South Florida Showdown Championship Recap
I saw a lot of solid competition on Saturday at the South Florida Showdown, but only the best of the best made it to see the Sunday action. Here’s your recap of the championship matchups:
3rd grade: Young Bulls 18, Team Jordan 17
Justin Goico scored all of the Young Bulls first half points in their championship game versus Team Jordan. Jera Austin put up 8 points for Team Jordan in half one to give them a ten to six lead at the half. The score remained close throughout the second half and was tied with two minutes left to play. A Justin Goico free throw put the Young Bulls up one point with just six seconds on the clock. Team Jordan’s last second shot wouldn’t fall and the Young Bulls held on to win the 3rd grade trophy. Goico finished with 10 points while Jera Austin ended with 11 for Team Jordan.
4th grade: Team Jordan 45, Wellington Wolves 27
The fourth grade championship game tipped off at 2pm on Sunday evening at the DS Sports Plex. The Wolves came out in full-court pressure but that didn’t stop Team Jordan from jumping out to an 11-7 lead. They would take an eight point lead into half time. The slightly taller and longer Team Jordan led by 12 early in the second half and never looked back. EJ Moore led Team Jordan with 12 points. Jobens Grant helped out with 10 points. Edmyer St. Jean had 12 points in the loss.
6th grade: Triple Double Tarheels, PBG Starzz
Zachary Hawk of the PBG Starzz had a great offensive outing in the 6th grade championship game against the Triple Double Tarheels, but couldn’t get enough help to secure the trophy for his team. Brandon Murray managed ten points and Kyle Ross, six, but the Starzz finished the game down ten to a tough Triple Double Tarheels team led by Daniel F. poured in 22 points for the Tarheels on their way to the win.
7th grade: Miami City Ballers 49, Northwest Allstars 38
The Northwest Allstars were up at the break but couldn’t ultimately get enough scoring in the second half to secure the win. The Miami City Ballers cafe out on fire to start the second half and never let up. They got their largest lead of the game (15 points) with two minutes left to play. The Allstars would cut it to eleven but would run out of time.
8th grade: Broward Storm 60, South Florida Shockers 49
The Broward Storm jumped out to an early lead in the championship game versus the South Florida Shockers and would never trail. The Storm were up by 14 after just a few minutes of play. Both Samuel Smith and Samuel Vil got off to hot starts for the Storm. Up 15 at the break, Smith had put up eight points while Vil managed a smooth fourteen. Brayden small was able to muster seven first half points for the Shockers but didn’t get much help on the offensive end from his teammates. Cameron Gibson would wake up in half two for the Shockers, scoring ten of his twelve then. By that time, the Storm had cemented their positions as champs. Vil finished with 18 points for the winning team.
9th grade: DC Finest 67, Wellington Wolves 48
The DC Finest 9th grade squad jumped out to an early lead on the Wellington Wolves in their championship matchup. Tyler Greene and Nicholas Mate both came out hot with 11 first half points for DC, while David Hernandez almost couldn’t miss from three, adding 11 points of his own. They would take a 23 point lead into the half. Nicholas Mate would continue his consistency, scoring eleven more second half points and bringing his total to 21. The Wolves couldn’t add up enough stops to make the game competitive and ended up falling by nineteen. David Hernandez would finish with 19 for DC Finest.
11th grade: Landfall Elite 71, Rock United Commanders 46
Landfall Elite came out strong offensively versus Rock United Commanders on Sunday afternoon. Micah Vens-Octave has eight points out of the gate, giving Landall a 16-0 lead before Rock United called a timeout to stop the bleeding. Some full court pressure would help Rock United put some points on the board after causing a few Landfall turnovers. Marshaun West led a 12-0 run for Rock United and brought them back within ten points. With six minutes left in the game, Landall has pushed its lead back up to 21 and never looked back. Micah Vens-Octave poured in 21 points for Landall. Big man Yussif Osman Basa added 14. Marshaun West had 23 for Rock United.