Boys Basketball: Emotional Regional Title Win for Potomac Falls

Potomac Falls juniors Brendon Chesson and Lukas Mihailovich combined for 49 points in the Panthers Region II D4 title win Saturday


By Dan Sousa
VivaLoudoun.com Editor

Charlottesville (Mar. 3, 2010) – The tears flowed freely Saturday night as an emotional Potomac Falls High School boys basketball coach Jeff Hawes and his young Panthers celebrated the school’s first ever regional basketball title.

“I was just bawling in (the lockerroom). It’s really incredible,” said Hawes after Potomac Falls convincingly defeated Liberty, 85-62, in the Region II Division 4 title game at Monticello High School.

After juniors Brendon Chesson and Lukas Mihailovich combined for 49 points to lead 10 Panthers who scored in the game, Hawes celebrated with bear hugs and high fives and a few tears as Potomac Falls collected Loudoun’s first regional title since legendary Loudoun Valley coach Scott Douglas led the 1998-99 Vikings to a regional title – his only regional title in 33 seasons in Purcellville.

This Potomac Falls (20-2) team doesn’t have any seniors starting and just two on the roster but the Panthers are playing with alarming maturity and confidence heading into Friday’s Division 4 state quarterfinal against Region I runner-up Tabb at Robinson High School (7:45 p.m. start).
PFalls coach Jeff Hawes Postgame



“This team wants to know what is at stake. They like the pressure,” said Hawes. “We just keep playing better every time we go out.”

Much like the Freedom girls win over Liberty in the first game of the doubleheader, the Potomac Falls boys set the tone right from the opening tip, jumping out to 7-0 and 10-1 leads, and never trailing in the contest.

And it highlight the Panthers depth, Potomac Falls was staked to the 10-1 lead without top scorer Mihailovich finding the basket yet as junior point guard Zack Curran hit a pair of shots early followed by a nice tip-in by 6-foot-5 junior Mickey Wagenhoffer and then a free throw by another 6-foot-5 player, sophomore Greg Graves, and finally a knocked down 3-pointer by Chesson.

Elevated from the junior varsity after last season, Chesson has picked up his game as the season has progressed and now gives PFalls a dynamic one-two combo from the wing with Mihailovich.

“The one thing with “B” was … could he do it with the lights on. The lights are shining brighter than ever now and that kid is going wild,” said Hawes.

Liberty, led by Tyler Johnson’s 23 points, trimmed the PFalls lead to two at 18-16 late in the first but the Panthers finished on a 7-0 run to take a 25-16 advantage. Senior Tearrell Owens, playing some of his best basketball of the season, came in off the bench for a follow and Mihailovich completed an “And One” in traffic and then scored a layin after a steal.

A Panther 18-4 run in the second quarter left PFalls doubled up on the Eagles, 44-22. Chesson was the star of that run, starting it with a 3-pointer, then hitting a jumper, scoring another basket on a nice feed from Mihailovich, and then hitting a 3-pointer and another transition basket to complete the run. Mihailovich drove to the basket during that series for an acrobatic layin, scored a transition basket as the Panthers pressure resulted in fastbreak points and Wagenhoffer hit a baseline shot.

Even a 8-0 Liberty run to start the second half still left the Eagles down by 10, 46-36. Graves broke that drought with a basket inside on a great Wagenhoffer pass and then the Panthers went to work at the foul line with Mihailovich and Owens converting around a Curran pull-up jumper.

Any hopes of a Liberty comeback were extinguished late in the third when Chesson went wild again, hitting a baseline shot, taking a steal coast-to-coast for two points and then scoring a transition layin. Two Mihailovich free throws ended the 8-0 run that put Potomac Falls comfortably ahead 62-42.

After the final horn, Hawes celebrated by bear-hugging each of his players as they went forward to receive their first placed medals and then the team trophy was hoisted high. Hawes and the players received the congratulations of those that made the trek to Charlottesville including Hawes' former high school basketball coach at Broad Run, Joe Cochran.

Boys Region II D4 Final
Potomac Falls 85, Liberty 62
Liberty 16 12 19 15 - 62
Potomac Falls 25 21 18 21 - 85
Liberty: Porter 4 0-2 13, Lee 1 1-2 3, Isner 2 1-2 5, Mighty 4 1-1 12, Washington 4 2-2 10, Johnson 10 3-4 23. 25 8-13 62
Potomac Falls (20-2): Currran 4 0-0 9, Mihailovich 7 10-11 24, Chesson 11 0-2 25, Waggenhoffer 2 1-2 5, Graves 3 2-4 8, Hobby 0 1-3 1, Owens 2 1-2 5, Hansen 1 0-0 2, Hoover 1 0-0 2, Kress 2 0-3 4. 33 15-27 85
3-Pointers: Liberty 4 (Mighty 3, Porter 1), PF 4 (Chesson 3, Curran 1).