LAKELAND — The Trojans raised a white flag to their southern rivals, the Explorers of Miami, private school Christopher Columbus High, in a 69-54 Class 7A semifinal loss.
Columbus extended their record to 29-1, hoping to continue their momentum today against No. 1 Dr. Phillips (26-5) in the final.
“Today they had our number,” Lake Worth coach Frank Baxley said.
The loss was bittersweet for Lake Worth (21-4). However, Baxley doesn’t want his players to lower their heads, but take pride in knowing they’ve done something only three other rosters have accomplished in a century.
“I’m proud of them,” Baxley said, noting how well he’s seen them grow from the start.
“I enjoyed coaching them. We had a great time. We missed out right here, but I’m looking forward to continuing to work with these guys.”
Baxley knows ‘nothing is guaranteed’ but feels the Trojans have a ‘great chance of succeeding’ next year.
“I think getting here and these guys seeing all of this, getting this experience. It was huge,” Baxley said, happy that his players at least knew “what it feels like” to be in the Final Four.
“We came here and saw what we needed to add to our preparation to do this.”
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Here are three takeaways:
1. What went wrong
The scoreboard showed a paltry four-point deficit in the first quarter.
Even at halftime, Lake Worth had an opportunity to come back, trailing the No. 2 seed and eventual winner by just eight.
Despite an energetic third-quarter effort from the junior Trojans team, an even younger starting five topped the paint for the Explorers on their way to a 15-point lead.
“We’re starting three freshmen, a sophomore and a junior,” Columbus coach Andrew Moran said. “It’s their approach, their work ethic and their will to win, not to want to lose at any cost.”
By the fourth, the extended length of the field had taken its toll and the Trojans had grown too tired to finish the job of their incessant opponents.
It can’t be said that age was a factor in the loss, but the levels and arenas of competition Columbus experienced throughout the season were. The Lake Worth schedule was strenuous but considerably weaker in comparison.
The organized pool of talent that an independent program like Columbus brings to the court could — and should — also be considered.
The Boozer brothers, Cameron and Cayden, filled in the Explorers stat sheet.
The freshman duo are 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-4 respectively and inherit their scoring abilities from former NBA player Carlos Boozer, combining for 14 total field goals, with Cameron the leading rebounder in the league. game by displaying 16.
2. Wilson’s Last Lap
Although the rest of the team can look forward to another shot against State, the prep career of Lake Worth’s only senior chancellor, Wilson, came to an end at the hands of Columbus.
“It’s just a blessing to be able to come here and do this,” Wilson said, “grateful” to have been part of the program.
However, Baxley said Wilson’s time with Lake Worth wasn’t over yet and preparation had to be done before graduation.
“Chance understands that’s it for him, but he’s got a lot of big things ahead of him,” Baxley said. “Expect him to go to college next year and continue to mature and grow as a basketball player.”
“His next stop, he’s going to take what he learned here and become an even better player on the pitch,” Baxley said.
Wilson left it all on the hardwood for the Trojans, contributing three field goals, four rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal.
His leadership and ability to stretch the pitch will be missed next season, especially by returning keeper Calvin Sirmans.
“The Chancellor is a great player. He made sure everyone was locked in during training as the only senior manager so he kept us together on and off the pitch,” Sirmans said.
3. Sirmans and Golf shine
Heading into the weekend, Sirmans shared that he was very happy to have the opportunity to play in front of college coaches.
“I know a lot of people outside of South Florida don’t know my name,” Sirmans said. “I just want to show that I can play with the best and be mentioned with the best.”
The Trojans may not have won the battle, but Sirmans knew the eyes he had been waiting for all season were finally on him and he played like that. Four of his six scores were 3-pointers and he fired on four rebounds, an assist and four steals.
Matching the reliable Sirmans-Golf duo of Lake Worth was another key to the Trojans’ ability to rally around the Explorers, especially in the second half.
“During the season a lot of people were saying we weren’t going to get that far,” Golf said.
Hitting the chip off his shoulder, Golf contributed seven points, including one three-pointer, two assists, one block and five steals.
Golf’s performance showed Lake Worth can do what the team wanted to prove all along – that it “can hang out with teams like Columbus and all the other teams that have come this far.”
