer with 6:28 left cut the Harford lead to 62-59, but McDonald countered with a triple of his own to kick start a 27-11 run to close out the contest.

The Fighting Owls go for the Region XX Championship on Sunday at 5 p.m. against top-seeded Allegany.