It is the first live period for High School teams and the FABC put on its Live Period Showcase beginning today in Gainesville. With will over 100 teams in attendance, we weren’t able to see everyone on the first day. However, here it just a taste of what we saw on Day One.
Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons 64, Tallahassee FSU School 39
Gibbons set the tone early, finishing the ten-minute running clock first quarter with a 10-0 lead. FSU School stayed within striking distance at the half, down 24-11. In the second half, Gibbons simply overwhelmed FSU to win by a big margin.
Our unofficial state had 6’4 senior Evan Whyche lead Gibbons with 16 points followed by 6’4 senior Justus Dylan-Herbert with 14 points and 5’11 senior A.J. Ambrose with 10 points and 5 assists.
Jordan Smith, a 5’10 senior, led FSU School with 15 points.
Fort Lauderdale Stranahan 54, Ponte Vedra 49
Stranahan returns a lot of fire power from its state title team but Ponte Vedra wasn’t intimidated. The score was tied after the first quarter at 15-15 and Stranahan led by just three, 26-23, at the break. After three quarters it looked like Stranahan had seized control up 38-31, but with twenty seconds remaining, Ponte Vedra got the margin down to just one at 50-49. Stranahan closed out the game with a pair of buckets to earn a very difficult win.
Stranahan got twelve points each from 6’4 senior Christian Yeargin and 6’3 senior David Nealy. Isaiah Brown, a 6’10 senior, added ten points.
Ryan Speace, a 5’10 senior, paced Ponte Vedra with 14 points while 6’9 senior Trace Westercamp added 13 points.
Orlando University 59, Tampa Prep 52
This was a close contest throughout. University led by one after one and 28-23 at the half. Tampa Prep seemed to seize momentum in the third to lead 41-40 heading into the final period but they couldn’t sustain the lead. A late run by University propelled them to the win.
University was paced by 6’4 freshman Richard Abbott with 16 points. Jared Cabellero, a 6’0 senior, added 14 points and 6’9 senior Kyle Bailey added 13 points.
Kaii Levy, a 6’7 senior led Tampa Prep with 14 points while both 6’3 junior Jackson Lamarre and 6’4 junior Myheir Session each had 13 points.
Wellington 57, Miami Northwestern 54
A hard fought game all the way, Northwestern led 13-11 after one quarter but Wellington tied the game at 27-27 at the break. Wellington got on a run in the third period and led by seven, 42-35, with one more period to play. Many times it seemed like Northwestern would grab a lead but each time Wellington was able to keep them at bay to hold on for the win.
Canaan Gedeon, a 6’0 junior, led Wellington with 15 points. Both Rashard Reinhardt, a 5’10 senior, and Chase Lombardo, a 6’4 senior, each scored 13 points.
For Northwestern, Giovanny Desire, a 6’4 senior, led the way with 14 points while 5’8 senior Jakeel Bakker tossed in 10 points.
Clearwater Calvary Christian 60, Hollywood Chaminade 28
Without 6’0 top 100 senior Jasen Lopez to orchestrate the offense and manufacture points, Chaminade had a very difficult time against a tall and talented Clearwater Calvary Christian team. To Chaminade’s credit, they were only down 36-25 heading into the final period. That is when the wheels came off and Calvary seemingly scored every time down the floor to win going away.
Calvary was led by 6’8 senior Ethan Sabec with 17 points. Madden Geiger, a 6’9 junior, contributed 13 points.
Nick Mirabal, a 5’7 senior, finished with 13 points to lead Chaminade.
Fleming Island 72, Davie Western 61
Fleming Island was in control the entire game, though Western made it interesting by getting to within four, 48-44, going into the final period. Fleming Island proved to be to fast and athletic, ultimately getting out on the break and scoring a double-digit win.
Carson Crawford, a 6’7 junior, led Fleming Island with 14 points. Joseph Johnson, a 6’0 junior, hustled his way to 12 points while 5’10 senior Byrce Robinson added 10 points.
For Western, Calvin Thompson, a 6’3 senior, paced the team with 20 points. Jaydis Cofer, a 6’0 senior drilled six threes, one with an “and one” attached, to add 19 points. Alex Vardakis, a 6’1 junior, contributed 12 points.
Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas 62, St. Petersburg Gibbs 41
This one didn’t go as planned. What was expected to be a close game by two team looking to return to Lakeland ended up being a rout for St. Thomas. Their lead of 17-9 after one quarter of play steadily grew the rest of the contest as the Raiders’ defense made life tough for Gibbs.
St. Thomas Aquinas was led by 6’1 junior Clarence Westbrook with 16 points. K.J. Sandi, a 6’1 junior added 12 points and 6’6 senior Zane Elliott finished with 10 points.
Oneal Delancy, a 6’4 junior, lead Gibbs with 18 points.
Boca Raton St. Andrew’s 58, Lakeland Santa Fe Catholic 51
For three quarter, it looked like St. Andrew’s was going to make easy work of Santa Fe Catholic. However, Santa Fe Catholic found their groove at both ends of the floor to make it a very interesting fourth quarter. SFC got to within three points, 52-49, with just over a minute to play. St. Andrew’s was able to retake momentum at the end for the win.
Xander Gerard, a 6’2 senior, led St. Andrew’s with 20 points. Brendan Gerard, a 5’11 senior added 13 points.
Toby Lane, a 5’10 senior, led the SFC charge, scoring 25 points. Ethan Knox, a 6’4 sophomore added 15 points.
Player of the Day: While the opponent was overmatched, we still liked what Ethan Sabec of Clearwater Calvary Christian did and see how it can be translatable to the D-I level. He has a picturesque and reliable stroke out to the arc, plays with toughness and touch around the rim, and is a good passer.
Find of the Day: We came away impressed with Xander Gerard of St. Andrew’s. He plays with strength, toughness, and fearlessness. Not only is he a deep-range threat, Gerard is also very capable of putting the ball on the floor and scoring tough baskets in traffic at the rim.