City of Palms Classic: Montverde Academy, Wheeler advance to final

Here's a rundown of Monday action at the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla. The 17-team bracket has been cut to just two heading into Tuesday's night's championship game.

See the complete bracket here.

Semifinals

Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) 52, Trinity (Louisville, Ky.) 42
The No. 1-ranked Eagles actually trailed at halftime but held Trinity to just 17 points in the second half en route to their third-consecutive final. Tournament MVP candidate Ben Simmons led Montverde once again, this time registering 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Christian Thieneman paced Trinity with 15 points.



Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.) 76, Wesleyan Christian Academy (High Point, N.C.) 70
Ranked two spots behind Wesleyan Christian Academy nationally at No. 16, Wheeler survived this battle of unbeatens behind 28 points and 11 rebounds from senior star Jaylen Brown. Harry Giles countered with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Trojans while teammate Michael Buckland netted 17 points, but it wasn't enough as Wheeler advanced to meet Montverde in Tuesday's final.

Third-place bracket

St. Francis (Alpharetta, Ga.) 85, Oak Ridge (Orlando, Fla.) 75
Kobi Jordan-Simmons of St. Francis stole the show from a pair of star senior guards – teammate Malik Beasley and Antonio Blakeney of Oak Ridge. Simmons, a 6-foot-5 junior guard, piled up 37 points and grabbed seven boards as the Knights will have a chance to take home fifth place on Tuesday. Blakeney finished with 23 to lead Oak Ridge.

Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.) 57, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 56 (OT)
Mater Dei has lost a total of four games since 2011 but dropped its second contest of the 2014 City of Palms Classic to the defending Washington Catholic Athletic Conference champs. Corey Manigault, a 6-8, 245-pound junior, stuffed the stat sheet for Paul VI with 21 points and 14 rebounds. La'vette Parker, a 6-2 senior guard, led Mater Dei with a game-high 25 points.

Consolation

Wayne (Huber Heights, Ohio) 53, Whitney Young (Chicago) 49
Joseph Toye scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds but that wasn't enough as a balanced effort propelled Wayne to victory. Iowa signee Ahmad Wagner paced the Warriors with 16 points and 10 boards.



Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) 58, Webster Groves (Mo.) 42
Young Sierra Canyon will meet Wayne for the consolation title. Junior point guard Devearl Ramsey led the charge for the Trailblazers on Monday with 13 points and six assists.

Archbishop Carroll (Radnor, Pa.) 77, Florida Air Academy (Melbourne, Fla.) 52
After winning the City of Palms dunk contest Sunday night, Archbishop Carroll senior star Derrick Jones helped his team win its first game in Fort Myers with a double-double. Jones, a 6-foot-7 small forward headed to UNLV, logged 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Bentonville (Ark.) 58, Riverside Academy (Reserve, La.) 55
One of the nation's most explosive scorers, Malik Monk of Bentonville finally got rolling in the event with 21 points in a morning contest.