A preview of the Class 8A region final round

The regional round wraps up on Friday with 22 games. Four games will be played in Class 8A for the region final. Here is a look at the region final slate for Friday night in 8A. All games are at 7 p.m. unless listed otherwise. <em><strong>Region 1</strong></em> <strong>Lincoln at Creekside </strong> <em>How they got here:</em> Lincoln beat Niceville 68-56; Creekside beat Lee 58-48. <strong>Lincoln (22-3)</strong> advanced the state semifinals last season before losing to St. Pete. The Trojans roster consists of 15 upperclassmen including eight seniors. The key cogs are seniors Dwight Wilson and Evan Samuels and junior Trinton Bryant. <strong>Creekside (26-3)</strong> finds itself back in the region final for the second consecutive season. The Knights are led by juniors J’Michael Plummer, Caleb Townsend and senior Oratious Williams. Plummer had 22 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks on Tuesday night. <em><strong>Region 4</strong></em> <strong>McArthur at Palm Beach Lakes</strong> <em>How they got here:</em> Palm Beach Lakes beat Blanche Ely 64-62; McArthur beat Nova 72-60. This is another game that will likely be close for most of the night. <strong>Palm Beach Lakes (23-3)</strong> has seniors Lavorris Givens, Tyrese Mapp and Daiquan Wyatt in front. The Rams return to the region final for the first time since 2013. For <strong>McArthur (20-10),</strong> seniors Ralph Bissainthe, Kheron Millwood and Jamari Belvin also average 10 or more points per game. Millwood had 19 points and 18 rebounds in Tuesday night's victory. <em><strong>Region 2</strong></em> <strong>Melbourne at Sickles</strong> <em>How they got here:</em> Sickles beat Bartow 41-39; Melbourne beat Hagerty 49-44. Melbourne <strong>(24-5)</strong> has senior Jayden Jackson is the player to watch for the Bulldogs. Jackson scored 16 points in the region semifinal win on Tuesday night while sophomore Dru Nickson pitched in with 13 of his own. <strong>Sickles (26-4)</strong> consists of a nice mix with seniors Marcus Cohen and Bryce Beamer and junior Bryce Workman. Workman scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the win over Bartow. The Gryphons are back in the region final round for the first time since 2010. <em><strong>Region 3</strong></em> <strong>St. Pete at Lakewood Ranch</strong> <em>How they got here:</em> St. Pete beat Tampa Bay Tech 85-77; Lakewood Ranch beat Palmetto 85-58. After meeting in the region final a year ago where St. Pete won 83-77, the two teams will battle it out once again for a chance to go to Lakeland. <strong>St. Pete (17-10)</strong> is red hot with senior Darius Banks back in the lineup. Banks along with junior Serrel Smith (36 points on Tuesday) and senior A.J. Ford, are a dangerous trio for St. Pete. <strong>Lakewood Ranch (26-2)</strong> has senior Sam Hester and junior Damien Gordon are very skilled players for the Mustangs. This group has won all four of its playoff games by 20 points or more. <em>Photo credit:</em> Bradenton Herald