LAKELAND, FL – The boys basketball season for 2014-15 comes to its conclusion this week and the 1A-4A finals are in the books. Three of the four match-ups featured the top-2 teams in their respective rankings, so expectations were sky-high to say the least. Here is how the action played-out at the Lakeland Civic Center the past two days.
1A – Chipley 69, Hawthorne 40
The state’s #3 overall prospect and #1 point-guard Trent Forest led #1-ranked Chipley (28-3) over #2-Hawthorne (28-3) with 26 points and 11 rebounds. The Tigers held the Hornets to just 29-percent from the field (16-of-56) and a mere 17% from 3-point range (4-of-24). Chipley pounced on Hawthorne early and cruised to a 47-13 halftime lead en route to a scorching-hot 60% from the field. Desmond Lawrence’s 16 points led Hawthorne in defeat.
2A – Miami Christian 71, Agape Christian Academy 44
Miami Christian (25-4) broke the game wide-open during a 20-4 second quarter scoring output to turn a 6-point lead from halftime into a near running clock by game’s end. The 2A state champions had three players in double-figures led by Isaiah Reece’s 18 points in addition to Marquill Smith’s 17 points and Ralph Diaz’s 16 points; Diaz also added 10 rebounds. Agape (25-4) was held to just 29% from the field, but was able to get a pair of 12-point performances from Demauri Hill and Andre Bennett.
3A – Providence 66, Sagemont 57
The state’s #1-ranked team in 3A capped a 32-1 season behind DeLand-transfer Jason Burnell’s 26 points and 12 rebounds versus the state’s second-ranked squad from Weston. Burnell led three players in double-figures along with Wyatt Walker’s 12 points and LaDarien Griffin’s 11 points and 8 rebounds. Providence (33-1) forced 15 Sagemont turnovers and held UCLA signee Prince Ali from Sagemont to just 13 points. Illinois State signee Keyshawn Evans, who had 13 points in the first half was held scoreless until under 2 minutes remaining in the game for Sagemont (29-4). Evans led the Lions with 17 points, 5 assists and 2 steals in the loss.
4A – Godby 53, Cardinal Newman 46
In the second one-versus-two matchup of the day, Godby’s junior point guard Quan Jackson hit a 3-pt shot with just 0:07 left in regulation to tie the game at 45-45 after trailing during the contest by as many as 17 points to the Crusaders. Jackson’s 3-pointer came just 9 seconds after missing his first attempt at tying the game. Following a Cardinal Newman turnover on the ensuing possession, Jackson took the pass on the wing and buried the tying shot with two defenders in his face. Jackson’s 23 points lead the Cougars along with Londell King’s 21 rebounds and 10 points. Cardinal Newman (25-2) was lead by Wake Forest signee John Collins as the 6-9 Power Forward put up 17 points, 9 blocks and 9 rebounds in defeat. Newman shot 24-times from the free-throw line, however the Crusaders went a mere 50%. Meanwhile Godby’s stingy matchup zone forced a paltry 2-for-14 (14%) performance from the perimeter against Cardinal Newman allowing the Cougars to chip away and eventually find themselves victors.
– Doug Pugh