South County senior Jamison Lynam’s recent return reached another level on Tuesday night at Fairfax. With just four seconds to play and his team down by one point, he drove the length of the court and drew a foul with a half-second to play.
After swishing both free throws, the Stallions pulled closer to the Patriot District front-running Lions with a 57-56 win.
It was just the third game back for South County’s floor leader.
“I needed time this year to work on my self,” Lynam said. “I needed some time to get my head on straight.”
Lynam was focused on Tuesday, running South County’s offense and playing tight defense as his teammates “did their thing” to get the win and improve to 9-4 in the Patriot District and 13-8 overall.
No. 12-ranked Fairfax is 10-3 and 16-5 and takes on second place and seventh-ranked Alexandria City on Friday. The Titans are now a half game behind Fairfax, and a half-game ahead of 15th-ranked South County in the regular season race for the district crown.
Tuesday’s game featured four ties and nine lead changes. Tied at halftime, the Lions fell behind early in the third quarter, trailed by as many as eight points, before gaining their only second half lead, 55-54, when Ronnie Peters hit two foul shots with four seconds to play.
Inbounding the ball at that end of the court, South County ran a screen for Lynam, who raced up the court and was fouled inches outside the lane on a fall-away runner.
Here is Lynam’s last-second drive and foul, setting up @SouthCountyBBB win over @FFXLionsBBall 57-56 on his 2 FTs. It’s only senior Lynam’s third game of season. “I needed some time to get my head on straight” he said afterward. @novahoopsCom pic.twitter.com/TR16yLYSNF
— paulbergeron3 (@PaulBergeron3) February 8, 2023
Coming off the screen near the foul line at that end, “I took a pass like a wide receiver running a slant pattern and just dribbled up the floor,” Lynam said. “I knew they would foul me. I’m a clutch player.”
Fairfax edged the Stallions in the first meeting at South County.
“It’s great to get some get-back on their court after they did that to us at our place,” Lynam said.
Peters (14 points), Cam Love (13 points) and Margad Choijilsuren (13 points) took turns sparking the Fairfax offense, but it was the team defense the Stallions played on Choijilsuren for most of the game that dictated the flow.
The 6-foot-5 Choijilsuren, with Division 1 scouts in attendance, at times dominated inside, but mostly was blanketed by Kaleb Afework and other helping teammates.
“The goal was to contain him,” Lynam said. “We’ve got enough defenders on this team to guard the best players in the state.”
Said Choijilsuren, “It was an even game. We had some defensive lapses at the end of the game. South County is one of the better defensive teams in the region. We’ve been saying that all year.”
A year ago, both teams had their seasons end at the hands of state champion Hayfield.
To make a strong postseason run, the Stallions will continue to look to senior Paul Anderson, who led them with 19 points, including six early in the third quarter, mostly either scoring in transition or by bending himself through defenders near the basket. Teammate Elijah Aquil added 11.
–Paul Bergeron
@PaulBergeron3