We headed down to Cardinal Gibbons High School in Fort Lauderdale Saturday to check out many of South Florida’s best teams at the Sunshine State Pre-Season Classic.  The event had been going on since Wednesday evening and is generally regarded as a great “one stop shop” to catch the best teams in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties.

Game #1: Cooper City vs. Coral Springs Taravella

An early start time at 9:30AM, the first four minutes were relatively competitive at Taravella led by just 11-8.  However, Taravella held Cooper City scoreless the rest of the period.  This was a foreshadowing for the remainder of the contest.  A seven-point Taravella lead ballooned to a 36-20 margin by the end of the second quarter.

Cooper City was unable to make the needed adjustments at the break and Taravella continued to roll.  With one period left to play and Taravella up 57-31, the question began to be would a running clock come into play?  It did at 4:30 remaining in the final period with Taravella up 69-34.  The benches played for both sides the remainder of the game with the final score being 71-38.

Taravella was led by 6’1 senior Nick Florea with 21 points while 6’4 junior Jashayne Lindo contributed 17 points.

No one scored double-figures for Cooper City.  Nick Dyer, a 6’0 junior led the way with 9 points.

Game #2: Davie Western vs. Coral Springs

This game was expected to be competitive, and it was, but it didn’t start out that way.  Western jumped on top quickly behind some stellar defense to lead 17-9 after one period of play.  Western was up 25-16 with four minutes left and looked like they might run away with the game, but Coral Springs took things up a notch.  A 7-2 run to end the half closed the gap to just four points, 27-23.

Western came out sizzlin’ to start the third quarter, reeling off eleven unanswered points.  Coral Springs was undeterred and with four minutes left in the quarter was within range at 38-31.  The gap was closed to five, 48-43, heading into the fourth period.  In the final period, Western was able to keep Coral Springs at bay for much of the quarter until the game got tied at 60-60 with 2:30 left to play.  On the next play, Western was fouled on a three-point shot but only made one of its three free throws.  Coral Springs took a one-point lead after a pair of free throws, but Western reclaimed the lead the next time down the court.  Coral Springs then rolled off seven unanswered, a three and four free throws, to lead 69-63 with forty-five seconds remaining.  Western scored again with seconds remaining, but Coral Springs held out the closing seconds to win by four, 69-65.

Coral Springs had 20 points from 6’3 sophomore Josh Lowe.  Jamir Davis, a 6’2 senior, added 12 points while 6’3 junior Brandon Ayers tallied 10 points.

For Western, 5’10 sophomore Jovan Rodriquez led the way with 17 points.  Kaleb Georgeon, a 6’2 junior, put up 15 points while 6’3 senior Calvin Thompson connected for 12 points.

Game #3: Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna vs. Hialeah Mater Lakes

Chaminade’s best player, 6’0 senior Jasen Lopez, is still out on the football field and was unavailable for the game.  Mater Lakes got off to a quick start, leading 10-4 midway thru the first, but Chaminade rallied to within three, 16-13, heading into the second period.  An 8-0 run by Mater Lake over the first couple of minutes found Chaminade down 24-13, forcing them to call a timeout.  It didn’t help as much as they hoped and at the break, Mater Lakes had a 38-22 lead.

Chaminade came out hot in the third quarter, twice forcing Mater Lakes timeouts.  With just under two minutes to go in the period, Chaminade was within six, 43-37, and looked to have all the momentum.  However, Mater Lakes resumed control from there, leading 47-39 going into the final period and reclaiming a double-digit lead with four minutes remaining in the contest.  Chaminade did not have enough time to mount another comeback and Mater Lakes won by thirteen, 63-50.

Khanye Moss, a 5’10 senior, led Mater Lake with 24 points.  Tai Bell, a 6’3 sophomore, finished with 20 points.

Chaminade was paced by 6’3 junior Lunden Knights with 16 points while 6’2 junior Guy Henderson finished with 12 points.

Game #4: Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons vs. Riviera Beach Suncoast

Gibbons came out sluggish and Suncoast took quick advantage, leading 12-3 after the first four minutes of the contest.  Suncoast owned a 24-13 advantage heading into the second quarter.  At that time, the host school seemed to realize they were in a battle.  Gibbons got their deficit down under double-digits midway thru the period and at the break found themselves down just five, 31-26.

A 7-2 run by Gibbons over the first three minutes of the third period tied the game at 33-33.  On the very next possession, Gibbons’ point guard A.J. Ambrose picked up his fourth foul trying not to foul.  That sent him to the bench and Suncoast took advantage.  The Chargers finished the period with a 17-6 run, leading 50-39 with one period remaining.  The host Chiefs were unable to mount any type of comeback in the final period.  Suncoast won by the surprising margin of 71-54.

The Chargers put four players in double-figures but ten players scored at least a basket for the team.  Jamarey Harris, a 5’10 senior, led the team with 15 points.  Right behind at 14 points was Kyree McKelton, a 6’0 senior.  Aaron Horton, a 6’2 senior and Fritz Nesbitt, a 6’4 sophomore respectively scored 11 and 10 points.

For Gibbons, 6’4 senior Justus Dylan-Herbert, paced the team with 18 points, while the 5’11 senior Ambrose, despite his foul issues, tallied 12 points.

Game #5: Pembroke Pines Charter vs. South Plantation

A lot is expected from Pines Charter this season and early in the contest they showed why.  An 11-6 lead after the first four minutes grew to 23-9 by the end of the opening period.  South Plantation continued to plug away and found themselves down just ten, 33-23, at the half.

