Recapping the 5A Finals

Recapping the 5A Finals By Michael Wholey 2/28/22 4:00 PM EST American Heritage (Plantation) and Bishop Moore advance to state championship game after defeating Pine Forest and Charlotte in the semi-finals with American Heritage (Plantation) taking home the 5A State Championship for their 5th consecutive state championship!   <img class=" wp-image-393352 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/Taniya-Latson-FSU-3-169x300.jpeg" alt="" width="133" height="236" />   American Heritage (Plantation) took care of business convincingly in Lakeland defeating Pine Forest 77-49 in the semi-finals and then defeating Bishop Moore 69-31 in the finals on their way to winning the FHSAA 5A State Championship and American Heritage 5th consecutive state championship! In the semi-final game, American Heritage used full court pressure and aggressive man to man defense to jump on Pine Forest early, including an impressive 20-0 run in the first half and taking a 41-18 lead. Florida State signee [player_tooltip player_id="118146" first="Ta’Niya" last="Latson"], scoring 33 points (a game high for the 2022 state tournament) and collected 8 rebounds to go along with 5 steals and 5 assists. Unsigned Seniors [player_tooltip player_id="91566" first="Joey" last="Delancy"] and [player_tooltip player_id="91565" first="Emani" last="Theodule"] also finished in double digits with Delancy dropping 11 and Theodule scoring 10.   <img class="size-medium wp-image-393353 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/Emani-Theodule-2018-TS.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" />In the finals, American Heritage was once again superior to their opponent Bishop Moore, scoring the game’s first basket off the opening tip and jumping right into the full court press and never letting their foot off the gas. The Patriots only dressed 8 and relied heavily on their starting 5. Theodule and Latson put it on Bishop Moore early, scoring 23 of their teams 26 points to start the game behind hot outside shooting. The team shot an impressive 9/17 from 3 and had four players finish with double digits. Latson once again led the team in scoring with 24 points, while Theodule dropped 15, Delancy 14, and Gabriela Dumas chipping in with 10.     <img class=" wp-image-371726 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/01/Brasko-scaled-e1641238482729-258x300.jpg" alt="" width="213" height="247" />   Bishop Moore played the role of Cinderella, defeating Charlotte 51-46 in the semi-finals but just did not have enough fire power to take down American Heritage (Plantation) in the finals. In one of the top games of the tournament, Bishop Moore took a 28-22 lead at the half and held on tight, squeaking out a close win. They relied on a balanced offensive attack with their top 4 scorers combining for 43 of their teams 51 points, with Brooke Allen, Alexandra Merceron, and [player_tooltip player_id="247238" first="Alyssa" last="Brasko"] all scoring in double digits. And while their balanced offensive attack helped get them to the finals, it could not help them take home the championship as American Heritage held them to 31 points on 23% from the field and 0/10 from 3. Brooke Allen and Alexandra Merceron once again led them in scoring, with Lynnelle Mosqueda chipping in with 6 points, knocking down 4/4 from the free throw line. <img class="wp-image-382898 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/02/Aryana-Hicks-Charlotte-201x300.jpg" alt="" width="171" height="255" />     In the semi-final matchup against American Heritage, Pine Forest did all they could to stay competitive with American Heritage. [player_tooltip player_id="91603" first="Tahnyjia" last="Purifoy"] finished with a team-high 26 points, including 15 in the second half while Senior forward Niylia Wilkins dropped 21. Charlotte trailed by 6 at half and by 13 with 7:43 to go in the game but used aggressive defensive pressure and hot outside shooting to take the lead with 2 minutes to go. Unfortunately, after trailing by double digits and making a huge come back, they could not hold off Bishop Moore dropping the game 51-46. Junior [player_tooltip player_id="91644" first="D’Yanis" last="Jimenez"] finished with 15 points, [player_tooltip player_id="151272" first="Aryana" last="Hicks"] scored 14, and [player_tooltip player_id="153377" first="Kristen" last="Lowers"] finished with 9.       Michael Wholey is the lead scout for Florida Prep Girls Hoop Florida and a former division one Assistant Coach at American University, University of Memphis, and Georgia Tech. Wholey and the rest of the Prep Girls Hoop staff, seek to cover the entire state of player, keeping subscribers up to date with player evaluations, recruiting info, and statewide news. Our audience often supplies us with some of our best information. If you have any information on players, teams, or statewide news in the state of Florida, emailing Michael Wholey at <a href="mailto:WholeyPrepHoops@gmail.com">WholeyPrepHoops@gmail.com</a> or DM him through Twitter or Instagram @WholeyPrepHoops.