BEL AIR, Md. — The Harford Community College Fighting Owls improved to 4-1 this season with a gritty 82-77 win over the Garrett College Lakers on Friday night at APGFCU Arena. The home squad held off a late surge by Garrett and capitalized on a strong first half to hold on for the victory.

Sophomore guard Anthony "Tony" Pope (Gwynn Park) led the Fighting Owls with 24 points on 9-16 shooting, including 4-8 from three-point range and 2-2 free throws and he added five rebounds.

Redshirt Sophomore forward Tre Powell (Friendship Collegiate) added 12 points, going 3-7 from the field, 2-5 from three and 4-5 from the line. He drained two early threes in the first half  and kept the Fighting Owls afloat when Garrett challenged.

Another contributor, freshman guard Theo Hess (Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia) tallied 11 points on 3-4 shooting including 2-3 from deep, helping balance the attack.

Harford's bench also made a difference: the Fighting Owls outscored Garrett 27-5, a margin that proved decisive in a tight finish. While the team shot only 29.0% from three (9-31) overall and 41.8% from the field (28-67) in the game, they made enough timely plays to keep Garrett at bay. They also limited second chance points and forced turnovers at key moments, which helped swing the result.

Garrett got big efforts from guard Donovahn Keyes, who poured in a game-high 25 points on 6-12 field goals, 4-9 from three and 9-10 from the foul line. Teammate Keyonta Johnson chipped in 20 points and 10 boards. Garrett shot 47.5% overall (28-59) and 47.6% on threes (10-21) but could not sustain their momentum in the second half, shooting only 36.4% and hitting 4 of 11 from deep.

Harford took control less than three minutes into the second half with a 7-0 run to give the Fighting Owls a five-point lead at 49-44. Garrett responded with a run of its own to pull within two at 49-97.
That was as close as the Lakers would get, as the Fighting Owls outscored their conference opponents 33-30 the rest of the way.

With the win, Harford is 4-1 overall and 1-0 in Region 20 play. Harford showed it can weather an early run and finish strong — an encouraging sign as the Fighting Owls head deeper into the season.

Harford is back on the hardwood this weekend as they head to Bolivia, N.C. for the Brunswick Classic. They take on Wake Tech on Saturday and host, Brunswick Community College, on Sunday.