No. 11
Columbus (Miami) escaped with a 50-48 victory over Winter Haven in the FHSAA Class 7A state title game after a steal at midcourt by junior
Malik Abdullahi led to a game-winning layup in transition by senior
Garyn Bess with six seconds remaining.
The Explorers (26-4) captured their second consecutive state championship in Florida's highest classification, led by a game-high 21 points from four-star sophomore
Cayden Boozer. Top-ranked sophomore
Cameron Boozer was contained to 13 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks and Bess chipped in 11 points and five rebounds in the win.
The teams traded leads at the end of each quarter as Winter Haven held a 16-15 lead after the first quarter, Columbus took a 33-27 lead into the half, the Blue Devils battled back to take a 41-39 lead at the end of the third period before the Explorers pulled out the victory late.
An exciting final minute of action saw top 100 Georgia signee
Dylan James knock down 1-of-2 free throws with 38 seconds remaining to give Winter Haven a 48-47 advantage prior to Abdullahi splitting a pair of free throws to knot the score at 48 with 21 seconds remaining.
Following the made free throw, Bess and Abdullahi employed full-court pressure against the Blue Devils as junior
Isaac Celiscar brought the ball across half court before his pass was tipped by a diving attempt from Bess. Celisar then gained possession back before attempting another pass that was deflected away and stolen by Abdullahi and advanced to Bess for the game-winning layup.
A heavily contested final shot attempt from
Kjei Parker was off the mark as the Explorers escaped with the closely contested victory.
Junior guard
Jamie Phillips Jr. and James each scored a team-high 13 points, while Parker tallied 12 points in the heart-breaking loss for Winter Haven (27-5).
Four-star junior Cayden Boozer finished with a game-high 21 points in the win. (Photo: Jeff Robertson)
