PALMETTO — Sam Robinson grimaced and Palmetto's Norman Haynes pumped his fist in the air after draining a 3-pointer at the buzzer before halftime, a shot that turned out to be a tell-tale sign for the Sebring boys basketball team. The host Tigers pounced on the sluggish Streaks 88-71 in the opening round of the Class 4A-District 10 tournament on Tuesday, sending the Sebring home much earlier than they'd hoped. ...more

February 7, 2008

PALMETTO — Sitting in the parking lot of Avon Park High School when they were supposed to be warming up for a first-round playoff game wasn't the best of starts for the Avon Park boys basketball team on Tuesday night. "We were waiting for the bus at 3:45 p.m. and we didn't leave until 5:30 p.m. — which is crazy," said AP head coach Luther Clemons about a bus mishap that almost cost the Red Devils the game before they took a shot. ...more

February 7, 2008

The Palmetto boys basketball team had three players score in double figures on Tuesday night to lead the Tigers to a 88-71 victory over Sebring in the opening round of the Class 4A-District 10 tournament. ...more

February 6, 2008

Arnold Lewis had a game-high 26 points and 12 rebounds and Mark St. Fort added 19 points and seven blocks on Tuesday night to lead the Hardee boys basketball team to a 59-36 victory over Avon Park in the opening round of the Class 4A-District 10 tournament. ...more

February 6, 2008

Sam Piazza placed his arm around Gaither High senior guard Eddie Munoz and smiled. ...more

February 5, 2008

OKEECHOBEE – Despite a valiant fourth-quarter comeback, the Avon Park boys basketball team fell to Okeechobee 57-55 on Saturday night in the Brahman gym. Early foul trouble forced the Red Devils to sit freshman Alonzo Robertson, who finished with 11 points, and Tim Dennis, who did a good job on the boards. Okeechobee took advantage by taking a 35-18 halftime lead. Freshman Avierre Conner finished with 12 points and helped the Red Devils mount their second-half comeback. ...more

February 4, 2008

LAKE PLACID — Virgil Cooper had 10 points and Alonzo Robertson and Teddy Allen each added eight on Friday night as the Avon Park boys basketball team held off an inspired Lake Placid squad for a 44-39 victory in a cross-county showdown. "We played as a team and were focused," said Cooper, whose team watched its eight-point halftime lead dwindle to four with five minutes left before finishing off the Dragons late. "When we play together, we share the ball, and it's a lot more fun." ...more

February 3, 2008

SEBRING — Three Blue Streaks scored in double figures on Friday night to lead the Sebring boys basketball team to a 73-42 victory over LaBelle in the Streaks' final regular season game. Chris Grubb had 14 points, T.J. Williams had 13 and Sam Robinson added 11 in Sebring's final tune-up before the district tournament, which begins Tuesday at Palmetto. "We didn't play well at first, but we switched some things up and forced some turnovers," said Sebring coach Princeton Harris. "Our biggest thing now is staying humble — we haven't won anything yet." ...more

February 2, 2008

Derick Beltran is a 6-foot-3 senior guard/forward for the Spoto High boys basketball team. He leads the Spartans with 18.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Beltran, born in Queens, N.Y, was recently named Hillsborough County's Class 4A Player of the Year. Beltran transferred from Easy Bay to Spoto before his junior season, and he has helped bring the program some attention. Spoto coach Eric Brooks said a few Division II schools have shown interest. ...more

February 1, 2008

4A-8 BOYS BASKETBALL Orgass slam puts the exclamation point on a strong night for the Sharks ...more

January 29, 2008