LAKELAND, Fla. — Brandon Knight and his teammates at Pine Crest had one goal in mind entering the 2009-10 basketball season: winning a third consecutive state championship. The goal, if accomplished, would mark the program as one of the best in state history and propel Knight as one of Florida’s all-time greatest players. 
Brandon Knight, Pine Crest
File photo by Lisa Yen
After a 77-63 win over Williston in the Class 3A state semifinal, the Panthers were one game away from accomplishing their goal but Knight, a senior, injured his groin in the win over Williston and was not 100 percent.
Knight, who entered the contest averaging 32.5 points per game, barely reached a team-high 18 and did not receive much help from his supporting cast as Pine Crest fell to Rickards 70-46 in the Class 3A state final. Knight was clearly bothered by the injury, finishing the game without an assist, while committing four turnovers.
Rickards (Tallahassee) (27-0) held Pine Crest to 39-percent shooting and forced 20 turnovers.
The Panthers (22-5) traded baskets with Rickards early on until Knight hit two free throws, his first points of the game, with 6:05 left in the second to take a 18-11 lead. Pine Crest wasn’t capable of sustaining its lead and watched it slip away as Rickards went on an 8-0 run, courtesy of Terry Johnson, who hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the run. Rickards' hot shotting continued as guard Avery Moore hit two more 3-pointers in the final minute to give his team a 29-25 halftime lead.
Moore, along with Devonte Johnson, led Rickards (27-0) with a combined 39 points, 27 on nine 3-pointers. Moore led all scorers with 23 points.
Knight, still hobbled by the injury, did what he could to rally the Panthers by scoring 10 of his team’s 15 points in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 45-40 by the end of the third quarter. Rickards had no regard for Knights’ spark and opened the fourth with a 14-2 run.
Rickards became the first team since Melbourne Florida Air Academy in 2005 to finish the season undefeated.
Knight cap
Despite failing in his attempt to bring his school a third consecutive state championship, Pine Crest senior guard Brandon Knight’s career is still amongst the best ever in Florida. Knight, a McDonald’s All-American, is the state’s No. 2 all-time leading scorer (3,515 points), the 2009 Gatorade National Player of the Year (joining LeBron James and Greg Oden as the only players to win it in their junior year), a two-time state champion and two-time AAU Junior National Champion with Florida-based Team Breakdown.
In his five years at Pine Crest, the 6-foot-3 standout managed an overall record of 129-19 from 2005 to present, and holds most of the school’s records, including single-game scoring (55, 2007), single-season scoring (968, 2008-2009) and career scoring (3,515 points).
"With Brandon we averaged 25 wins, won five straight districts, four regionals and two state championships," said Pine Crest coach David Beckerman. "That is his legacy."
Now that his high school career is over, the question that he has ignored for a while has now been moved to the forefront: "Where will he attend college?"
Knight has been courted by some of college basketball’s top teams, including Kentucky, Florida, Connecticut and Syracuse. Many have speculated where Knight will sign and I, for one, do not want to let my chance slip away.
My prediction is that Knight will chisel his list down to Kentucky and Florida, with the nod going to the Gators. Although Kentucky coach John Calipari has had major success with his last three point guards (Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans and John Wall), I don’t see Knight signing with the Wildcats. I feel Florida will be his destination because I can’t see him passing up on the chance of playing with Florida guard Kenny Boynton. Both were considered the best backcourt in the nation when they led Team Breakdown to back-to-back AAU Junior National Championships (2007 and 2008) and have the potential to do the same at the collegiate level.
Dillard girls make history
The Dillard girls basketball team defeated Boca Ciega 53-44 for the Class 5A state championship. Dawnn Maye led the way for Dillard with 25 points. The Panthers, who also won titles in 1980, 1982, 2004 and 2005, became the third program in state history to win at least five championships.
TIP award
This week’s top individual performance award goes to Palmetto pitcher Adam Sargent. Sargent pitched a shutout in a 10-0 win over Killian. The standout pitcher recorded 27 strikeouts and has yet to give up an earned run this season.
Others
Angel Rodriguez, Guard, Krop, scored a game-high 23 points to go along with four steals, eight rebounds and three assists in a 50-42 loss to Dr. Phillips in the 6A state semifinal.
Marcus Neely, Guard, Cardinal Gibbons, scored a team-high 15 points in a 56-46 loss to Oak Ridge in the 4A state semifinals. Neely is a sophomore.
Kevin Parre, Pitcher, South Broward, struck out eight batters in a 7-1 win over McArthur.
Mike Klement, American Heritage, went 4 for 4 with two RBI to lead Heritage to a 5-2 in over Gulliver Prep.
Gina Daigle, Pompano Beach, went 2 for 3 with a home run, in Pompano Beach’s 2-1 win over Pine Crest.
Jake Lorber, Cypress Bay, threw a career-best 136 feet, 8.5 inches to win the discus at the Miramar Invitational.
