CUMBERLAND — The final margin was eight points, but the second half, and ultimately the game, was controlled by Allegany College on Wednesday.
The Trojans (7-10, 5-4 NJCAA Region 20) led by more than 15 points for most of the second half, and Frederick’s late run was too little, too late as ACM opened the 2025 slate with a 83-76 victory.
“Definitely a good start, getting us moving in the right direction,” ACM head coach Tommie Reams said. “We focused heavily in practice fixing our intensity, fixing our attitude on individual possessions. Really understanding team effort and team discipline. I thought that really showed.”
The key run for the Trojans came with about three minutes left before halftime.
Leading 26-22 with 2:10 to play, Brandon Anderson set up Allegany High graduate Caiden Chorpenning on the right wing who buried a 3-pointer.
Chorpenning scored off a Justin Turner assist on the next possession, then hit another triple on the left wing off an Anderson assist to push Allegany’s lead to 32-24 with 1:33 left.
“I was just trying to get to the right spots,” Chorpenning said. “Let my teammates set me up and try and knock them down when I could.”
Anderson hit a 3-pointer, then Alex Byrd drew a foul and hit both free throws to give the Trojans a 37-26 halftime lead.
ACM opened the second half on a 20-11 run that was capped off by a pair of scores from Daniel Nwaete.
He sunk a triple on the right wing off an assist from Brandon Washington then teamed up with Jaylen Brown for an alley-oop jam to push the Trojan lead to 57-37.
“I thought defensively to open the second half, we made them take a bunch of tough shots,” Reams said. “I thought we did a good job keeping the ball out of the paint. Mike Davis is big, he’s strong. I thought the guys did a good job keeping the ball out of his hands. If it did get into his hands, we were able to get into doubles which forced him to get rid of it.”
Chorpenning had another key sequence midway through the second half.
He scored on a layup, then blocked a shot on the other end which he turned into another layup to stretch ACM’s lead to 63-45.
Chorpenning finished with 15 points, a steal and a block.
When Chorpenning and Owen Seifarth (Fort Hill) joined the roster, it marked the first time two area players were on the team since Alco’s Justin Copman, now an assistant at ACM, and Southern’s Korey Mitchum.
“It feels good, seeing people I know in the crowd cheering me on and having one of my friends from elementary school playing on the same team in college,” Chorpenning said. “Not many people get to experience that.”
Allegany led around 15 to 20 points for most of the half, but after the alley-oop, the Cougars (4-9, 1-8 Region 20) made it closer late.
The Cougars outscored the Trojans 35-23 over the next 12 minutes and cut the deficit down to 80-72 with 19 seconds remaining.
In the second half, Kentavious Dancy, Kylan Johnson and Thierry Patchou each scored 10 points for Frederick.
Dancy finished with 14 while Johnson and Patchou scored all 10 of their points after halftime.
However, Allegany College’s cushion proved to be insurmountable, as Brown hit four free throws down the stretch to ice the game.
Wednesday marked the first game for ACM in 29 days after heading into the holiday break off a 87-67 loss at Hagerstown on Dec. 16.
For most of the first half, it showed for the Trojans.
Allegany opened 4 of 14 (28%) from the field as the game remained one possession for the first 15 minutes.
“We’ve only had a couple practices, you could tell we were rusty,” Reams said. “They came out in a zone and we missed a couple early good shots. Then we start forcing a little bit. Once we got the ball into shooter’s hands, Caiden hits a couple 3s, Brandon Anderson hits a three or two, all of a sudden, they came out of the zone. We were able to get into what we wanted to do.”
Brown and Anderson both shot 9 of 10 at the charity stripe, both scoring 15 points for the Trojans.
Brown added nine assists and three steals while Anderson added five assists and a steal.
“Jaylen understands the game, he’s really good with the basketball,” Reams said. “He’s been shooting 90-plus percent all season long, down the stretch he hits five of the last six. His ability to draw contact and stay under control, he doesn’t flail and bail out. He’s trying to make that and-one.”
Allegany shot 24 of 30 at the line with Byrd going 6 of 8 and recording 13 points.
Davis and Aiden Igwebe also finished in double figures for the Cougars, scoring 11 each with Davis adding three blocks.
The Trojans entered the 2025 slate on a two-game skid and lost five of six games to end the 2024 calendar year.
Allegany heads to Harford (7-9, 5-7 Region 20) on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.
“It showed me that they understood the message I sent with them at the break,” Reams said. “The break, we’re not playing well, we’re on a two-game losing streak. I told the guys, you have to look at yourself in the mirror for a month and ask what do you want out of your experience at the collegiate level?
“What are you trying to achieve, are you trying to achieve something bigger than yourself, or are you trying to achieve something for yourself.”