In the nightcap at Marymount, the PVI boys flexed their muscles and spanked O'Connell 75-59 before a standing room crowd only.

PVI improved to 17-6 overall (11-3 in conference play). O'Connell, coached by Joe Wootten, dropped to 19-4 overall (10-3 in conference play).

In the latest Washington Post poll PVI is ranked 18th, while O'Connell dropped to 11th.

The Panthers, coached by Levi Franklin, took no prisoners. The "Black and Gold" bolted to leads of 23-15, 37-27 and 51-44 after the first three quarters respectively.

"We really came ready to play this game," said senior point guard Terron Diggs. "Our guys really attacked tonight," said Franklin.

Even though O'Connell closed the deficit to 54-49 when sophomore standout Dave Neal converted a hook shot with 5:56 remaining in the fourth quarter the Knights would get no closer.

Panther standout guard Nick Grant brought the "Black and Gold" fans to their feet when he slammed home the exclamation point, an acrobatic two-handed dunk off a pass from Diggs, which made the score 73-59 with 29 seconds remaining.

Panther senior forward Steve Proctor, who scored a game high 38 points, closed out the scoring with two free throws and PVI avenged an earlier loss this season to O'Connell in convincing fashion.

"Our guys played smart. They made good decisions tonight," said Franklin.

"After that first loss (to O'Connell) we looked at the tape and realized that we didn't get after them the way we are capable. Tonight we got after them," said guard Nick Grant.

"We really pushed the ball up the floor tonight. We outran them and we wore them down," said Panther senior center Joe Cascio.

"We played with intensity. We told ourselves before the contest that we weren't going to lose this game. We played real good defense. Terron really pushed the ball up the floor. Joe was a warrior on the boards. My brother Darryl (Proctor) had to check their big guys. This is the best I've ever felt after a win," said Steve Proctor.

"They simply outplayed us. They ran their offense real well and we didn't get back on defense," said Knight forward Freddie Stanback.

Other scoring leaders for PVI were Grant (15), Darryl Proctor (10), Diggs (eight), junior Ryan Williams (two) and freshman Chase Miller (two).

The Knights scoring leaders were Neal (12), sophomore Marcus Ginyard (11), junior Brian Johnson (11), junior Ernie Lomax (11), junior Erik Smith (eight), and Stanback (six).

The boys' playoffs will take place Feb. 21-23 at American University.