Regional Finals Notes: Three Orlando teams are Lakeland bound

With the 2020-2021 season coming to a close and the Lakeland State Championship quickly approaching; on Friday, I was able to attend the Dr. Phillips-Seminole game. I also watched replays of Oak Ridge and Orlando Christian Prep victories streamed online. These are some of the notes I took. Scores: 7A Region 1: Dr. Phillips 71 Seminole 49 7A Region 2: Oak Ridge 82 Riverview (Sarasota) 78 2A Region 3 Orlando Christian Prep 57 Central Florida Christian 44 Dr. Phillips “Big 3’ is going to be hard to Stop When all three of Dr. Phillips division I prospects produce, few teams in the state are capable of beating them. Friday night was a prime example of this as 6-10 center [player_tooltip player_id="814902" first="Ernest" last="Udeh"] (2022), 6-4 PG [player_tooltip player_id="546239" first="Denzel" last="Aberdeen"] (2022), and 6-5 SG Riley Kugel all found their way to double figures. In the first half, Riley Kugel came out scoring first on a back door cut then in transition, from the mid-range and on drives to the basket. The wing finished the half with 10 of his 16 point total. The junior wing also displayed the ability to create for others as he found his teammates for scoring opportunities often. The second half belonged to Udeh who dunked his way to 16 points with 12 coming after intermission. The junior center also grabbed 15 rebounds to go along with a jaw dropping 8 blocks, and that’s not accounting for the shots his presence alone altered. The Panthers most consistent scoring threat this year has been Aberdeen and Friday was no different. The junior guard started off a little slow only scoring three points in the first quarter but was still able to turn in a game high 24 points. In the second half Aberdeen was electric in transition breaking lose for a two-handed dunk, made good use of the euro step, and was able to get to the foul line often going 6-of-8 in the final quarter. With all three of these players playing well heading into the state final 4 and roll players buying in Dr. Phillips is not a team to take lightly. ……..Sanford Seminole was led by twin brothers Damari and [player_tooltip player_id="546212" first="Jacari" last="Henderson"] both 6-1 (2022) guards who are easily the two most athletic players I’ve seen. Demari finished the game with 17 points, five rebounds and two assists while Jacari had six points, seven rebounds three assists…. 6-7 C [player_tooltip player_id="1068741" first="Jonah" last="Pierce"] (2021) also had some moments finishing with seven points, eight rebounds and three blocks. [player_tooltip player_id="714770" first="Michael" last="James"] and Oak Ridge are on a mission Since a heartbreaking overtime loss in Lakeland last spring to eventual state champion Miramar, Oak Ridge has had one goal in mind: Winning a state championship. On Friday, Sarasota Riverview who was motivated by last season’s playoff loss to Oak Ridge in the same regional final game last season came to Orlando and gave the No. 1 ranked Class 7A Team all that they could handle. What the game really came down to was Mike James, taking over and refusing to let his high school career end. The future Louisville Cardinal put up a ridiculous stat line of 32 points and 24 rebounds. 6-3 junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id="814920" first="Fabio" last="Basili"] also turned heads with a 14 point and a 13 assist performance with many flashy plays along the way. Basili can stop on a dime and uses his tight handles to simply toy with defenders. With [player_tooltip player_id="548985" first="Jalen" last="Smith"] going down with injuries to his wrists, Basili has really stepped up his play as the number two scoring option. …..Riverview benefited from a huge game from 6-5 F [player_tooltip player_id="818727" first="David" last="Mazon"] (2021). The senior leader scored 13 points over his season average of 11 PPG to finish the game with 24 points. He hit 3-pointers, was on fire from the mid-range and scored on post ups. With his high school career coming to a conclusion Mazon has decided to commit to Kenyon College a prestigious academic Division III school in Ohio........6-3 G [player_tooltip player_id="962492" first="Jason" last="Jackson"] (2023) finished with 17 points. OCP takes care of Business There aren’t many teams who can match up with OCP’s size, but Central Florida Christian boasts a starting lineup that included a 6-8 forward and 6-10 center. The game was close in the first half with OCP going into halftime up 27-25, but the undefeated Warriors outscored CFCA 30-19 in the second half to come out with the win. 6-4 shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id="546193" first="AJ" last="Brown"] 2021 was great picking his spots to score from all three levels to finish with a team-high 16 points. Three other warriors found their way to double figures with 6-0 G [player_tooltip player_id="953007" first="Omar" last="Figueroa"] (2021) scoring 12 points, 5-11 PG [player_tooltip player_id="818714" first="Joshua" last="Blazquez"] (2021) chipping in with 11 points and 6-10 C [player_tooltip player_id="709236" first="Jayden" last="Hastings"] (2021) finishing with 10 points. Orlando Christian Prep continues its quest to an undefeated championship season on March 3rd when they take on Grandview Prep in Lakeland at 12:00 PM ET. …… 6-3 SG [player_tooltip player_id="546226" first="Jamar" last="Houston"] (2022) led CFCA with 13 points including four 3-pointers. The high-flying guard can heat up quick shooting from deep when his feet are set. 5-7 PG Ta’veon Jones (2024) has really impressed us this season with his confidence and grit as a freshman. The future star showed no fear against the much bigger, older OCP guards finishing with 10 points. With a majority of CFCA’s rotation being underclassmen, expect to see a huge 2021-22 season out of the Eagles.