Tampa – There’s a saying that the ‘3rd time is a charm’. What about the fourth? The Chamberlain Boys Basketball team got the District Title that eluded them last year beating newly appointed rival and 5A State Runners Up Sickles only eleven days ago. Tonight when they take the floor they will have to make it two in a row against the Gryphons if they want their magical season to continue.
The numbers are nearly identical between the two teams. Since the beginning of the new year, Sickles (23-6) and Chamberlain (23-2) have combined for only three losses. Chambo’s only setback was to Sickles on their home court in which they only shot 18% from the field. The Chiefs average 61 points a game while Sickles averages 58. Taking away the blowout loss by Chambo and the series is tied 1-1 with an average margin of victory of only 3 points. The teams are even powered by 6’3″ Senior Guards that play more like they are 6’9″ Power Forwards.
Chamberlain’s Eric Storts, believed to be the county’s most underrated player, (don’t ask me, just ask Head Coach Christopher Snyder) is averaging 18pts/12rebs and has carried the Chiefs on his back along with Sophomore Reggie Hart. Storts, is averaging over 26pts a game in his last three appearances including 26 against the Gryphons on January 11th in the District 9-5A Finals. A game that ended with some last second dramatics and a 45-43 Chamberlain victory.
Sickles’ Rashawn Rembert is nothing short of a baller himself. In the District 9-5A Semifinals, he nearly outscored Freedom all by himself with 27 in a 72-32 win. Against a 26-1 Charlotte team, he poured in 29. The East Tennessee State Commit will look to continue the scoring frenzy although will have to do it against very familiar competition.
Tonight’s game will look to be much more of the same between the two teams. I expect to see Sickles in either a Box-in-1 or even Triangle-in-2 to offset the scoring tandem of Storts and Hart. Sickles will need a balanced scoring attack from Rembert and Center Eric Floyd, as well as they must get a mistake-free game from the their point guard position. Chamberlain must dominate the Offensive Boards and not allow Sickles to get set up in their half court offense. Conversely, if Sickles can harass the shooters or disrupt the timing of Chamberlain’s off-the-ball movement, then this game will likely go down as the best game of the four.
Chamberlain will need to forget that they are the ones without any playoff experience and forget what happened the last time these two teams met on Busch Boulevard. Sickles and Head Coach Renaldo Garcia will be looking to use that very same inexperience to their advantage. Familiarity between the two sets of players should allow for a defensive struggle, but should also allow for a really well-contested game that will go to the wire.
The winner faces the winner of Gibbs vs Northeast. The Vikings, (Northeast) are a cinderella team of sorts having defeated established Pinellas County powerhouses Boca Ciega and Clearwater already this postseason. Tipoff for tonight’s game is at 7:00 at the Chamberlain Gymnasium.
Prediction: Sickles 54 Chamberlain 50