Riverdale Baptist vs Flint Hill

Recap

By Temwa Chisanga

It was a tale of two halves during the third game of the seven-game Summer League kick-off. Despite being in the lead for over 30 minutes of the game, Flint Hill was unable to put a stop to Riverdale Baptist’s scorching comeback, resulting in a thrilling 70-63 overtime victory for Riverdale Baptist.

In the first half, it was like Flint Hill was shooting rocks into the ocean with the way that they were scoring with ease. Between shooting 53% percent from the field as a team, and contributions from the guard trio of ‘24 Caleb Ihegihu, ‘25 Everett Jones, and ‘25 Quin Gorman combining for 32 points in the half, it is easy to how Flint Hill was able to jump in front to a commanding 44-26 lead.

Unfortunately for Flint Hill, halftime served as a dramatic cool-down for the team. Even with Flint Hill’s trio of guards continuing to get to their spots, the shots simply did not fall, and the team shot 21% from the field. 

Riverdale Baptist, on the other hand, capitalized on Flint Hill’s cold second half and continued their scrappy game. Thanks to contributions from ‘24 G Xavier Pickett, ‘25 G Amaree Hawkins, and ‘25 F Dominic Carr, Riverdale Baptist clawed back and made it a close game late in the second. 

The final few minutes of the second half were a true dogfight, with both teams seemingly increasing their intensity throughout the end of the half. As Riverdale Baptist’s comeback intensified, their momentum grew as well. Flint Hill continued to fight back and maintain their momentum, with an emphatic dunk from Ty Harris kicking off a six-point run for Flint Hill. Riverdale Baptist responded with a run of their own, with an Amaree Hawkins three-pointer to cut the deficit to 4 points, and a Dominic Carr three to tie the game at 60-60 with 1:49 left. Riverdale Baptist had the opportunity to finish the game in regulation, but four consecutive missed free throws sent the game to overtime. 

In overtime, despite jumping out to an early three-point lead, Flint Hill’s cold streak only got worse, shooting 14% from the field and 25% from the line. It didn’t help that they also sent Riverdale Baptist to the line eight times, including a strong and-1 by Xavier Pickett. 

Ultimately despite missing four consecutive free throws to end regulation, Riverdale Baptist was able to pull away thanks in large part to an overall offensive clinic from ‘24 G Xavier Pickett, who put 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists, and a rebounding showcase from ‘25 F Dominic Carr, who finished the game with a 15 point, 16 rebound, double-double. ‘25 G Amaree Hawkins also played a key role, contributing 19 points and 8 rebounds.

Riverdale Baptist will hope to continue their momentum after a huge win against their next opponent, South Lakes, while Flint Hill will look to bounce back against Seahawks (South River).