Strong start for Florida teams
July 27th, 2007 Posted in AAU Basketball
Photo: Nike Team Florida at AAU National Basketball Championships
Nike Team Florida might lack the talent it took into last year’s national championship tournament, but the 2007 AAU Junior squad is proving it doesn’t need the services of 2006 and 2007 Florida Player of the Year Nick Calathes to compete for a national championship.
While Calathes is bound for Gatorland, a new cast led Team Florida to a convincing 97-62 victory Friday afternoon in the first game of Pool U. The path to victory was paved by 6-9 forward Julian Sargent, who broke up a close game with a flurry in the first half. After starting slowly, the fourth-seeded Cincinnati Royals-Crawford tied the game at 36 midway through the second quarter.
Sargent, though, threw down a left-handed dunk with 3:09 to play in the half and then went on a one-man quest. Following the dunk, Sargent, a rising senior at Clearwater High, blocked a shot, spotted up and drained a trey on the break, slapped away another Royals shot and then sank two foul shots to put Nike Team Florida ahead 46-36.
“He’s a special player. It’s nice to have a talented big kid with his skills,” said Nike Team Florida Coach James Appelt. “It’s good to see him showcase those talents with the way he played today.”
Sargent finished with a team-high 18 points. His Clearwater High teammate, 6-7 rising sophomore Okaro White, added 12. Lakewood High senior Michael Morrison, who lifted his 6-10 frame above the rim to put an exclamation mark on the tale end of Sargent’s first-half surge, also had 12 points.
Appelt said Nike Team Florida isn’t the same team that took the court earlier in the season. Chris Singleton and Pierre Jordan joined the team only a few hours before Friday’s game.
“I just met them at the airport. They mix in well with our guys. They’ve done exactly what we asked them to do. I was very impressed with how everyone played today,” Appelt said.
Team Florida’s true test came in Friday’s evening game against a No. 2 seed team, the Philly Pride, backed by NBA star Cuttino Mobley. The New Jersey Roadrunners are the top team in the pool. Nike Team Florida faces the Roadrunners Saturday at 9 p.m. in a game to be played at the Champions sports complex in Orlando.
Team Florida, though, wasn’t the only Sunshine State squad to begin the tournament with a strong showing. OBC Elite, based in Orlando, and featuring eight rising Central Florida seniors, notched a 74-55 victory against the Louisiana Tarheels, and Orange County PAL, also based in Orlando, narrowly escaped with a 73-71 victory against the Birmingham Bearcats.
The Largo Magic and the Florida Elite Black joined in the fun. The Magic blasted the third-seeded South Carolina Fire 78-53 behind a 26-point effort from sharp-shooting guard Tracy Parks, a rising senior at St. Petersburg Catholic. Parks drained six treys, and 5-11 Dixie Hollins guard Devonta Davis added 14 points. Nick Rubio led the Fire with 10 points. Sean Eads added eight points for the Fire, based in Greenville, S.C.
The Elite Black featured a big effort from 6-8 forward Steve Coleman in an 88-59 victory against Lone Wolf, of northeastern Vermont. Coleman, who attends Eau Galle High, scored 20 points, including 16 in the first half.
“When he’s on, we’re on,” said Elite Black Coach Jeffrey Foss. “He’s getting looks from everywhere, from high majors to mid-majors.
Newsome High senior Dylan Fugate added 14 points, and 6-4 Charlotte High senior Chris Stephenson scored 12 points.
The Elite Black led 17-11 when Coleman and his cohorts led a big second-quarter attack to forge a 41-29 halftime lead. A 30-point final eight minutes sealed the deal for the Elite Black, who faced an evening game against the top-seeded Georgia Stars.
“We’re a work in progress, but I’ll take a win to start,” said Foss.
The Elite Black didn’t play in the state AAU tournament, but Foss said the team could earn its way into the bracketed tournament with continued strong play from Coleman and a tandem of post players that includes 6-7 Trinity Catholic string bean Matt Sauey, a rising senior.
