SBLive Sports’ Florida Boys Basketball Power 25: Windermere’s win over Olympia in 7A region semifinals vaults them up the rankings

Barron Collier and Lakeland make their way into the rankings this week

We are now in the playoff portion of the boys basketball season and the district playoffs did provide us some surprises. The upset win maybe of the year was a couple weeks when unranked Miami Palmetto defeated Columbus 66-64 for the Class 7A, District 16 championship. No one saw that coming, but now it shakes up this week’s rankings as region quarterfinal postseason play starts up. State semifinals and championships will be next week at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland. Find the complete breakdown of the SBLive Sports Florida Boys Basketball Power 25.

1. Montverde Academy (23-2): The Eagles needed a come-from-behind victory to defeat IMG Academy on the road last week. Nonetheless, the Eagles have remained solid at the top spot all year long. Liam McNeeley now leads the team in scoring at 12.3 points per game.

2. IMG Academy (17-7): In what was a highly anticipated rematch between the Ascenders and No. 1 Eagles, IMG held a lead for some of this contest before falling 62-52. This IMG Academy is still one of the most talented teams in the Sunshine State. The Ascenders recent win over Legacy Early College (South Carolina) helped offset a loss to DME Academy.

3. Columbus (23-4): Shock of the season came last week when the Explorers fell to an unranked Miami Palmetto team at districts. Columbus does have wins over strong programs like Wyatt (TX), DME Academy and Sierra Canyon (CA). Only losses have come to Duncanville (TX), Imhotep Charter (PA), John Marshall (VA) and now Miami Palmetto.

4. Mater Lakes Academy (25-3): The only losses of the season for the Bears came up against No. 7 Sagemont, Crossroads (CA) and Columbus. Other than that, this Mater Lakes club has rolled so far through the competition. Recent wins versus Winter Haven and Riviera Prep have been huge.

5. Winter Haven (25-4): An impressive tournament win in the Kevin Brown TOC in Illinois was a strong start to the season. The Blue Devils will be a contender for the Class 7A state championship come March. Winning the 49th annual Kingdom of the Sun championship game against Winter Haven helped prove they belong among the best in the state. Since losing to Mater Lakes Academy, the Blue Devils have won ten straight.

6. Riviera Prep (24-6): The Bulldogs started off the season with an impressive wins over South Dade, Keys Gate and Schoolhouse Prep. Riviera Prep brings back sophomore Dante Allen, who is averaging 21.8 points per game for the Bulldogs.

7. Orlando Christian Prep (23-3): The season started with a win for the Warriors as they edged out Edgewater 56-49 in a tightly contested matchup. Losses have come against Olympia and Tampa Catholic in overtime. The Warriors also lost in overtime to Winter Haven recently, but have bounced back with six wins in a row. 

8. Oak Ridge (18-9): The Pioneers are on a roll now in the postseason. Wins over Tri-Cities (GA) and Mainland are solid, but the more impressive victories followed against Windermere and The Villages Charter. The Pioneers were on a roll going into the Class 7A, District 5 championship game before falling to Olympia 71-66 but snapped Lake Worth’s 21-game winning streak in the region semis. 

9. Sagemont (26-4): After winning 25 games in the 2021-2022 season, Sagemont raced out to start the season with an undefeated start with wins over Somerset Academy, Boyd Anderson and Riviera Prep early on. Only losses have come to North Oldham (KY), Alexander (GA), Lake Worth and Miami Country Day.

10. Westminster Academy (21-7): A loss to Mater Lakes drops the Lions down in our Power 25, but this Westminster Academy club is still a contender in Class 3A. A big win over North Broward Prep was a nice notch to the belt, but then lost to IMG Academy Blue a few days later. At the MAIT Invitational, Westminster lost to Montverde, Durango (NV) and Riviera Prep.

11. Belen Jesuit (25-4): The Wolverines debuted into our Power 25 rankings and recent wins over Doral Academy and Archbishop McCarthy brought them in. Not to mention their only four losses have come to Riviera Prep, Archbishop Moeller (OH), Miami Palmetto and Mater Lakes Academy, who are ranked No. 4 in these rankings.

12. Lake Worth (22-2): Senior point guard Calvin Sirmans is averaging a team-high 14.3 points per game for the Trojans. Lake Worth’s season ends in the Class 7A region semifinals in a 79-64 loss to Oak Ridge. The loss snapped a 21-game winning streak. 

