Now, the Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) star joined the two as the only players to win the Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year award in back-to-back seasons. The 6-foot-3 guard also became the first athlete from the Sunshine State to win the award consecutively in any sport.
Knight was surprised by former Miami Heat All-Star center Alonzo Mourning, who presented him with the award on Tuesday. Mourning, who won the award in 1988, praised Knight’s abilities: "What Brandon has done in the classroom and off the court is what stands out and is even more impressive than any point he has scored."
The honor made him a finalist for Gatorade’s Male High School Athlete of the Year award, which will be announced in July. Knight, who holds a 4.3 weighted grade-point average at one of the top academic institutions in Florida, averaged a career-best 32.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.5 steals per game while helping Pine Crest (25-5) to its fourth consecutive state Final Four.
During that span, he had an incredible run in which he scored 40 or more points in eight games. He also reached a historical mark and climbed up a ladder that includes some of Florida’s top basketball players in state history after becoming the state’s No. 2 all-time leading scorer (3,515 career points) behind former Mariner High standout Teddy Dupay (3,744).
"Winning this award again means more to me now than it did last year," said Knight. "Don’t get me wrong, I appreciated winning it last season, but to be recognized again is a blessing. You always want to get better, or stay at a high level, in anything you do, and I guess winning this means I did that."
I had the opportunity of sitting down with Brandon and his answer to one of my questions confirmed, for me, that he was special. I asked him, if he made it to the NBA, what would be the first thing he would do? Without any hesitation the young standout said, "I’d probably get in the gym and get some shots up."
His relentless will to achieve is one of the main characteristics that stand out in him and could be a grand possibility as to why Gatorade honored him again. While maintaining his incredible grade-point average, Knight’s hard work on the court didn’t go unnoticed, as he was named a starter for this year’s McDonald’s All-American West squad and beat out some of the nation’s premier players to land a spot on the 2010 USA Basketball junior select team.
The future is still bright for this rising star as he will now enter another level within the basketball world and take his game to the collegiate stage.
Knight has narrowed down his choices to Kentucky, Florida, Syracuse, Connecticut and Kansas. Rumors have surfaced that he is leaning toward signing with Kentucky. He is expected to make his decision after he returns from playing in the McDonald’s game in Columbus, Ohio, on March 31.
Raiders to invade Texas
It looks like Miramar won’t be the only team from Florida’s South region to represent Broward County on a national scale. Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale) learned last week that it will open the 2010 season at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas and play Skyline High (Dallas) in the annual Kirk Herbstreit Football Challenge on Sept. 6. The Raiders aren’t new to the event, as they defeated Elder (Ohio) 35-24 in 2008 and Upper Arlington (Ohio) 52-7 in 2009. This time, however, it looks to be a real challenge for STA, as they face a team that made it all the way to the regional finals and finished last season 12-1 in one of the nation’s top football regions.
Boyd Anderson girls track makes national noise
The Boyd Anderson (Fort Lauderdale) girls 400-meter relay team made its claim as the country’s top team after running a national-best time of 46.92 seconds at the BCAA Track and Field Championships at Coral Springs High School on Saturday. The team, led by Shayla Sanders, Unique Williams, Racquel Service and Acacia Sangster, helped the Cobras rack up 157 total points and helped the school defend its girls title.
TIP award
This week’s top individual performance award goes to Columbus (Miami) catcher Nick Collazo. Collazo hit two home runs and led the Explorers (13-1) to a 9-6 win over rival Ferguson. He also helped Columbus, one of the nation’s top team’s, secure its 10th win in a row since losing to the Falcons, 6-5, on Feb. 25.
Others
Andrew Istler, pitcher, Wellington, was 5 for 8 with four RBI and four runs scored and also had seven strikeouts in a win over Spanish River.
Mike Vigliarolo, North Broward, hit a two-run home run in the top of the first inning to help his team defeat previously unbeaten Archbishop McCarthy 9-3.
Chris Chinea, Gulliver Baseball, led his team to a 17-5 win over Ransom by hitting three home runs and driving in seven RBI.
Sarah Levern, pitcher, South Ridge, led her team to an 8-0 win over Varela in the championship game of the White bracket of the Mercy Hospital Slam Fest tournament by throwing a one-hitter and going 2 for 3 with two runs and two RBI. She also earned tournament MVP honors as she finished the competition going 12 for 15 with two home runs.
