The second week back from winter break in Baltimore County had no shortage of high-powered teams playing high-powered teams. With thirteen BCPS teams currently sitting with winning records, and the regional playoffs just over a month away, plenty of teams are vying for home-court advantage for late February. Several close games, road wins, and upsets went down throughout the county this week, and are highlighted in the top five boys basketball games from January 12-16: Lansdowne: 60, Catonsville: 52 The Vikings came into the game 4-3 following a ten-point home win over Woodlawn, while the Comets brought in a two-game win streak, including a home victory against Randallstown and another on the road against Western Tech. Lansdowne opened the first quarter on a 10-2 scoring run, forcing a Catonsville timeout. After the short break, the Comets fought back, shrinking the lead to 16-11 by the end of the first. In the last two minutes of the first half, Catonsville had several opportunities from behind the line, shrinking the Lansdowne lead to as few as one, but Lansdowne took a 29-26 lead into half. After the break, the Vikings continued to extend their lead, increasing their advantage by another three in the third, and two in the fourth. Despite a valiant effort from the Comets at home, their two-game win streak snapped as Lansdowne took the win 60-52. Parkville: 65, Perry Hall: 57 The Gators came in holding a two-game win streak since winter break, with strong wins on the road against Loch Raven and at home against Kenwood. The Knights had won just one of their last three, with a loss to Meade over the break and two games against county teams since returning to school. Perry Hall opened the game on an 8-0 scoring run that lasted for the first four minutes of the game, but Parkville had a 7-0 run of their own at the end of the quarter, bringing the deficit to just four. The Knights took their first lead of the game midway through the second quarter by just one point, but the Gators tied the game at 27 by halftime. Both team’s offenses were just as strong in the second half, as the Knights tacked on 38 in the second half while the Gators added 30. Perry Hall’s win streak was snapped on the road, as the Knights took this one 65-57. Dulaney: 55, Milford Mill: 32 The Lions came into this game at the top of the standings and riding a five-game win streak, with their most recent loss dating back to December 12 against Carver Vo-Tech. The Millers, also a strong team in the county, won their most recent game, a 30-point victory at home against Western Tech. Dulaney won the opening tipoff, but turned the ball over after missing two shots. After a Milford turnover, the Lions scored the first points of the game on a contested shot in the paint. Throughout the first half, the Millers struggled from beyond the arc, and simultaneously, Dulaney punished the Milford Mill defense, securing no shortage of offensive rebounds. The Lions offense continued playing well throughout the rest of the game, while the defense continued to limit Milford Mill on the way to a 55-32 win. Kenwood: 45, Towson: 32 Towson hit the road to take on Kenwood holding a two-game win streak after games against Patapsco and Carver. The Bluebirds, one game above .500, took down Eastern Tech by four points five days before this game. Both teams’ offenses got off slow, with just fourteen combined points in the first quarter, with three coming on a buzzer-beater three by Kenwood. The start of the second quarter had the same story, but eight combined points were scored in the final two minutes. Towson took their first lead of the game with five minutes left in the third, leading by as much as five, but Kenwood turned up the heat in the final thirteen minutes. To end the game, Kenwood won the scoring battle 27-9, en route to their second straight win, 45-32. Freshman Adrienne Guzman led the scoring for the Bluebirds, contributing sixteen points. Sophomore A’mare Gaulden-Saddler added ten of his own. Junior Zaaire Tucker had 13 rebounds, five offensively and eight on defense. Pikesville: 49, Hereford: 44 The 3-7 Panthers traveled up I-83 to face off against the 7-2 Bulls. Pikesville dropped two close games against Marriotts Ridge and Catonsville in their last two while Hereford came in riding a four-game win streak. Both teams’ offenses opened the game very strong, scoring fifteen each in the first quarter, but the Panthers went on to take a 25-24 lead by halftime. The Panthers offense won both of the final two quarters, taking the third by the three and the fourth by one, giving them the 49-44 upset win on the road. Sophomore Kylan Artis and junior Jonah Matz both played all 32 minutes and both scored fourteen points for Pikesville, while Matz added thirteen rebounds. St. Mary’s College of Maryland commit Tanner Diehl led with 23 points while senior Kreis Metz added eight rebounds and two steals for the Bulls.