10 Best: Plant City vs. Gaither
Story for PrepHoopsFL by Edward Lamar.
On Tuesday night, in a battle of 8A foes, Plant City and Gaither opened their season. Plant City used a defensive spurt and hot shooting from senior Matt Simpson to close the first quarter up 20-8. Gaither’s Hardin and Jennings hit shot after shot to keep Plant City from running away with the contest until the fourth quarter when they extended the lead for a 24-point win.
Gaither played a 2-3 defense for most of the game until they had no choice but to go man late in the 3rd and the 4th if they wanted a chance at coming back. Offensively, they spaced the floor and used screens to create open looks. The animated Jennings led the way with 18 points. For Plant City a man defense was used the entire contest. Facing a zone, they moved the ball to create open lanes for the big guys and open shots for the wings. Junior Jadyn Strawder led the game with 23 points followed by the senior Simpson with 22.
Here are the top performers/ moments of the game
MVP: #25 Simpson (Plant City)
Matt Simpson had an all-around good game and showed he’s 1 of the top guards in the county. To open the game, he hit four 3-point shots in the first quarter. In the second and third periods, he showed his leadership and overall scoring ability by setting the tone on defense and setting up teammates for easy buckets. He finished the game with 22 points, 5 steals, and 5 assists. I expect his stock to rise as the season continues.
Best Offensive Performance: #44 Jennings (Gaither)
Jennings isn’t flashy, but he sure is animated. Every time I thought Plant City may stretch the lead, he hit a shot and strutted back down the court. He produced inside bulldozing his way to the basket and outside with some high arching shots. He leads the Cowboys with 18 points.
Best Defensive Performance: #10 Baez (Plant City)
Emmanuel Baez is only a sophomore and will be a guy to watch grow in the next 2 years. The Raider’s pressured the ball full court and Baez was at the center of it all. He finishes well around the basket but in this game, defense was his calling card. He ended up with 4 steals but his hustle, back taps, and constant pressure lead to traps that caused many more turnovers.
Best Intangibles: #23 King (Plant City)
Standing at 6’7, its kind of hard to miss you walking in the gym. King showed his versatility by dribbling the ball up the court, hitting outside shots, posting hard, and staying active on defense and on the glass. King ended the game with 17 points, 10 rebounds and, 4 blocks. King was at the center of a few highlight dunks.
Best Catch and Shoot Guy: #30 Hardin (Gaither)
In most Inbound plays in high school there will always be an option to go back to the in bounder in the corner he threw the ball in from. Every time Hardin took the ball out, he stepped into the corner and hit 3 after 3. He filled lanes on fast breaks and surprisingly the defense never made him do anything different, so he picked his spots and kept shooting.
Best under-the-radar performance: #5 Strawder (Plant City)
I know, I know, it sounds weird that the top scorer in the game is under-the-radar but Strawder was quiet for a clear majority of the game. In the 4th quarter is when he came alive and dropped bombs from deep. He finished 4 of 8 from the arc with 7 rebounds and added 5 steals.
Best surprise player: #2 Manning (Plant City)
Remember the name Jordyn Manning! The freshman started at point on a team filled with upperclassmen. It’s easy to see that this kid can play, run a team and why he got starting job on opening night. He directed traffic, made timely plays on both ends, and picked his moments to take over. He finished with 8 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals. Not bad for a freshman at opening night away from home.
Biggest Moment: Start of the 4th quarter
At the end of the 3rd Plant City Had a 13-point lead 51-38. The Raider’s came out in full court man and pressured their way to a 26-point lead within 2 minutes of the 4th. They continued the pressure throughout the 4th and coasted home for the win 82-58 showing this team can close out a game.
Best Bench: Plant City
Coaches are always preaching that the bench cheer and stay active in the game. Plant City players cheered each other on the entire contest. The bench never wavered in its support, going on it cheered and coming off the court they stood and thanked the team member for doing his job.
Hardest Worker: Coach Teeden (Plant City)
The work a coach puts in is always overlooked in my opinion. Plant City has a fresh look and different feel this year. They have several transfers so implementing his system will take some time and it looks like he’s up to the challenge. I spotted him teaching and directing every chance he had, excellent work coach!