No. 2 St. Frances boys basketball team started the 2023 portion of its schedule with a bang Monday night, beating eighth-ranked Archbishop Spalding, 87-55, in a Baltimore Catholic League contest in Severn.

It was exactly what the Panthers (8-6 overall, 4-0 BCL) wanted to start the new year after winning its two matches at the Jumpman Holiday Classic in New York last week.

“It’s always good to get a road win,” St. Frances coach Nick Myles said. “Especially a league game. Happy that the guys are still playing well.”

The Panthers ceased command in the second quarter, building a 39-20 halftime advantage. St. Frances’ big three of Carlton Carrington, Jahnathan Lamothe and Tyler Jackson accounted for 19 of the team’s 24 second quarter points.

The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.

Lamothe, who will play for the University of Maryland next season, and Pittsburgh-bound Carrington each led the Panthers with 17 points. Jackson, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, finished with 16.

St. Frances kept the ball moving on offense, constantly finding the open man for a basket.

“That’s something that we focus on, especially with three guys that can score at a high level,” Carrington said. “We know that teams are going to scout us, stuff those gaps. It’s important for us to move the ball and make them work.”

On the defensive end, St. Frances sped the host Cavaliers (5-6, 1-2 BCL) up Monday. When Spalding tried to set up half-court sets, the Panthers met the ball handler high up the court, and forced the Cavaliers into bad shots and turnovers.

Spalding coach Josh Pratt knew it spelled trouble for his young team.

The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.

“We got our butts kicked,” said Pratt, whose team placed seventh at the Benedictine College of Richmond Capital City Classic in Virginia last week. “You can’t turn the ball over against a good team.”

Carlton Carrington, who will play for the University of Pittsburgh next season, finished with 17 points for St. Frances Monday evening. The Panthers are now 4-0 in Baltimore Catholic League play. (Trevor Colgan)

The Cavaliers’ only lead Monday was 3-2. Lamothe, Jordan Downs and Carlton Carrington led a 7-0 Panther run to stake a 9-3 lead halfway through the first quarter. St. Frances extended the lead to 15-8 at the end of the quarter.

The Panthers got their largest lead at 80-47 in the fourth. St. Frances was able to give all its reserves some minutes.

“It’s big both ways,” Myles said. “Give the guys that play a lot some rest, and other guys some valuable minutes.”

Sophomore forward Malik Washington finished with 15 points for Spalding. By game’s end, Pratt wanted his team, which featured only three seniors, to focus on execution.

The Baltimore Banner thanks its sponsors. Become one.

“We’ve got some good young players,” Pratt said. “They’re learning on the fly.”

NO. 2 ST. FRANCES 87, NO. 8 ARCHBISHOP SPALDING 55

St. Frances- Jordan Downs 4, Tyler Jackson 16, Joede Mebane 2, Janathan Lamothe 17, Benjamin Brown 3, Gage Howard 6, Malachi Lancaster 2, Gregory Taylor 6, Gary Pittman 6, Kamauri Lawrence 8, Carlton Carrington 17. Totals 33 8-10 87.

Spalding- Carter Hoyle 2, Malik Washington 15, LeTre’ Yawn 10, Jalen Sykes 2, Johnny Farley 6, TJ Moultrie 5, Will Allman 5, Elijah Barrett 8, Damien Wilburn 2. Totals 20 10-17 55.

St. Frances - 15 24 26 22 — 87

Spalding - 8 12 21 14 — 55