MPSSAA State Tournament: Howard County Contenders

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The MPSSAA State Tournament tips off in first-round fashion tomorrow as public school programs from around the state begin their journey to a potential state title. For those who are unaware, the classifications are broken up into 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For this series, we'll rank the contenders in each county as the sprint to UMBC begins!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">1. Marriotts Ridge</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Class 3A</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This year's Howard County champions enter the field as the top seed in their bracket and await the winner of Franklin/Howard. 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='3275488' first='Aaron' last='Hammann']'s status is still unknown as he's been sidelined for weeks due to an injury. His availability could play a massive role in this team's ceiling, but in the meantime, 2026 Sam Tatrov, 2026 Josh Okon,2027 [player_tooltip player_id='3421297' first='Blake' last='Willingham'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2847539' first='George' last='Klaus'] have been filling the void nicely. If the top teams in their bracket handle business accordingly, it would set up an intriguing matchup against New Town in the Elite 8 game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. Oakland Mills</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Class 3A</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Oakland Mills is coming off a 2-point loss to Marriotts Ridge in the Howard County championship and boasts an impressive 19-3 overall record. Led by 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='3275506' first='Hayes' last='Bishop'], 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='3317783' first='Daniel' last='Ndiritu'], 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='3311759' first='Caleb' last='Redd'] and 2028 JD McCoy, the Scorpions are operating a year ahead of schedule given the production of their non-seniors prospects. They enter the field as the top seed in their bracket and have been rewarded a first-round bye where they'll await the winner of Sherwood/Reservoir. If things go chalk, it could set up a Sweet 16 matchup against Atholton to advance to the Elite 8.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. Atholton</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Class 3A</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Raiders come into state tournament play with a 13-7 overall record and will play the winner of Mt. Hebron/Guilford Park before a potential matchup against Marriotts Ridge. 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2985231' first='Isaiah' last='Johnson'], 2027 Demarcus Lamot and 2028 Isaiah Wright have been the engine as scorers and have come up big in resume-building victories like the recent one over Oakland Mills. They'll have a tough road ahead, but Atholton is always a team that shouldn't be overlooked.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">4. Hammond</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Class 2A</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hammond gets first-round bye in their bracket and will play the winner of River Hill/Wilde Lake, which could be a tricky matchup if River Hill prevails in their opening game. They'll lean heavily, as they've done all season, on their senior duo of [player_tooltip player_id='2402092' first='Jackson' last='Givens'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2983719' first='Joshua' last='Terry'] to provide the scoring punch. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='3041578' first='Jacob' last='Hill'] has been a consistent producer inside as he averages a near double-double and will be expected to provide the paint presence needed if they advance to outer-county opponents. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">5. Mt. Hebron</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Class 3A</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mount Hebron enters the field with an 11-7 overall record and will face Guilford Park in the first round. In their last meeting against them back in January, Mount Hebron won 54-42. 2026 Chase Wiley and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2927438' first='Noel' last='Igwe'] have done the heavy lifting for the Vikings this season and if there's any chance of sparking a Cinderella run, they'll need to be all and more as they have tough sledding ahead. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->