Polk Recap and Notable Standouts of the Week

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I have made it back to the hardwood and will provide daily updates with players to watch and notable standouts making noise in their respective positions and classes! For this week, let's break down a few games and top prospects of the week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Victory Christian Academy (11-4)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Victory Christian defeated Holy Trinity (10-2) 84-59 at home. Players of the Game included [player_tooltip player_id='1055581' first='Jordan' last='Lanier'] (18) and [player_tooltip player_id='1296001' first='Mike' last='Andino'] (24) combined for 42 points to help push the Storm to victory. The Storm have a slate of tough games coming up featuring Bell Creek Academy (9-7), Northwestern (7-4), and Santa Fe (11-2). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Scoring Output:&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>VCA:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1296001' first='Mike' last='Andino'] 24 points, 5 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1055581' first='Jordan' last='Lanier'] 18 points, 6 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>LJ Cason 17 points, 11 rebounds, 9 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Holy Trinity:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1163406' first='Elijah' last='Reynolds'] 26 points, 6 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1578338' first='Wyatt' last='Chanda'] 10 points, 8 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Derrick Flowers 8 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Santa Fe Catholic (11-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Santa Fe 76 Melbourne 43</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Hawks are off to a hot start this season with junior G [player_tooltip player_id='1450225' first='Tate' last='Darner'] leading the way. He scored 26 points and added 10 assists in a 76-43 blowout win&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Melbourne during the SLAM Hoops tournament. Three solid games before a home showdown with Victory Christian on 1/16.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>SFC</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1450225' first='Tate' last='Darner'] 26 points, 10 assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1295941' first='Hudson' last='Dykhuizen'] 18 points, 4 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1450214' first='Malikai' last='Broffitt'] 11 points, 4 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jayden McPherson 7 points, 4 steals, 4 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lakeland Dreadnaughts (9-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Dreadnaughts are tough to beat when rolling because of the added athleticism and physicality. Lakeland won three straight games this week with a big-time 60-50 district win over Bartow, followed by another district win over George Jenkins (69-50), and ended the week with a 73-40 blowout against Haines City. Lakeland would love to shake things up and go deep in the playoffs on the hardwood.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Players of the Week: LHS</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 Tre Jackson&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 Shanard Clower</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Winter Haven Blue Devils (13-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Huge win for the Blue Devils who are off to a great start with state championship aspirations on mind. Winter Haven overcame early-game adversity this week and beat a solid program in The Rock in 87-82 showdown. 2024 Yale commit [player_tooltip player_id='1055750' first='Isaac' last='Celiscar'] has dominated the competition this season, showing he's the Real Deal. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>WH:&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1055750' first='Isaac' last='Celiscar'] 34 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zay Mosley 16 points, 13 rebounds&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1055762' first='Jamie' last='Phillips'] 11 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tyrese Mayo 15 points, 5 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jordan Christian Prep (9-3)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>JCP moved to 9-3 on the season with a 77-59 win over Academy of Central Florida at the SIAA Crossover.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>JCP:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>William Reyes 22 pts&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jickeson Masson 10 pts&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2217893' first='Babacar' last='Diop'] 10 pts</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sebring Blue Streaks (8-5)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Blue Streaks have a solid, slept-on squad who are off to a solid start. Sebring picked up a convincing 86-60 win over Davenport (7-6) this week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sebring:&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dyveon Collymore 20 points&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jordan Gregory 14 points, 8 rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2046259' first='KJ' last='Turner'] 13 pints, 7 steals, 7 assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1578328' first='Sylvester' last='Lewis'] 10 points, 6 rebounds, 9 blocks</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bartow Yellow Jackets (8-7)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bartow bounces back with the resounding 66-35 home win over Lake Wales (5-9)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not the best start to the season this year for the Yellow Jackets who took a tough district away loss to Lakeland this week. Bartow was able to bounce back with a solid 66-35 win at home over Lake Wales (5-9).&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fort Meade Miners (9-4)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Miners have brought over some talented student-athletes from the gridiron who are making an impact on the court for a 9-win FM squad. Fort Meade defeated Lakeland Christian (6-3) 65-54 this week to keep up their momentum. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fort Meade</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nasier Berrien 21 points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Omari Russell 15 points 11 rebounds</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ryan Screen 14 points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mekhi Berrien 11 points</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>McKeel Wildcats (10-4)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top squads in the county picks dominated in a head-scratching 84-22 win over Oasis (3-7). 2024 G [player_tooltip player_id='1055781' first='Alex' last='Sessoms'] has been on a tear this season with some impressive scoring outputs. We're keeping our eye on his overall recruitment as the season progresses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McKeel&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1055781' first='Alex' last='Sessoms'] - 22 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Vann Osmon 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->