Host and No. 1 Mount Carmel boys basketball opened its playoff run with a high level of purpose and efficiency in building a comfortable 16-point halftime lead over No. 8 John Carroll on Tuesday.

After the visiting Patriots made a formidable push to get back into the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference quarterfinal, the Cougars made sure to have the final say.

Forward Gage Howard and guard Mario Tatum were the fourth-quarter catalysts as the Cougars held off John Carroll for a 60-53 win.

Mount Carmel (29-4) advances to Thursday’s semifinal round and will host No. 4 Spalding — a 70-63 winner over No. 14 Loyola Blakefield — at 5:30 p.m. John Carroll (17-13) will turn its attention to next week’s Baltimore Catholic League Tournament at Loyola Maryland’s Reitz Arena, where it will face the Dons in the first round on Feb. 27.

Twice the Patriots cut the lead to three points in the fourth quarter Tuesday and twice the home team found answers to secure the victory. Howard had two big assists to fend off the early challenge and Tatum scored four straight points in the finals 20 seconds to send the Cougars to Thursday’s semifinal.

“I think sometimes it’s hard for guys to play with a lead. They’re teenagers and your mind drifts and John Carroll is a good team and they can shoot the ball and are dangerous,” Mount Carmel coach Tony Martin said. “But our kids were resilient and found a way and I think it’s going to serve us later in the playoffs. This is [a] different level of basketball.”

Led by a 14-point first half from Tristen Wilson, who finished with a game-high 16 points, the Cougars played at a fast pace the Patriots couldn’t match in building a 39-23 halftime lead.

But John Carroll regrouped in the third quarter. It started making more shots and getting defensive stops, and after a 12-2 run behind five points from Aidan Able and 3-pointers from Parris Lee and Bailey, it trailed 48-45 halfway through the frame.

The Cougars looked to Howard for answers — and he delivered. First, he found a cutting Junior Mancho, who finished with a dunk. Then Howard found Tatum in the left corner for a 3-pointer that made it 53-45.

“The coach trusted me to have the ball in the post and make decisions. The dunk by Junior really brought our energy up and then the 3 came from Mario,” said Howard, who finished with eight points.

The Patriots came back again, getting a 3-pointer from Caden Chinnia-Falline and an inside basket from Theartis Battle to cut the deficit to 53-50 with just under four minutes to play and then got the ball back with a chance to tie.

They had five misses on three possessions with the score the same. Howard had a big block on a shot from Battle with 1:31 to play before Cougars point guard Rodney Scott attacked the basket to make it 55-50. Tatum hit two free throws and scored late to secure the win.

“We just found a way to win. Stuff got a little thin and we made things hard down the stretch, but we made the plays we needed to offensively,” Tatum said. “We learned we got to play together and stay together, even when things don’t go right.”

While proud of his team’s comeback bid, John Carroll coach Seth Goldberg’s assessment of the loss was simple.

“You got to play four quarters,” he said. “Hats off to Mount Carmel, they played well, but we just weren’t us for most of the first half. We tried to battle back, but, once again, you got to play four quarters, especially this time of year. So we’re fortunate to have one more chance and we’ll regroup and hopefully be better because of it.”

Other MIAA A Conference quarterfinals

No. 4 Spalding 70, No. 14 Loyola Blakefield 63:Colt Busse made four 3s and scored a game-high 21 points while Braxton Bogard added 16 as the Cavaliers (23-7) advanced to Thursday’s semifinals at Mount Carmel. TJ Moultrie also reached double figures with 12 for the winners, while the Dons (18-16) got a team-high 14 points from Mason Ellison.

No. 2 St. Frances 75, No. 10 Mount Saint Joseph 52: Terence Jones III scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Panthers (27-6) to a comfortable win. Jasiah Cannady added 15 and Trent Egbiremolen scored 13 for the winners, while the Gaels (20-6) got 14 points from BJ Ranson. St. Frances travels to Glenelg Country for a semifinal at 6 p.m. Thursday.

No. 3 Glenelg Country 67, McDonogh 58: Behind a 30-point performance from Pat Curtin, the Dragons (20-6) fell behind early before settling in to take a 10-point halftime lead and maintaining the advantage in reaching the semifinals. Jalen Baker had 11 and Deng Jok scored 10 for the winners. McDonogh closes its season with a 13-13 mark.

Have a news tip? Contact Glenn Graham at ggraham@baltsun.com, 410-332-6636 and x.com/GlennGrahamSun.

John Carroll — 15-8-17-13 — 53

Mount Carmel — 17-22-7-14 — 60

JC: Abel 7, Chinnia-Falline 10, Battle 7, Lee 5, Clark 9, Shoffner 9, Bailey 6

MC: Howard 8, Wilson 16, Scott 4, Mancho 2, Rudusans 9, Tatum 14, Hill 3, Williams 2, Tr. Heflin 2