At this point of a typical high school basketball season, the surprises are fewer, the injuries are more and the resumes are filling out.
Community Christian surprised this past week. North Port’s injuries are mounting. And the resumes of DeSoto County and Lemon Bay are downright puzzling.
Welcome to this week’s Power 8, where we have some difficult decisions to make. What do we do with North Port, a team that quite possibly is the area’s third-best team but are ailing (and losing) right now? And what to we make of the Manta Rays and Bulldogs? DeSoto County has the better record and resume, but Lemon Bay has absolutely blown the doors off the Bulldogs in their two meetings?
Head-to-head wins mean a lot here. But so do overall resumes and how a team is playing in the here and now. What you see in this week’s rankings in the 4-7 range quite likely could be inverted by this time next week.
So with that caveat, on to the rankings:
1. Charlotte (12-4). Well, who else? The Tarpons are lapping the field at this point, compiling victory after impressive victory in the wake of a season-altering defeat at Naples two weeks ago. This past week, the Tarpons obliterated a good Canterbury team, 76-49, then defeated Lehigh, arguably the best team in Southwest Florida, 72-63. In that latter game, Charlotte got double figures from four players, something that hasn’t happened very often. Along with their defense, the Tarpons are pretty unstoppable when contributions are being made at the offensive end. All of this is a prelude to what might be Charlotte’s stiffest challenge of the year to date: A visit from Orlando Christian Prep on Friday during the first day of the Wally Keller Classic. OCP is 14-0 and the state’s No. 3 team, according to MaxPreps.
2. Port Charlotte (8-2). The week began in frustrating fashion Monday after the Pirates rode the bus down to Fort Myers only to be told to hop back on the bus and head home when the Green Wave reported a positive COVID-19 test. Two days later, a well-rested squad took a 19-7 lead on Cape Coral en route to a 68-53 win. Port Charlotte closed out the week with a thorough dismissal of Lemon Bay, 59-23. Port Charlotte will play host to North Port on Tuesday, then head to Venice on Friday, looking for season sweeps against both.
3. Venice (7-6). A good guard combo can go a long way in high school basketball. Venice has a dynamic duo in Myles Weston and Jayshon Platt. The duo combined for 30 points in a 65-62 win against Sarasota in Venice’s lone game of the week. Venice has now won five of its past six games with the lone loss being a respectable 10-point setback against Charlotte. Up this week is a three-game slate that will be a great measuring stick for just how far Venice has come, beginning with a stern test at Booker on Monday. Tuesday is a dangerous trip to Arcadia to face a DeSoto County team that can spoil on a good night. Friday, Venice will welcome Port Charlotte with the hope of avenging one of its worst performances of the season – a 68-37 rout on the Pirates’ home floor.
4. Community Christian (6-3). In the wake of the Mustangs’ 60-59 win against DeSoto County on Tuesday, coach Kurt Baker said, “We stunk it up. (Desoto) deserved to win. … We got very fortunate, but we’ve been unlucky before, so I’ll take it.” That’s sort of how we’re feeling about this ranking of Community Christian. Are they the area’s No. 4 team based on their resume? No. Are they the No. 4 team based on how they are playing right now? By a process of elimination, yes. If Isaiah Levine’s buzzer-beater to top DeSoto County rimmed out, it might be the Bulldogs or North Port in this spot. Big players make big plays, though, and Levine came through. Brandon Hill has also been a force, scoring 24 points and grabbing 16 rebounds in that win. The Mustangs will play host to Bayshore Christian in a game that could put them in their district’s driver seat before facing Lemon Bay on Thursday and traveling to Imagine on Friday.
5. DeSoto County (6-7). So the Bulldogs lost to an 11-5 South Fort Myers 72-50 on the road Saturday. Cross that one off the list because DeSoto was playing its FOURTH game of the week. That’s just wacky. Instead, if one focuses on what the Bulldogs did during what should have been a difficult-but-not-unusual three-game work week, they went 2-1 with two dominating performances a last-second road defeat. That loss was the previously mentioned 60-59 setback at Community Christian. That could have been a DeSoto win after Nazir Gilchrist nailed a cold-blooded 3-pointer for a 59-58 lead with 9.7 seconds to play. What followed was a pair of business-class wins against Lake Placid and Fort Meade to sweep season series with both. This week, the individual matchups with Venice do not bode well for the Bulldogs, but keep an eye on their rivalry redux at Hardee on Friday. That is the true measure of how far DeSoto has come since their season-opening 60-46 loss against the Wildcats.
6. North Port (6-7). Let’s try and wrap our heads around North Port’s month. The Bobcats lost leading scorer Devin Riley to a broken foot before their Jan. 5 loss to Immokalee. This past Monday, North Port lost Justin Barolette to a leg injury and Logan King to a head injury. With a roster in churn, the Bobcats are in the middle of a five-game losing streak after Saturday’s 58-41 loss to Lakewood Ranch. So is North Port really just the sixth-best team in the area? No. But they aren't the fourth or fifth right now, either. To compound matters, this will not be a get-well week for North Port, with a road trip to Port Charlotte on Tuesday and a home date with Sarasota Riverview on Thursday. Gulp.
7. Lemon Bay (3-9). Well, your guess is as good as ours when it comes to the Mantas at this point. In their three wins, Lemon Bay scored 80, 78 and 74 points. In their nine defeats, Lemon Bay has been held to 45 or fewer points on five occasions, including a low-water mark of 23 this week against Port Charlotte. The math is simple: If the perimeter is being kind, Lemon Bay is going to put up some points. If not … yikes. All of this comes just in time for what likely is the most difficult week of Lemon Bay’s season – a home date with Charlotte on Tuesday followed by a meeting with South Fort Myers at the Wally Keller on Saturday.
8. Imagine (7-7). Yes, Imagine has occupied this spot all season, even during its hot early start. That doesn’t mean the Sharks are a bad team. They have done a great job of beating the teams they should beat. Tuesday’s home date against Oasis is another winnable game, but big asks await at the end of the week with home games Thursday against Sarasota Christian and Friday against Community Christian.
January 18, 2021 at 05:18AM
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Top three easy to see, next four hard to score - yoursun.com
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