Edgewater rolls in Tip-Off opener
It has been 14 years since a school scored at least a three-peat in the Winter Park Rotary Tip-Off Classic. But the Edgewater Eagles may be well on their way after soaring past Lake Highland Prep 78-54 on Thursday night.
Two-time defending champion Edgewater (1-1) used some speedy guard play from Dequarius Jordan and Shakur Poteat and strong post play from 6-foot-5 junior Michael Eads Jr. to win its first-round game at Winter Park High School. Jordan had 12 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists for a triple-double.
Poteat had a game-high 16 points, and Eads and Tristan Curry 12 points each for the Eagles, who emptied their bench after taking a commanding 60-39 lead after the third quarter.
Edgewater will take on Daytona Beach Mainland (1-0) in a semifinal Friday at 8:30 p.m. Mainland blew past Winter Park 60-48 in an earlier first-round game. Atlantic (2-0) will play Seminole (1-0) in the opening semifinal at 7 following a 5:15 consolation game.
“We have a young team in terms of experience,” said Edgewater coach Jason Atherton. “We’re going to have some growing pains. We’ve got to lean on Dequarius Jordan, Michael Eads and Trevon Cason. Those are our experienced guys.”
Mainland (1-0), which fell one victory short of the Class 7A final four last season, utilized superior height and athleticism to defeat Winter Park 60-48. The Buccaneers had three players score in double figures, led by Taron Keith with 21 points, and used a 14-5 fourth quarter run to pull away.
“I just let them play,” Mainland coach Joe Giddens said. “They learn from it. They started to make adjustments.”
Winter Park (0-1) trailed 34-17 at halftime but used a 12-0 thirdquarter run to claw back to within two, 37-35. Van Wilkes, who led the Wildcats with 14 points, had four in that run.
But Mainland responded with a 14-5 spurt in the fourth quarter, paced by eight points from Keith, to surge ahead 58-43.
“I’m okay with it,” Giddens said. “We were down 18 in the regionals last year and he came over to the bench and said, ‘D
In a consolation game, 6-foot-4 senior Nathan Louis scored 14 points and Zach Anderson nine to lead Apopka past Boone 34-27 in a defensive slugfest. Apopka will play in the fifth-place game on Saturday at 5:15 p.m.