Franklin High School vs Pikesville High School

Photo credit to Nate Cherry, on instagram @nate_cherry09 On Friday evening, the Pikesville Panthers hosted the Franklin Indians in their first home game of the winter. Coming into the match, the Panthers were 1-1, with their most recent game being a loss on the road against Dulaney, while the Indians took down Owings Mills at home, 68-20, on Wednesday. Last time the two teams met came in February of 2024, where Franklin won the home game 56-37. Before regulation began, Franklin was assessed a technical foul, bringing Pikesville junior Jonah Matz to the free throw line. His two made baskets gave the Panthers a 2-0 lead before the clock started to run. The two teams traded baskets throughout the quarter, highlighted by four points from numbers one and twenty, giving the Indians a one point lead at the end of the first quarter. The Indians opened the second quarter on a 10-2 scoring run over the first four minutes, while keeping an aggressive style on the defensive side. Out of the timeout, Pikesville’s Kylan Artis hit back-to-back three pointers to bring his team within two. To round out the first half, number four scored five points in the last two minutes for the Indians, giving Franklin a 32-27 lead at the half. Coming out of the break, Kylan Artis quickly hit two more threes, separated by a Franklin two-pointer. Over the next four minutes, the Indians tried to get more separation on the scoreboard, with baskets from numbers two and twelve, but Artis’s fifth three of the game tied the game for Pikesville, with 4:30 to go in the third. With 52 seconds remaining in the quarter, Pikesville’s Marco Kabigting nailed a layup to give the Panthers their first lead since the first minute of the game. With both teams missing several shots in the final minute, the third quarter ended with the Panthers ahead 46-45. In the game’s final quarter, the first two minutes went by scoreless, but Pikesville senior Tyler Smith had several points in the final six minutes. Franklin was held to just five total points in the fourth, after averaging fifteen in the first three quarters. Junior Jamison Pittman Washington made two layups for Pikesville in the last minute of the match, as the Panthers took down the Indians by a final score of 58-50. Kylan Artis was Pikesville’s leading scorer with 20 points total, including six three pointers. Jonah Matz contributed fourteen points plus sixteen rebounds. Franklin’s F12 led the scoring for the Indians with eighteen points. Pikesville has one more regular season game scheduled before winter break, as they will travel to Patterson High to take on the Clippers on Monday. Over the break, the Indians are set to compete in the Holiday Hoops tournament, where they are scheduled to face off against Gerstell Academy and Reservoir.