Santa Fe Is Prepping For The Playoffs… in the summer.
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High school playoffs in June? Not exactly “Christmas in July”, but close.
Eight months from now, teams will be in the middle of February, writing motivational quotes on their sneakers and gearing up for the FHSAA regional playoffs. How you’ve prepared all-season will show up in those post-season moments.
Santa Fe Raiders head coach Elliot Harris is already plotting on how to get back to that season.
“Preparation for the playoffs—that’s what the summer should be about,” he said.
In practice for much of the summer, Harris will do more teaching than anything else. He also wants to make “floor-spacing” a major topic of discussion with his squad.
Looking back at the final play which led to a game-winning layup by Palatka in last season’s 6A regional semifinal, a turnover caused by a botched pass in traffic led to a Panthers win. There’s a reason why Harris is taking spacing this seriously.
The next opportunity to test out his teachings will land on June 23 and 24. The Santa Fe summer league team will be at a tourney in The Villages.
Harris is looking for players like Jumahn Merricks, the lone senior who played on last year’s playoff team, to step up and be an example for the younger guys. Junior two-guard Donavan Blalock is a shooter who can stroke the three, helping create chances for Harris’ “spread-out” ideas to take flight.
If they can perfect it before the fall season starts, you’ll already see a team aiming to win a district championship.