South Plantation continued to fight uphill in the third period and with 3:30 remaining in the quarter found itself down by just five points, 41-36.  A 10-2 run by Pines Charter to close out the third put them back up by double-digits, 51-38, with one quarter left.  That lead grew to twenty, 65-45, with three minutes remaining in the contest.  Pines Charter put in its bench, but South Plantation didn’t stop fighting.  South Plantation’s grit and effort made the final score of 68-60 much more respectable.

Pines Charter was led by 6’8 senior Robert Guishard with 16 points.  He also grabbed 13 rebounds and rejected four shots.  Anthony Walcott, a 6’7 junior, finished with 15 points while Alex Vardakis, a 6’0 junior, added 11 points.

Tyler Bennett, a 6’1 junior, led South Plantation with 17 points.  Travis Chin, a 6’1 senior, added 15 points while Shane Davis, a 5’5 freshman added 13 points.

Game #6: Miami Christopher Columbus vs. Coral Springs Coral Glades

It would not surprise if this game gets replayed in February as a Region Four final in Class 7A to determine who takes a trip to Jacksonville for a shot at the state title.  Coral Glades is deep with size, length, and athleticism.  Columbus has six guys that will play D-I.

Coral Glades stayed with Columbus for the opening four minutes, down just 11-6.  A 9-3 Columbus run to end the quarter showed why Columbus is considered one of the better high school teams in the country.  Limiting Glades to one shot and quickly converting from defense to offense, Columbus grew that eleven-point margin at the start of the second quarter into a 37-14 advantage at the half.

Things got no better for Coral Glades in the third.  Columbus’ size, strength, and big game experience was pretty much overwhelming.  With one quarter remaining and Columbus up 64-35, a running clock was looking like a certainty.  A 6-0 Columbus run to start the fourth period kicked it in and Columbus won in dominating fashion, doubling up Coral Glades 74-37.

Caleb Gaskins, a 6’8 senior and Miami commit, led Columbus with 21 points.  Cayden Gaskins, a 6’8 freshman, added 14 points while 6’4 senior and FAU commit Felipe Quinones finished with 11 points.

For Coral Glades, 6’1 senior Jamari Bolden paced the team with 9 points.

Game #7: Wellington Palm Beach Central vs. Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy

Central got off to a blistering start, burying four shots from beyond the arc in the first four minutes to take a quick 12-4 lead.  Westminster played Central a bit even for the rest of the period but found themselves down 17-8 entering the second quarter.  Central continued to score well and built a double-digit lead of 27-16 midway thru the period.  Westminster fought back and by the half the margin was only eight, 33.25.

Central maintained that lead midway thru the third quarter.  At that point Westminster got on a roll and by the time the final period rolled around, Westminster was down just four, 42-38.  Westminster opened the fourth quarter with a 5-0 run to take a lead.  With four minutes left, Westminster led by two, 46-44.  Things got very interesting down the stretch as Westminster led 51-49 with 1:37 to play.  Central hit a three with thirty-five seconds remaining to take the lead.  Westminster was off with its three-point shot attempt and was forced to foul to get the ball back.  Central made one of two free throws, giving Westminster an opportunity with twenty seconds left.  A driving shot at the rim with six seconds left was off target by Westminster.  Central grabbed the rebound and was quickly fouled.  This time Central hit both free throws.  The final Westminster heave was off and Central won a tight one 55-51.

Central was led by 6’0 senior Jayden Stumm with 13 points followed by 12 points from 6’0 senior Ryan Joseph.

For Westminster, 5’10 junior D.J. Gaines led all scorers with 30 points.

Game #8: Miami Country Day vs. Pembroke Pines West Broward

Miami Country came in short-handed as four of the team’s top six players were unavailable due to injury.  That didn’t seem to matter as, after being tied at 8-8 with 3:30 left in the opening quarter, MCD pulled off a 14-5 run to end the period up 22-13.  The margin was ten, 31-21, in favor of MCD with four minutes left until the half.  Now it was West Broward’s turn.  A 12-3 run got them to within one, 34-33, at the break.

Miami Country Day grabbed the momentum in the third and lead by eight, 51-43, heading into the final period.  A 10-2 run by West Broward tied the score at 53-53 with 5:30 remaining.  MCD seized the lead back at 58-55 with four minutes remaining but back-to-back jacks from three found the mark for West Broward to give them a 61-58 lead.  West Broward looked in good shape, up 66-63 with twenty seconds left.  After West Broward made one of two free throws, MCD got a stickback bucket with seven seconds.  They quickly called a timeout.  West Broward turned the ball over and MCD sank a shot in the lane just before time expired to send the game into overtime tied at 67-67.

In the OT, MCD hit a three on their opening possession.  West Broward was off target on its first shot attempt in the period and then the foul fest began.  MCD scored its remaining thirteen points of the game from the free throw line.  Meanwhile, all West Broward could muster was a shot at the rim late in the period.  The final score of 83-69 in favor of Miami Country Day is in no way indicative of how competitive this game actually was.

Miami Country Day was led by 6’3 junior Miguel Orbe with 26 points. Jordan Corbitt, a 6’5 junior added 17 points while Ryan Miranda, a 6’4 senior, contributed 16 points.

For West Broward, 6’1 sophomore Legend Frisby paced the team with 19 points.  Stefan Frisby, a 6’3 senior, added 18 points while 6’5 senior Khimari Hudson scored 12 points and 6’1 freshman Kelan Kelly tossed in 11 points.