Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Mission accomplished as U School repeats
LAKELAND – University School had only one goal entering this season: repeat as state champions.
The Sharks did just that, beating Jacksonville Andrew Jackson 72-46 in the Class 5A state championship at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland on Thursday.
“I think our future is exceptionally bright because of the guys that we have and knowing how hard they’re going to work,” U-School coach Jim Carr said. “We should be back here for many years to come. This is our only goal, the state championship.”
Missing star center and Duke commit Vernon Carey Jr., who was out with a right ankle sprain, for the second straight game, the Sharks (27-4) showed there will be no absence of talent in Davie when the McDonald’s AllAmerican is playing for the Blue Devils next year.
Junior forward Scottie Barnes, the No. 4 prospect in his class, according to 247Sports, had a strong allaround game, racking up 13 points with six rebounds and three assists.
‘The greatness of Scott Barnes is he’s so unselfish, and his energy level is so high,” Carr said.
Barnes got to end his game with a fourth-quarter dunk before being subbed out.
“It’s a great feeling,” Barnes said. “My teammates get in, the people that don’t really play, they get in and enjoy it.”
Forward Jace Howard, the son of former NBA player Juwan Howard, played in the frontcourt in Carey’s place. He finished the game with a team-best 17 points and five rebounds. His brother, Jett, scored eight points with three rebounds.
“Coach Carr believed in me, inserted me back into the starting lineup,” Jace Howard said. “They sacrificed so much for me, so I wanted to sacrifice a lot for them. I just felt like it’s my part to do.”
The Sharks had control of the game for nearly all 32 minutes, going ahead 35-21 by halftime.
“I think that game was over in the second quarter,” Andrew Jackson (25-7) coach James Collins said.
U-School continued its dominance into the second half, allowing only four points in the third quarter and getting out to a 52-25 advantage. Carr got to rotate 13 of his players into the game as the Sharks cruised to victory.
“We’re a really deep high school team,” Carr said. “We try to play 11 guys, which is a lot . ... I just can’t find enough minutes for really, really good players.”