North East, MD - Despite dominating in every statistical category, the Howard Community College Dragons would suffer a heartbreaking loss on day two of the Cecil Mixer, falling to the County College of Morris 67-66.

Howard out-rebounded, out-assisted, and out-shot the Titans, but a few extra turnovers and clutch threes from their opponent cost the Dragons a chance to snap their losing streak. The loss gives the Dragons their first four-game losing streak under head coach Mike Smelkinson, their worst start to a season since 2018-19, and their longest losing streak since losing ten straight to close out the 2018-19 season.

Howard looked to be in control in the first half, jumping out to an early double-digit lead and withstanding a Morris comeback to lead 34-31 at the break. With Sincere Barfield (Philadelphia, PA/Patterson) on the sideline due to a wrist injury sustained on Saturday, the Dragons reinserted Juan Bell (Silver Spring, MD/James Hubert Blake) into the starting lineup. Bell proved the decision was smart as he dropped ten points alone in the first half. With Myles McDuffie (Baltimore, MD/Lake Clifton) dominating the paint, and Cedric Harville (Baltimore, MD/Ben Franklin) scooping up seven boards, Howard was in control.

But the second half saw the script flipped. Howard's starting rotation went a collective 1-9 from the floor, with only McDuffie able to make a bucket. The bench once again had to take control, and for a while they looked like they could squeak out the win. Despite the Titans taking a double-digit lead, the Dragons were kept in the game by solid work from Evin Thompson (Silver Spring, MD/Sherwood), Jasper Hanna (Washington, D.C./E.L. Haynes), and Nehemiah Smith (Bronx, NY/Laurel), all of whom came off the bench. Thompson in particular was highly efficient with 12 points in the half.

With less than a minute to go, the Dragons pulled back within two points. A mistake on a Titan's inbound pass gave the Dragons possession and a chance to win, and after a drive into the paint ended in a foul, Myles McDuffie (Baltimore, MD/Lake Clifton) stepped up to potentially tie the contest. However, McDuffie missed his first free throw, and although he made his second, the Dragons still trailed by one with seconds left. Jasper Hanna (Washington, D.C./E.L. Haynes) stole the inbound pass with one second left, but wasn't able to fire off the game winner in time, giving the Dragons a heartbreaking 67-66 loss.

McDuffie led the Dragons with 18 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Thompson added 12 points off the bench in the second half, while Bell added ten points. Hanna had nine points, four rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and three steals in another excellent performance, while Cedric Harville (Baltimore, MD/Ben Franklin) had four points, nine rebounds, three blocks, and two steals. Lorcan Hyndman (Sydney, Australia/Bishop O'Connell) hit one three pointer and added four rebounds and four blocks, while Nehemiah Smith (Bronx, NY/Laurel) added six rebounds off the bench. TaJir Webster (Waldorf, MD/St. Charles) added three blocks, with the Dragons recording 14 total rejections on the day.

Howard will look to end their losing ways on Wednesday for their first major Region 20 Division II game of the season as they face off against Anne Arundel Community College. Tipoff will be at 7:00 PM!