13. Windermere (19-7): The Wolverines are playing some of their best basketball as of late and they have the wins to prove it. Amongst the impressive wins have come against Mills University Studies (AR), Edgewater, Tampa Catholic and Apopka. A recent win over Olympia 66-51 at home makes Windermere the biggest mover of any team. 

14. Dwyer (24-1): The Panthers are no longer an undefeated team after losing to No. 8 Lake Worth. Dwyer has played in just four games that have ended in single digits. Senior Mason Brown leads the Panthers in scoring at 14.0 points per game.

15. Olympia (26-3): Jizzle James has been one of the top players around and remains a strong contender in Class 7A. Titans were impressive in a 71-66 win over Oak Ridge for the Class 7A, District 5 championship. Olympia drops the furthest of any team after a 66-51 loss to Windermere in the Class 7A region semifinals. 

16. Southridge (21-7): The Spartans are another South Florida club that we couldn’t wait to have slowly climb up the Power 25. A recent 73-60 win over North Miami earned Southridge the Class 6A, District 16 crown. Southridge’s only losses are to No. 4 Mater Lakes, Grant County (KY), Berkeley Prep, No. 11 Belen Jesuit, No. 17 St. Thomas Aquinas, No. 3 Columbus and No. 14 Dwyer.  

17. St. Thomas Aquinas (23-4): The Raiders have catapulted themselves into the Power 25 rankings with a strong start. A win over Clearwater Calvary Christian recently was impressive. Only losses have come against South Gwinnett of Georgia, Riviera Prep, South Plantation and Pembroke Pines Charter in the Class 6A region semifinals. 

18. FSU High (27-2): Right out of the gates, the Seminoles have been one of the Big Bend’s top clubs. The Seminoles have wins over Florida A&M, Oldsmar Christian and Lee (AL). The Seminoles just lost 76-68 to Maclay in the Class 3A, District 1 championship. Florida State University avenged its only two losses of the season with a win over Maclay in the region semifinals in Class 3A. 

19. Norland (21-7): A little bit of a surprise to start the season off has been Norland, who owns quality wins over Miami Country Day and Bartow. The Vikings have a tough regular season slate that includes Leesburg and Gulliver Prep. Norland recently lost 72-60 to No. 10 Mater Lakes Academy and Palmetto, which drops them in these recent rankings.

20. Wekiva (25-4): The Mustangs won six games in a row before that streak was snapped in a 59-45 loss to Edgewater in the Class 6A, District 6 championship game. Despite the loss, the Mustangs remain one of the top teams in the state and Central Florida. Wekiva faces Lakeland in the Class 6A region final. 

21. Providence School (27-2): The Stallions have been scoring the basketball just about as good as anyone, averaging around 66.5 points per game. This team has shown they are for real in the early going. Can they keep it up? A loss against unranked Barron Collier has sent Providence School tumbling down our rankings.

22. Tampa Catholic (18-10): A team that’s been somewhat up and down this season because of a tough regular season schedule is Tampa Catholic. Stellar play from star forward Karter Knox and guard Eddrin Bronson has this team rolling heading into the playoffs. The Crusaders defeated Berkeley Prep 60-50 for the Class 3A, District 9 championship.

23. Lakeland (24-4): So the Dreadnaughts aren’t just good at football, ya know. Lakeland’s boys basketball team has been playing really good ball as of late and a win over Edgewater in the Class 6A region semifinals sets up a home date versus Wekiva. 

24. DME Academy (25-7): This DME Academy team has played a very tough schedule through 32 games. The Daytona Beach-based team has wins over nationally ranked IMG Academy, The Rock, Williston and Edgewater.

25. Barron Collier (23-5): We’ve got to give the Barron Collier its flowers on this season. The Cougars have some impressive victories on the season to back them up, including Cardinal Mooney, Palmetto Ridge, Naples and No. 21 Providence School. 

Teams on the bubble: Brooks-DeBartolo, Gibbs, Andrew Jackson, Evans, Lake Highland Prep, Pine Forest, Jones, Berkeley Prep, Bradford, Wharton, North Florida Educational Institute, NSU University, Leesburg, Pembroke Pines Charter, Maclay, The Rock, Doral Academy, St. Petersburg, Suwannee, The Villages.

Andy Villamarzo can be reached at andyvillamarzo@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @Andy_Villamarzo.