Octavia Wilson hangs tough to lead Eleanor Roosevelt girls’ basketball past Wise
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Version 0 of 1. Eleanor Roosevelt guard Octavia Wilson’s status for Friday night’s game against Wise seemed a little uncertain after she injured her left shoulder in practice on Thursday. And when a Wise player fell on that shoulder in the first quarter, it looked for a moment like the visiting Raiders would have to soldier on without their top player. But nothing could stop Wilson from finishing Friday, not least the Wise defense. Roosevelt’s sweet-shooting junior knocked down back-to-back three-pointers after the painful collision, then hit nine of 10 free throws in the fourth quarter to seal a 67-57 win over the Pumas in Upper Marlboro. It was a breakout game for Wilson, who struggled in season-opening losses to Colonial (Fla.) and Wilson. And following the transfers of All-Met Kaila Charles and Jaala Henry in the offseason, it was exactly the kind of performance the Raiders (2-2, 2-0 Prince George’s 4A) need from their go-to scorer if they hope to repeat as 4A champions this year. “I pretty much told her, ‘The team is on your back now. This is your team.,’ ” Roosevelt Coach Delton Fuller said. “She didn’t play that well in the first couple games, so she really wanted to come in here tonight and be a spark.” [Naji Marshall delivers late as Roosevelt’s boys knock off Wise] Roosevelt needed Wilson’s spark after she managed just two points in the third quarter. That drought helped Wise (1-2, 1-1) make a 12-0 run that gave the Pumas their first lead of the second half off a three-pointer by Samyra Abney with 3 minutes 20 seconds to play. “We were playing too fast. That’s not us,” said Wilson, who finished with a game-high 27 points. “We can play fast at times, but once we control the game, it’s our game.” But Wilson would rediscover her stroke from the free throw line, helping to stave off Wise’s momentum with an assist from sophomore guard Ashia McCalla’s 12 second-half points. McCalla, who blossomed as the Raiders’ sixth man last season, fed off Wilson’s energy in the back court to collect a handful of critical steals and hit the tying three-pointer with three minutes remaining. The dynamic tandem scored 23 of their team’s 34 second-half points. “When her and Ashia get on the same page, those two can be something special,” Fuller said. The Raiders struggled to find openings in Wise’s half-court zone in the game’s early stages, but Wilson remained aggressive on the offensive end. She buried four of nine three-point attempts for 16 first-half points. The Pumas led for the entire first quarter, but went 7 minutes 15 seconds without a bucket. The cold streak came at an opportune time for Wilson, whose performance showed no signs of the shoulder injury despite grimaces in between plays. “I wasn’t thinking about it at all,” she said. |