2023 recaps

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – A year after disappointment, the Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) Lions returned with a vengeance to the GEICO High School Nationals. No way would they be denied in the championship game. They are taking the hardware back to southwest Missouri and would not take no for an answer. This time they weren’t denied. From the opening tip, the Lions wanted it more. Their play was ferocious and it showed. GEICO Nationals champions has a nice ring to it. Well, that’s the only moniker befitting the team that wears the crown following three grueling games…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Lady Eagles of Montverde (Fla.) Academy completed the sweet repeat on Saturday morning. They needed a ginormous rally in the second half, notably in the fourth quarter, to win a second consecutive GEICO High School Nationals championship. The Lady Eagles waited all season for a chance to win it all and over seven weeks since they last played in February but it was worth the wait. Say it again: Montverde Academy Lady Eagles are GEICO Nationals champions! Montverde concluded the championship season at 26-1. Montverde used a 19-6 run to close out…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) nearly took things granted before a healthy dose of reality kicked in. The Lions enjoyed a large lead in the first half and into the third quarter. All the while eighth-seeded Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) just kept within touching distance. The Buffaloes actually clipped 24 points off a once mammoth lead before the Lions pushed back to score the game’s final seven points in a 67-61 victory in the GEICO High School semifinals Friday evening at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWestern…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – It took 93 seconds at the onset of the fourth quarter, AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) decided the game. That’s when the Dragons flicked the switch on and that was that. After scoring 36 points in 24 minutes, the Dragons struck for 32 points in the final eight and defeated IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), 68-50, Thursday in the boys semifinals of the GEICO High School Nationals Thursday in the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State University. AZ Compass Prep’s fourth quarter showing resembled a blitzkrieg with constant scoring,…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – Cori Allen showed why she’s considered one of the clutch players from the Class of 2023. With the game still in the balance and Westtown (West Chester, Pa.) just waiting to pounce, the senior guard who is headed to Illinois in the fall, took the game into her hands. After a quick crossover, head fake and fadeaway jumper that swished, Allen completed the three-point play that eventually propelled top-seeded Montverde (Fla.) Academy over the Moose, 58-51, Friday in the semifinals of the GEICO High School Nationals inside the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – Kate Koval did not hold back on Friday. When you talk about playing at GEICO High School Nationals, you are gathering the best of the best teams and usually players. But Koval entered the event’s pantheon. Whenever second-seeded Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) needed points, rebounds or reason to protect the rim, the 6-foot-5 junior giant from Ukraine was there. Koval’s 38 points and 16 rebounds were a double-double. Her points were the most in the history of the GEICO Nationals since its inception in 2008. Mostly the Crusaders were grateful because they…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – For the second straight year, the GEICO High School Nationals’ top seed lost in a quarterfinal thriller. And for the first time in four years, there will be a new boys’ champion. That’s because the unthinkable unfurled Thursday evening. Eighth-seeded Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) scored the game’s final seven points in the last 64 seconds to complete a shocking 46-45 win over the nation’s No. 1 team inside the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWest State University. Down 45-39, the Buffaloes tore to the finish. It started…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – To replicate the GEICO High School Nationals is to experience it. Live it. Play it. And have success in it. Well, Rayvon Griffith scored the final seven points for seventh-seeded AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) in the final 96 seconds, including the game-winner off a putback with 10 second left and the Dragons edged second-seeded Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.), 73-71, Thursday in the quarterfinals of the GEICO Nationals inside the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the campus of Florida SouthWest State University. AZ Compass Prep has played in this event before while…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – Blue Cain turned a precarious situation for IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) into an instant classic ending. IMG had coughed up a big lead in the fourth quarter to Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.). But Cain, a Georgia Tech pledge and long-distance shooting specialist, doesn’t rattle easy. The Crew had tied the game at 63 with Auburn-bound guard Aden Holloway swished a fadeaway three-point field goal with 8.2 seconds remaining. After a timeout it was chaos until Cain relied on his instincts. There was no time to react. The Crew swarmed Cain with a double…

By Christopher Lawlor FORT MYERS, Fla. – There are no upsets or Cinderella stories at the GEICO High Schools just the best schoolboy basketball anywhere. Take Thursday afternoon when a pair of nationally ranked program with strong dossiers took the court. Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) may have been the higher seed but St. Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) was their equal. And so, it came down to made free throws and rebounds for the Link Lions. In the fourth quarter, the Lions dropped 12 of 14 free throws and won the war on the boards but the game was decided until…