How he did so was typical Lowe.

The senior leader hit the floor with a thud after driving into the paint and drawing a foul with 19.3 seconds remaining against Carlisle Wednesday at the Magic Dome. The more he gets knocked down, though, the quicker Lowe is to rise. He proved it again before sinking the game-winning free throws which vaulted Williamsport to a 48-46 victory.

Lowe’s resiliency and tenacity helped Williamsport win its first season opener since 2021 as the Millionaires never buckled after losing a 15-point late second quarter advantage.

“My back hurt a little bit, but I just had to use my legs to get them up and drain them,” Lowe said after scoring six points, dealing four assists and making two steals. “I thought I missed the first one. It bounced around the rim and rattled in but after I made the first one and they called timeout, I knew I was going to come back and make the second one.”

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Tevin Williams (11) shoots for two in the first quarter.

The defense made a stand from there, forcing a contested shot along the baseline. Quincy Williams (7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks) grabbed the rebound with 0.4 seconds left. Following a timeout, Lowe clinched victory, finding Kason Ulmer with the inbounds pass.

Tevin Williams opened his sophomore season with a strong performance, scoring 17 points, Ulmer (13 points, 8 rebounds) made a run at a double-double and a young, but exciting team earned a hard-fought win against a squad that defeated it a year ago.

It was not easy, but Lowe has embraced the hard throughout his scholastic career. He might not be the tallest player, but Lowe plays big and the two third quarter charges combined with the clutch foul shots made a massive difference in the game’s result.

“I know I’m the smallest on the court, so when it comes to stepping on the court and putting my body on the line for my team, it’s nothing new for me,” Lowe said.

“Those are the tough things necessary to win basketball games,” Williamsport coach Allen Taylor said. “We have to do some of those tough things and he did some of the tough things at crucial times that gave us another opportunity to put points on the board. Naz is the smallest guy, but he’s probably one of our toughest guys. Hopefully, those guys will follow his toughness lead.”

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Kason Ulmer (43) and Ethan Chilson (30) battle Carlisle's Mickel Hakim (1) for a rebound in the first quarter.

Williams hit three fourth quarter shots, two which broke a tie and another which made it a three-point game. With Carlisle focusing upon Williams following a critical Quincy Williams steal, Lowe split the defense and sprinted toward the paint, drawing contact and earning his shots at the line.

He and Tevin Williams often practice free throws during water breaks following rigorous conditions at practice. Again, doing the hard things paid dividends and Lowe created quite a senior moment.

“It’s no pressure for me,” Lowe said. “I was tired, but it’s mandatory to knock down free throws down the stretch.”

Early on, it appeared Williamsport would not any late-game heroics. The Millionaires played well in all facets throughout the game’s first 15 minutes, building a 30-15 advantage. A harbinger arose, however, in the final 60 seconds as Carlisle scored four straight points and generated some momentum.

The Thundering Herd then dominated the third quarter and twice took two-point leads before Williamsport tied it, 36-36 entering the fourth. Neither team led by more than three in the fourth, but Williamsport also did not flinch. That was encouraging for a young squad which opened with just four players having any varsity experience.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Kason Ulmer (43) rebounds the ball in front of Carlisle's Isaiah Ream (5) in the first quarter.

Sure, the Millionaires would rather have kept their foot on the gas and parlayed the strong first half into a convincing win. Still, how they won provides quite a boost, showing them, they can overcome adversity.

“Like I told them, usually we’re losing and having to learn, so I’m glad we were able to win and learn this way,” Taylor said. “I’m proud of the guys because we gave up a 15-point lead and allowed them to take the lead and showed some grit and found a way to pull that out. I’m happy about that, but we definitely have to clean up some things.

“I feel like it’s big, especially with us starting the past few seasons with a few losses,” Tevin Williams said. “It feels good. We feel like we’re more confident and our energy is going to continue to rise now because we have that confidence.”

Williams grew more confident as his freshman year continued last season and picked up where he left off. The versatile sophomore played both guard positions and led all scorers while also helping create opportunities for his teammates.

It was not just that Williams made plays either, but when he made them. He opened the fourth quarter scoring by beating a defender off the dribble and converting a layup. His next two baskets gave Williamsport two and three-point advantages, as Williams carried lessons learned from learning on the fly last year into a new role as he suddenly is now one of the team’s most experienced players.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Quincy Williams (4) drives the ball around Carlisle's Masyn McMeekin (11) in the first quarter.

“I knew my team had trust in me and they knew I had the hot hand. They knew them feeding me the ball would get them more open shots,” Williams said. “That helped get Naazir a wide-open layup; he got fouled and made those clutch free throws to put us up two and that helped us win the game.”

Ulmer excelled in his first start and Williamsport used its size advantage well throughout the first half, feeding the 6-6 junior who produced nine points there. Taylor wanted Williamsport to continue pounding the paint in the second half but shot selection changed and Ulmer only had one third quarter shot.

The Millionaires did get the ball to Ulmer at a vital time in the fourth quarter. Exciting freshman Mekhi Gaston found Ulmer cutting toward the basket and Ulmer threw down a one-hand dunk which gave Williamsport a 46-44 advantage.

“He (Ulmer) improved so much over the summer. He came in every day at 6 a.m.,: Tevin Williams said. “We’d have practice at 8 and he’d come in and and work on post moves for an hour. You can see it’s showing.”

Williamsport suffered a big blow in the offseason when point guard Zion Hughes tore his ACL following both a strong sophomore season and fabulous summer. Hughes is hoping to return some time in the new year, but the onus is on a lot of first-time contributors now and several made nice impacts against Carlisle.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Quincy Williams (4) shoots over Carlisle's Masyn McMeekin (11) in the first quarter.

Senior Ethan Chilson missed the last two years with injuries but hit a 3-pointer, pulled down six rebounds and made three steals. Freshman Saleem Overton dealt two straight assists during the second quarter and Jensen Spencer made two steals off the bench, including one seconds after entering for the first time.

“Guys have to kind of learn on the fly now. They have to get some game experience,” Taylor said. “We tried to provide them those opportunities in the offseason, but it’s nothing like in the season. It’s a little bit bigger stage; there’s more people at the game. To open up at home and get a win is a good feeling.”

CARLISLE (46)

Masyn McMeekin 0 0-2 0, Cayson Johnson 2 10-11 14, Isaiah Robinson 4 3-4 12, Jayden Birchett 2 0-0 4, Isaiah Ream 3 2-4 8, Jaylen Debraux 3 1-1 8. Totals 14 16-22 46.

WILLIAMSPORT (48)

Tevin Williams 8 0-3 17, Naazir Lowe 2 2-2 6, Quincy Williams 2 2-4 7, Kason Ulmer 6 1-3 13, Ethan Chilson 1 0-0 3, Mekhi Gaston 0 2-2 2, Saleem Overton 0 0-0 0, Jensen Spencer 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 7-14 48.

Carlisle 7 12 17 10–46

Williamsport 14 16 6 12–48

3-pointers: Carlisle 2 (Robinson, Debraux); Williamsport 3 (T. Williams, Q. Williams, Chilson).

Records: Williamsport 1-0. Carlisle 0-1.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Quincy Williams (4) shoots over Carlisle's Jaylen Debraux (3) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Kason Ulmer (43) shoots between Carlisle's Isaiah Ream (5) and Jaylen Debraux (3) in the first quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Tevin Williams (11) prepares to dunk the ball as Carlisle's Mickel Hakim (1) tries to slow him down on a fast break in the second quarter.

MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Quincy Williams (4) shoots between Carlisle's Mickel Hakim (1) and Cayson Johnson (2) in the second quarter.