Feburary 15

First Round Results: 76/96 79%

Let's just say that a few upsets happened. Talk amongst some of us had attributed that Pensacola had the tools to beat East Gadsden in Class 4A action. Well, that was the result. Some other interesting games took place throughout the state last night.

Class 6A proved interesting as Boca Raton gets knocked off by a talented senior strong Jupiter squad. Region 4 in Class 6A showed that the underdog can prevail as Miami Senior took Dr. Michael Krop. Region 2 action saw Plant City take down Sickles (Tampa) and Eau Gallie fell victim to a surging Evans (Orlando) squad. It seems that Region 3 offers Boyd Anderson a tough challenge in either Santaluces or Jupiter. It might be safe to say that we'll see Boyd Anderson battle Winter Park for the state championship. But, Region 1 Orange Park should get a chance to knock off Winter Park. Then Region 4's Norland (Miami) will offer a tough way to the finals. Boyd Anderson looks to face off against an Orlando team in either Evans or Edgewater. But, you can bet that Lakeland is going to have something to say about how far either team gets.

Class 5A played out almost to the letter. The big surprise to some was Plant (Tampa) defeating Clearwater, 59-52. A lot of expectations for Clearwater all season and some stumbling along the way with losses to Pinellas Park and Lakewood showed that the Tornado's season was not going to be an easy one. So, congrats to Plant (Tampa) on their win. Let's remember that Region 4 features Florida Hoops #1 team for most of the season in Dillard. Yeah, #'s 2-12 have gone up and down all season. But, Dillard has always been right there. It will probably stay that way. We'll see if Dwyer can take down Martin County after losing in the district finals to them. But, Dillard awaits. Region 3 is a crap shoot. You would like to think that Charlotte will prove themselves. But, Lakewood is not going to be an easy game and they are at home. It would be nice to see another Pinellas Park vs. Lakewood showdown. But, Plant just might be the spoiler. Region 2 and surprise there is Lake Howell for the fifth straight year! A win over Brandon in the Regional Finals and they will find themsevles back in Lakeland again!

We'll mention that the only undefeated team that we are aware of is Class 4A Lecanto. Their real challenge will come in the Region finals likely against Eustis. Many people talk about their supposed "soft schedule". But, 28-0 is pretty good no matter how you want to look at it! Let's face it, the real strength in Class 4A is going to come from Region 4 in last year state champions Monsignor Pace, the aforementioned Pensacola team in Region 1, and Kathleen (Lakeland) in Region 3. Lecanto is going to have an uphill climb to keep their undefeated season going.

People are not going to like this comment. But, the state championship in Class 3A will be Tuesday night whem American Heritagefinds their way to Pine Crest's gym. Region 4 is also the strongest region in Class 3A with LaSalle having a very good season. It just looks like everyone else is playing for second place after this game. Two West Coast contenders, Berkeley Prep and Bishop Verot, found themselves on the wrong side of the scoreboard as they lost to Dunbar (Ft. Myers) and St. Petersburg Catholic.

Class 2A is just that strong. A first round game of Summit Christian and Sagemont goes into overtime and Sagemont proves why Florida Hoops has them ranked #1 in the class. Summit Christian had a great year and Murray Smith has done a fantastic job with a young squad. So, a bit of a sentimental "upset" pick on our part. Needless to say, Region 2 is stacked! Our preseason favorites are proving themselves at the right time. Florida Air Academy, Pine Castle Christian Academy, Providence, and Arlington Country Day. The question is, "Which one will play Sagemont for the championship?". Region 3's Tampa Prep might like to get a say in how all of this plays out. Those four teams mentioned before are all in the same Region! Not a fun game to look forward to. You would like to think a Region 1 team could battle against Sagemont. Doubtful, but then again David did defeat Goliath!

Take a look at the FHSAA website if you want to see some lopsided scores in Class 1A. We all know that this is one classification that has the cream on the crop and teams that have hard time just finding enough players to field a competitive team. Region 1's Carter Parramore, a 25 point win. Region 2's Orlando Christian Prep, a 62 point win. Region 3's Bradenton Christian, a 67 point win. Region 4's Choice Learning Academy, a 52 point victory. We haven't even mentioned Region 4 Grandview Prep and their 25-1 record, Region 1 Paxton was another team that scored a more than 20 point win. So, who's it coming down to? Region 4 is going to fun and Region 1 should play out well. Orlando Christian Prep has beaten up Class 6A teams this season. So, who's playing them for the championship? The Region 4 winner. We like Choice Learning Academy. But, just like Summit Christian in Class 2A, you would like to see the underdog, Grandview Prep, win. We still think everyone is playing for second place to Orlando Christian Prep at the end of the day.

Regional Semifinals

Class 1A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3

Class 2A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3

Class 3A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3

Class 4A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3

Class 5A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3

Class 6A

Region 1

Region 4

Region 2

Region 3