Florida commit Kasey Hill and his nationally-ranked Montverde Academy squad hope their ambitious schedule leads to results.
File photo by Lonnie Webb
1. Montverde AcademyHead coach: Kevin Boyle
2011-12 finish: 23-4
An already nationally strong program is bolstered by the addition of
Dakari Johnson, a highly recruited 6-foot-10 junior who won a gold medal with the USA Basketball U-17 national team at the FIBA World Championships. Johnson did not play high school basketball last year, following head coach Kevin Boyle from St. Patrick High School in Elizabeth, N.J., to Montverde. The team's starry lineup also includes 6-8 center
Devin Williams, a West Virginia verbal commit and 6-1 guard
Kasey Hill, a Florida verbal. Montverde, ranked No. 3 in the
MaxPreps Preseason Academy Top 10 list, plays an ambitious schedule that includes the City of Palms Invitational in Fort Myers, Fla.; Gulf Coast Classic in Naples, Fla.; Montverde Academy Invitational Tournament and a game against No. 2 Findlay Prep of Henderson, Nev., at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass.
See all of our Florida boys basketball photo galleries 2. Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach)Head coach: Melvin Randall
2011-12 finish: 30-2, Class 7A state champions
Coming off a 30-win season that featured a starting lineup full of seniors, coach Melvin Randall will seek to build his team back up quickly this season. Can they run the table again? Ely is loaded in the backcourt. Among those Randall will depend on is
Lance Tejada II, a highly recruited junior point guard who transferred from Miramar, Fla. Tejada averaged 14 points and 7 assists a game for Miramar. Other top Ely players include 6-3 junior guard
Richard Lee, a transfer from Northeast High in Oakland Park, Fla., who is attracting interest from Miami and Florida, and
Dallas Cameron, a senior guard.
See last season's Florida stats leaderboard 3. Tampa PrepHead coach: Joe Fenlon
2011-12 finish: 31-1, Class 3A state champions
Tampa Prep’s only loss last season was to Class 5A state titlist Lake Wales, and with 6-foot-2 senior point guard
Josh Heath back to lead the attack, the Terps are a title threat again. Heath, who averaged 13 points and 7 assists per game last season, has already made a verbal commitment to South Florida, where he will play for his dad, Stan, USF’s head coach. Tampa Prep also returns 6-8 forward
Adonis Rsabigwi and 6-4
Ephraim Lavey. New to the team is
Juwan Durham, a 6-9 freshman who is expected to have a big impact and is rated highly in the Class of 2016.
See last season's Florida boys basketball Freeman Rankings 4. Hialeah GardensHead coach: Marcos Molina
2011-12 finish: 28-5, Class 8A state champions
Alvaro Simoza, a senior 6-7 forward, who scored two state tournament double-doubles last season including 19 points and 11 rebounds in the Class 8A title game, returns to lead the Gladiators. He’ll be joined by
Adrian Gonzalez, a 6-3 guard.
See last season's Florida boys basketball playoff brackets 5. Deerfield BeachHead coach: Kenny Brown
2011-12 finish: 22-5, Class 8A regional finalist
Terence Johnson, a senior point guard who has verbaled to South Alabama, leads a strong senior group at Deerfield Beach. The others include
Javaris Jenkins, a 6-6 small forward, and guard
Marcus Owens. The Bucs are 42-10 over the last two years (unbeaten in district play in 2011-12) and could be primed for a run in 8A. A strong schedule includes appearances in the Chick-fil-A Classic in Columbia, S.C., and the Kingdom of the Sun Tournament in Ocala, Fla.
