As the calendar turns to March, many begin thinking about college hoops postseason play as championship week leads into the NCAA Tournament.

But for many high school programs, the playoffs are already well underway, as is the case for two of Maryland's top incoming freshmen.

For four-star guard Jahnathan Lamothe, it has been a storybook ending to his high school career at Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances.

First, Lamothe set a school record for the most points scored in a single game, going off for 57 points, including 16 made threes, in a 120-77 win over John Carroll in the Panthers' regular-season finale.

Then this past Sunday at UMBC, with future head coach Kevin Willard in attendance following his own team's win over Northwestern, Lamothe led St. Frances with a team-high 30 points, as the Panthers upset regular-season champion Mount St. Joseph in the MIAA A Conference tournament championship game.

Lamothe, who was recently named First-Team All-Baltimore Catholic League, will now set his sights on a BCL tournament title, with the Panthers set to face Archbishop Spalding in the opening round this Friday at Goucher College. The 6-foot-4, 180-pounder is also committed to play in this year's Capital Classic, which is set to take place April 29 at the Entertainment & Sports Arena in Washington, D.C.

Maryland head coach Kevin Willard was also front and center to watch four-star guard Deshawn Harris-Smith and the Fairfax (Va.) Paul VI Panthers in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Tournament championship game at American University's Bender Arena on Monday night.

Harris-Smith, who was named WCAC Player of the Year, and the top-seeded Panthers earned their trip to the title game by defeating national power DeMatha Catholic in the semi-finals, 72-70.

The future Terp was spectacular in the semis against the Stags, scoring a game-high 27 points while also adding a game-high 13 rebounds and three assists.

In the championship game, Harris-Smith once again led all scorers with a game-high 24 points, but had a long three-point attempt in the final seconds just miss as Paul VI fell to St. John's College (D.C.) by a final of 65-63.

Harris-Smith and the Panthers will now look to defend their Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association (VISAA) Division I title when they host St. Stephen's & St. Agnes in the tournament quarterfinals on Wednesday.