No. 21
Columbus (Miami) made history Saturday, becoming the first team to capture five consecutive state championships in Florida's highest classification with a 53-50 victory over
Sarasota in the Class 7A title game.
Florida Atlantic signee
Felipe Quinones led the way a team-high 15 points in the win. Five-star Miami signee
Caleb Gaskins chipped in 12 points and six rebounds and freshman standout
Cayden Gaskins added 11 points and seven rebounds.
In an interesting finish to the game, Columbus received a technical foul with 13.6 seconds remaining to give Sarasota a chance to tie late. Quinones knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Explorers up five before junior guard
Johnny Lackaff responded by knocking down his free throws at the other end to cut the deficit to one possession.
Felipe Quinones has been a key cog all season for the Explorers, averaging 14.1 points, 6.2 assists and 5.4 rebounds per contest. (FILE PHOTO: Troy Tsuma)
Lackaff had an opportunity to tie it from the left corner at the buzzer but his heavily-contested shot fell short. The star junior poured in a game-high 27 points and connected on 5 of 9 3-point attempts in the losing effort.
Not only did Columbus make state history but it also became just the 16th team in high school basketball history to claim five or more consecutive titles in the highest classification of a state. The Explorers are just the seventh team since 1980 to accomplish the feat.
This title comes on the heels of a historic run that saw current Duke freshmen Cameron Boozer and Cayden Boozer lead the program to a record of 115-14 over the past four seasons. Columbus finished ranked in the MaxPreps Top 25 in each season during that span.
Last season, Columbus won the national championship after becoming the first team that competes for a state championship to capture the crown at Chipotle Nationals. Cameron Boozer also became the first two-time MaxPreps National Player of the Year winner during his time with the program.
Columbus (26-6) ends the season riding a 12-game winning streak. The Explorers challenged themselves with a brutal national schedule that featured games against teams from eight different states.
During their dominant five-year reign, the Explorers have outscored opponents by 26.8 points per game across 25 state tournament contests.
Sarasota (25-7) reached its first state championship game with a 53-48 victory over
Oak Ridge (Orlando) yesterday in the semifinals.
