Class 8A Season Preview (Part 2/2)

Eight more districts are looking to chase down Sickles for the top spot. Who will be the 2018 state champ? Check out part two of two of the Class 8A Season Preview. Season Previews: (8A Part 1, 7A Part 2, 7A Part 1, 6A - Part 2, 6A - Part 1, 5A - Part 2, 5A – Part 1, 4A, 3A, 2A, 1A) 2016-17 State Champion: Tampa-Sickles 2016-17 Runner-Up: Tallahassee-Lincoln CLASS 8A-9 2016 Winner: The Tampa Bay Tech Titans marched to a 23-1 record on the way to a district crown. While going a 13-0 in the district, the streak included a 19-point dub over Plant City in the title game, followed by a tough four-point win over Countryside in the regional quarters. Teams to watch: Plant City, Gibsonton-Eastbay, Valrico-Bloomingdale Other teams in district: Plant City-Durant, Ruskin-Lennard, Dover-Strawberry Crest Predicted district champion: With the departure of a guy like Tyrese Williams from Tampa Tech, who offered 13 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and nearly four blocks a game, it could open the door for others. Obviously not saying he made the team what it was. But Plant City now sees a true shot to avenge their loss—like they didn't need motivation, already. Now-junior Justyn King averaged 16 points and 11 boards, last year. Class of 2018's Matt Simpson gave the Raiders 15 bucks of his own, plus a team-leading 3.7 assists per night. Watch out for them. CLASS 8A-10 2016 Winner: St. Petersburg had a solid, solid year in 2016. Not only did they walk away with a 17-10 record and a 17-point district championship win over Countryside, but this is a team that had a four-game losing streak, at one point. To end the season, the Green Devils managed an eight-game win streak before falling to Lakewood Ranch by five in the regional final. Teams to watch: Clearwater-Countryside, Tarpon Springs-East Lake, Seminole Other teams in district: Palm Harbor, Pinellas Park Predicted district champion: Countryside lost a contributing senior, but other than that, they are poised to go deeper in 2017. Now-seniors Nate Tettenborn & Carlos Williams gave them 23 points, nearly seven assists, and four steals, last year. Their second-best rebounder from last season is only a sophomore in Christian Shaneyfelt. The Cougars have the tools. CLASS 8A-11 2016 Winner: Lakewood Ranch gave Palmetto a 24-point loss in an effort to capture a district championship. The Mustangs went 27-3 and had an 18-game winning streak before falling to eventual-state champion Sickles by five in the state semis. Teams to watch: Bradenton-Braden River, Bradenton-Manatee, Palmetto Other teams in the district: Sarasota, Venice Predicted district champion: Lakewood is poised to make another run through the gamut in 2017. Palmetto and Braden River are both losing some solid contributors. Look for Lakewood to reach for the trophy, once again. CLASS 8A-12 2016 Winner: North Port went undefeated in the district at 4-0, and earned a 16-9 record en route to a district championship. The Bobcats beat Gulf Coast by nine to advance to the regional quarters, where they fell by four to Palmetto. Teams to watch: North Port, Naples-Gulf Coast Other teams in the district: Fort Myers-Riverdale Predicted district champion: Don't be surprised if Gulf Coast sneaks into a title win. Mitch Crawford is a guy who can give nearly 14 points a game, as well as lead Coast in steals. Last year, he grabbed nearly two a game. It'll be interesting to see how they replace their top-scoring senior. CLASS 8A-13 2016 Winner: Palm Beach Lakes only dropped one of their 13 district games on the way to a 25-4 overall record and a district crown. They pulled off a gritty four-point victory over Dwyer, which led to a run hitting the state Final Four. Teams to watch: Palm Beach Gardens-Dwyer, Royal Palm Beach Other teams in the district: West Palm-Forest Hill, Boca Raton-Olympic Heights, Boynton Beach, West Boca Raton Predicted district champion: Lakes just lost three seniors who scored in the double-digits. For Dwyer, now-senior Miles Coleman is there and averaged nearly 15 points a game in 2016. Top-rebounders Javonni Quince and Eddie Davis will be a force to deal with. Pay attention to this squad come February. CLASS 8A-14 2016 Winner: Blanche Ely beat Ft. Lauderdale by 22 in the district title game to finish 25-7 on the year. During the run, they failed to lose any district matchups. Teams to watch: Ft. Lauderdale Other teams in the district: Plantation, St. Thomas Aquinas Predicted district champion: Even with Jeffery Prophete averaging 32 points a night, Lauderdale only managed 10 wins. With him leaving, it's hard to imagine anyone challenging Ely for the top spot. There's a new senior class led by Michael Forrest, who led his then-junior class in points and steals per game, last year. Look for them to return. CLASS 8A-15 2016 Winner: Davie-Nova reached 20 wins and eight losses while winning their district championship by 19 points vs. McArthur. Davie won their quarterfinal game, but McArthur would get revenge in the semis, beating Davie by 12. Teams to watch: Hollywood-McArthur Other teams in the district: Cooper City, Hollywood Hills, Hollywood-South Broward Predicted district champion: This one was a literally a toss-up between Nova and McArthur—both squads are losing a lot of production that came from seniors in 2016. I lean Nova, but these two squads could be as equally matched as any two in the class, this season. CLASS 8A-16 2016 Winner: Mater Academy went 18-8-1 on the year and beat Goleman for their turn at hoisting a district crown. In the regional quarters, Mater lost a heartbreaker to McArthur by just one point. Teams to watch: Miami-Goleman, North Miami-Mourning Other teams in the district: Hialeah-Miami Lakes, Doral-Reagan, Westland-Hialeah Predicted district champion: Mater seems to be in the best shape to win it, once more. You can imagine that they're itching to get back to that regional quarterfinal and finish what they've started. PREDICTED STATE CHAMPION: If Lakewood Ranch can duplicate any bit of the team chemistry and hunger that roster had last year, don't be shocked if you see this squad get back to the state semis, and make a lunge for the ultimate prize. No team in Class 8A had a better record than Lakewood in 2016 with a .900 win percentage.   Stats: Maxpreps.com, Photo credit: Bradenton.com