LARGO, Md. (DC News Now) — Cam Ward knew he was closing in on history, but he didn’t want to know when it would happen. To keep the secret alive, one of Ward’s coaches told him Tuesday, he was still about 100 points away.
In reality, Ward entered Tuesday night’s regional semifinal playoff game against Fairmont Heights, 22 points away from the Maryland boys high school basketball all-time scoring record of 2,611 points, held by Mike Roberts of Pocomoke high school since 1992.
On a huge run of points in the third quarter, Ward broke the record, on a jump shot. He found out and flashed a huge grin on his face, when the announcement that he had broken the record was made just before the fourth quarter.
“Been so many greats that have come through here, Kevin Durant, Michael Beasley, Quinn Cook, Nolan Smith, all these guys that I have contact with that tell me to keep going every day,” Ward said. “That’s legendary, I’m not a hater, hopefully somebody can come take the record from me at some point.”
Scoring 28 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, along with a flurry of assists in a 91-75 win over Fairmont Heights, Ward brought his career points total to 2,618, and counting.
“The whole state private and public included,” Ward, who will play college basketball at Michigan State next year, said. “To hold a prestige record like that and to be able to continue to break that record with four more games left that we have to play. I’m just super excited and honored to be able to hold that.”
The record is one thing, doing it for his family and community is another. Ward’s experience in his hometown of Largo is a unique one for a star athlete. His mother Ayana Ball-Ward, an alum of the school, is the school’s athletic director and girls basketball head coach. Ward’s father is the team’s head coach, Rodney Ward.
When faced with the possibility of leaving Largo to play at a high profile private school program earlier in his high school career, Ward declined the opportunity, staying home.
Ball-Ward notes that school morale and its athletics were at a low point coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic when Cam was a freshman, and her son helped rebuild and improve the school’s spirit and sports.
“I think it means everything to the community because that was his basis on doing it. He had the opportunities to go private but he chose to stay home and to rebuild what he knew Largo to be as he was growing up,” Ball-Ward said. “It just made it that much more important for him.”
Ward’s younger brother Canaan Ward is also on the team. As he found out he broke the record, Canaan was standing next to him. Ball-Ward watched the special moment from the sidelines, while also playing her role as athletic director. His younger sister looked on, excited for her brother. Rodney, his dad and head coach, shared a moment with him at the bench.
“I wanted to cry but I knew the game wasn’t over,” Ward said. “To accomplish it with [my dad], he gave me a big hug, he told me he proud of me he was. And then talked to my mom after the game, she was saying how proud he was and then my teammates embracing me on the bench, they dapped me up and gave me hugs and stuff. It was a great way to do it and I’m glad I got to do it with this specific team.”
Amidst a busy Big Ten late season basketball schedule, Michigan State men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo made the trip to Largo as well Tuesday night. After the game, he came to the locker room, addressed the team and shared a big hug with Cam.
Now that the record is broken, Ward is focused on delivering a second straight MPSSAA 2A boys basketball state championship to Largo.
“Now it’s like alright well you’ve got one more thing to accomplish, which is win a state championship,” Ward said. “If anything, I’m more excited that I am kind of so in the moment.”
