4A District 14 Quarterfinal: Somerset Academy Panthers @ Hallandale Chargers
Playoff basketball is here!
I traveled over to Hallandale Beach High School for the 4A District 14 Championship Tournament. Top seed University School and #2 seed Stranahan High School have first round byes.
I took in the tail end of #4 seed Mater Lakes Academy defeating #5 seed Carol City, 53-51. A tip in by 2020 small forward Jason Paz sealed the deal for the Bears, who will face the Sharks on Wednesday. It should be very interesting how the young back-court of 2023 guards Anthony Floyd and Jamai Tejada handle the firepower of 2020 Roger McFarlane and 2022 Jett Howard. Both players have a ton of talent and shape up to be future stars in the area for the Bears.
While game one was back-an-forth, the Hallandale Beach Chargers soundly defeated the Somerset Academy Panthers, 76-50. Hosting the tournament, the Chargers put on a show for their pro-home crowd by extending a 6-point halftime lead to eighteen using a 25-13 third quarter. Eleven different players reached the box score for the three seed, who fill face the Mighty Dragons on Wednesday at 6 pm. The Panthers, coming in as the sixth seed, struggled all night with outside shooting and were methodically out-rebounded by the Chargers on the glass. At times, I thought Somerset Academy could have benefited more by driving to the basket instead of settling for outside shots. In addition, the Panthers failed to connect on some easy buckets around the rim, which turned to run outs and field goals for the Chargers on the other end.
Carrington Campbell..Showtime:
The 2020 guard put on quite the performance against the Panthers, scoring a game-high 20 points while knocking down an impressive six 3-pointers. Campbell might be one of the fastest players I have seen from baseline to baseline, evident when the senior went coast to coast for a lay-up in the fourth quarter. The 6-foot-3 guard squeaked through a couple of Panther defenders with ease before laying the ball off the glass. Defensively, the senior is very fluid in his hips, able to rotate from side to side to stay in-front of a defender. Therefore, Campbell can put a lot of pressure on a ball handler and cause careless turnovers. His match-up against the speed of Chayse Culpepper and company in the semi-final is something I look forward to watch.
Ree' Al Dixon...Real Deal:
Besides having an awesome name, the 2020 guard/forward put together a strong performance for the Chargers with 14 points. From a consistent standpoint, I thought Dixon was the best player on the floor for all four quarters. The senior has a nice jump shot and shows ability to defend multiple positions. In addition, I accounted Dixon for seven rebounds, which was tied for the team lead. As a unit, the Chargers did a good job on the boards while limiting the Panthers to one shot opportunities, which is a credit to his play.
Nathan Montague Leads
While it was a rough night for Somerset Academy, I thought 2020 6-foot-6 wing Nathan Montague played fairly well. When I say fairly, Montague finished with a team-high 16 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. While aggressive with his outside shooting, I thought at times Montague could have used his long frame to get to the basket when those shots were not falling. The senior clearly has the size to get into the paint and cause damage on an opponent in the lane. While I love the aggressiveness, I thought the Panthers as a whole could have optioned for higher percentage baskets to keep the game closer.
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