Some Central Florida basketball teams capped strong seasons last weekend at the boys state finals in Lakeland, and no teams enjoyed it more than Cocoa. The team pulled off a mammoth feat by winning the Class 4A boys state championship in basketball just a few months after accomplishing the same feat on the football field in Orlando.
The Tigers defeated Spring Hill Springstead 75-60 on Saturday (March 7) behind 20 points from Ellis Young and 18 points from Julius Reid. Cocoa trailed 37-26 at the half but outscored Springstead 20-4 in the third period to take a 46-41 lead and never looked back.
Coach James Rowe’s team finished the season 30-3. It was Cocoa’s first trip to state since 1992, and the team earned it by pulling off a 66-65 overtime win against Monsignor Pace on Feb. 28. In that regional championship game, Reid, a 6-foot senior guard, scored 32 points. Following the regional title win, Cocoa hooked up with Bartow in the state semis on March 5. Bartow led that one 23-21 at the half, but Cocoa took the lead in the third period and won 61-52 with 21 of the points coming from Reid and 14 more from Young.
Cocoa wasn’t the only Central Florida team to leave Lakeland victorious. Orlando Christian Prep won its second state title in as many seasons with a 46-43 game against Grandview Prep in Class 1A. OCP reached the game by defeating Gainesville Rock 62-38 in the state semis on March 4.
OCP, which finished 30-2, led 23-11 at the half in the title game, but Grandview Prep rallied in the second half. Paidrick Matilius gave Grandview Prep a 43-42 lead with 47 seconds to play, but TyShawn Patterson sank two free throws with 31 seconds to play to make it 44-43 in favor of OCP. Matilius launched a three-point effort at the buzzer, but it missed the mark.
Keith Clanton had 16 points and 14 rebounds in the win for OCP, and Patterson added 15. The win wrapped up both players’ prep careers. Clanton, a 6-foot-7 forward, signed with the University of Central Florida, and Patterson signed with Stetson University in DeLand. Orlando and DeLand are but 20 miles apart. Stetson and UCF last met during the 2006 season.
Title dreams dashed for Jones, Olympia
Two more Central Florida teams carried their state title dreams into the weekend only to have them denied.
File Photo By Jim Redman
Dexter Fields, Olympia
In Class 3A, Orlando’s Jones High lost 60-44 to Pine Crest on Friday. Jones started and finished strong, but the Panthers outscored the Tigers 31-14 in the middle two periods. John Thompson led Jones with 15 points. Meanwhile, Brandon Knight, one of the nation’s top juniors, led all scorers with 27 for Pine Crest.
Jones earned a shot at Pine Crest by defeating Marianna 42-41 two nights earlier. In that one, Jones led 32-25 after three quarters but trailed 41-40 with three seconds to play. Angelo Warner drew a foul at that point, and he sank both foul shots to give Jones the win.
In Class 6A, Orlando’s Olympia High lost 69-60 to Coral Reef in Saturday’s finale. The Titans reached the championship game by defeating Winter Park, 63-44, on March 5 in the state semis. Winter Park had reached the semis after defeating Buchholz 65-37.
Olympia led Coral Reef 26-20 at the half, but the Titans gave up 49 points in an up-tempo second half. Dexter Fields helped Olympia keep pace. He finished with 31 points, including six three-pointers, but it wasn’t enough to stop Coral Reef, who got a team-high 27 points from Charles Hankerson Jr.
In the semis, Martell Buie led Olympia with 25 points. Fields added 14. Winter Park got 12 from Austin Rivers and 13 from Isaac Turner, but the Wildcats were outscored 21-2 in the final period.
Lake Howell wins girls title
Four of Central Florida’s girls basketball teams reached the state finals in Lakeland, but only one came home with a state championship.
In Class 5A, Lake Howell defeated Davie Nova 50-39 to win the title. Lake Howell trailed 23-22 at the half but outscored Nova 17-6 in the third period. Tynia McKinzie played a big role. She finished with 14 points and seven rebounds. Ashley Jones added 12 points for Lake Howell, which shot 49 percent from the field and held Nova’s shooters to 28 percent field-goal shooting.
Lake Howell earned its finals trip by defeating Pine Forest 77-44 on the same floor a few days earlier. In that one, Lake Howell opened a 43-22 lead at the half and coasted to victory behind 58 percent field-goal shooting. Pine Forest shot 25 percent from the field. Ashley Jones had a lot to do with Lake Howell’s strong shooting. She sank 11 of 18 shots to finish with 31 points. McKinzie added 16.
In Class 2A, Community School of Naples denied Orlando’s The First Academy another state title. CSN won 40-34 in a game that had a wild ending. The two teams combined to score just 10 points in the final eight minutes. Erin Knight and Taylor Knight each had 11 points for TFA.
In the 2A semis, TFA defeated Cottondale 48-25 behind 18 points from Erin Knight and 16 from Taylor Knight. The two combined to make 15 of 26 shots.
In Class 4A, Orlando’s Bishop Moore lost 52-47 to Titusville Astronaut in the state title tilt. The game was tied 22-22 at the half, and Bishop Moore trailed 35-34 after three periods. It was 48-47 with seconds let when Bishop Moore fouled Akia Davis, who sank a pair of free throws to put it away. At the 2:35 mark, Lindsey Watson got a steal and a three-point basket to tie it 47-47, but that was Bishop Moore’s last basket.
In Class 6A, Lake Mary lost 27-25 to Miami Norland. Shakeyia Colyer got a steal with four seconds to play and put up a shot, but it missed the mark. It was the Rams’ second close game in three nights. On Feb. 26, Lake Mary defeated Edgewater 59-52 in double-overtime in the 6A semis. Colyer scored with three seconds remaining in regulation to make it 46-46. The Rams then outscored Edgewater 7-0 in the second overtime period. Colyer finished the game with 17 points, and Morgan Jones added 19. Kalyn Dinkins led Edgewater with 23 points and nine rebounds, and Tera McDanie had 15 for the Eagles.