Leesburg will forever lament missing 10 of its 20 free throws attempts, but that said the Yellow Jackets were still just one shot away from upsetting No. 1 ranked Fort Walton Beach Choctawhatchee in a Class 5A boys basketball state semifinal game Thursday afternoon.
A driving shot attempt by Justice Robinson rolled off the rim and a desperation 3-point try also missed at the buzzer as underdog Leesburg fell 59-58 at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
“Missing free throws. That was probably the biggest part of the game,” Leesburg sophomore Camerin James said after his team clawed back from 13 points behind – only to fall short.
Choctawhatchee (26-2), which lost playoff games to eventual state champions in each of the past three years, will play for the Florida High School Athletic Association title Saturday at 3 p.m.
Leesburg finished 16-5 and will carry over high hopes for the 2021-22 season after winning 13 of its final 15 games. Yellow Jackets coach Sean Campbell said he sensed a deep playoff run coming and then it played out with six straight playoff wins. Each step along the way to the final four was a learning experience, he said.
“We’re young, in a sense. Inexperienced,” Campbell said during a postgame news conference. “We grew every playoff game. For us to make it here was a magical moment.
“I’m super proud of how we played today. We just didn’t win.”
Leesburg was down 47-46 after scoring four points on one trip downcourt two minutes into the final quarter. The Jackets tied the game 53-53 when James forced a Choctaw miss, rebounded and pushed the ball ahead to Charles Hill for a basket.
But the Indians answered with a 3-point play by Isaiah Bledsoe with 44 seconds remaining and held on.
Leesburg’s nerves showed early as it missed its first eight field goal tries before junior Andre Carter finally got his team going by knocking down three consecutive 3-point shots in the final two minutes of the opening period. The first came off a swing pass assist by Robinson and the second cut the Choctaw lead to 14-10 — again assisted by Robinson. With time running down, an offensive rebound and quick pass to the corner by Leesburg’s Clifton Johnson led to Carter’s third 3-pointer to close the gap to 16-13 just before the buzzer sounded.
Leesburg made only 30.8% of its first-half shots (8-of-26) and was only 6-of-12 on free throw tries. But the Jackets bothered Choctaw with their run-and-jump defensive pressure in the second half and upped their production.
Carter, a 6-foot-3 guard, was 5-of-12 on 3-point tries and finished with a game-high 17 points. Robinson, a 6-4 senior, added 15 points and four assists. James, a 6-5 sophomore who led Leesburg in scoring for the season, fouled out with 1:12 to go and finished with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
This report was first published at OrlandoSentinel.com. Varsity Content Editor Buddy Collings can be reached at bcollings@orlandosentinel.com.
