Seven teams boys basketball in Southwest Florida claim district championships

Barron Collier, Charlotte, Gateway, Gateway Charter, Mariner, Palmetto Ridge, Seacrest win titles

The boys basketball district finals were held on Friday, Feb. 10, and there was plenty of action throughout Southwest Florida. Here is a rundown of the district championship games in Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties.

Class 2A-District 12

Seacrest 79, St. John Neumann 77: This back-and-forth battle was the game of the night in Southwest Florida.

Seacrest led by three in the final minute before Neumann tied it on a long 3-pointer from Eric Morgan. The Stingrays (13-12) then claimed the district title on a short jumper by Nick Cassano in the closing seconds.

Seacrest star Nick Cassano dropped 43 points on St. John Neumann in the Class 2A-District 12 championship game, including a short jumper in the closing seconds to lift the Stingrays to a thrilling 79-77 victory / Photo courtesy of Nick Cassano Twitter

His final shot was the biggest, but Cassano scored all night long, ending up with 43 points. And he did it with just two 3-pointers. Cassano made 12 two-point shots and was 10-for-11 from the line.

Morgan nearly matched him. The Neumann senior had 31 points, including five 3s, despite not scoring in the first quarter.

As a team Seacrest was 26-for-28 from the line. The Stingrays did not miss from the line in the second half, including 11 straight in the fourth quarter.

"I'm really happy for my kids," Seacrest coach Bill Carufe said. "Right before Christmas we were 2-7. We really turned things around in January. They've had perseverance and worked really hard to have a great second half of the season."

St. Stephen's 59, Evangelical Christian 48: The top-seeded Falcons from Bradenton came in highly favored, and they took care of business. St. Stephen's won the district title, secured a home game in regionals, and improved to 20-7 on the season.

ECS got 18 points from Ashton Peterson and 16 from Gavin Williams. The Sentinels (9-18) likely will not earn an at-large bid to regionals. St. Stephen's is the only team in the district to finish with a winning record.

Class 3A-District 12

Gateway Charter 70, First Baptist Academy 55: The rematch of a thrilling regular season game, which FBA won 64-63, wasn't nearly as entertaining. The host Griffins raced out to a 15-2 lead on the way to the first district title in program history.

FBA (18-7), which made it to the state final four last season, fought back to tie the game in the second quarter. However, Gateway Charter (22-5) scored 10 straight points to take the lead for good.

Senior Jahmari Johnson scored 21 points to lead the Griffins. Patrick Johnson, a sophomore, also scored 21 points. For FBA, senior Latrell Davis had more than half his team's points, finishing with 32.

Class 4A-District 12

Gateway 80, Estero 65: Gateway High School, east of Fort Myers in Lee County, has only been open two years. And yet the Eagles boys basketball team already has two district championships to its name.

Junior Tavian Cook scored 43 points, a record for the young school. That includes 27 points in the second half when Gateway (17-6) needed them the most. Estero led 38-32 at halftime.

Tucker led Estero (13-10) with 21 points, while A.J. Tatham had 18 for the Wildcats.

Class 5A-District 12

Barron Collier 76, Lely 59: The Cougars' super seniors led Barron Collier to a second straight championship. The four senior starters combined for 58 points and 10 3-pointers.

Bryce Clayon sank six 3s and finished with 21 points. Noah French had 15 points, followed by Mike Reyes with 12 and Brayden Touchette with 11.

The Cougars won just the seventh district title in program history (dating back to 1978). It was only the second time Barron Collier has won back-to-back titles. The last time was 2011 and 2012, which also was the last time the team had a winning record before coach David Watts arrived.

With the win, Barron Collier improves to 21-5, its most wins since 2012.

The Cougars have had a winning record all four seasons under Watts.Senior guard Roy Obsaint led Lely (11-14) with 16 points. Freshman Sam Powell scored 13 for the Trojans.

Class 5A-District 11

Mariner 61, Port Charlotte 47: The Tritons, from Cape Coral, never trailed and held a double-digit lead most the second half. Mariner (18-9) led by as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter.

Kelvin Jimenez scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Tritons, while Marcus Kelley contributed 17 more. For Port Charlotte (16-8), Jah Chin scored 14 points and Caleb Campos had nine.

Class 6A-District 12

Palmetto Ridge 70, Immokalee 64: The Bears continued one of the best seasons in school history by winning a district title in coach John Solak's second season. Palmetto Ridge (21-3) shot 55 percent from the floor, including 8-of-16 on 3-pointers.

The Bears were up 14 points at the half, but Immokalee (14-11) pulled within six to start the fourth quarter. Both teams scored 27 in an up-and-down final period.

Senior Iago Stanback hit five 3s and scored 27 points to lead Palmetto Ridge. Calven Charles added 16 points, eight rebounds, nine assists and two steals. Immokalee was led by Alijah Pierre with 17 points.

Class 6A-District 11

Charlotte 77, Fort Myers 55: The Tarpons drilled 13 3-pointers to run away with their second straight district title. Chris Cornish led Charlotte (14-13) with 20 points, and Jordan Attia added 15.

Fort Myers dropped to 10-17 and likely won't earn an at-large bid to the FHSAA regionals. Mar'quielle Tory scored 11 points for the Green Wave.