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Highlands Today

Devils, Dragons Stumble In Bill Jarrett Tip-Off

Jesse Osbourne/Highlands Today

Lake Placid's Travalier Sholtz pounds the ball inside against Pendleton in the Dragons' loss in the Bill Jarrett Tip-Off Classic.

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By Christopher  Hoffman | Highlands Today

Published: November 18, 2007

AVON PARK — The division between prep and public schools was never more evident than during the opening of the Bill Jarrett Tip-Off Classic on Friday.

The transition from football to basketball is still under way for the Lake Placid boys basketball team, which looked sluggish in the first half against a very fresh Pendleton squad en route to a 71-57 defeat.

"It takes about two weeks to get our timing down and our shots to really start falling," said Green Dragon senior Conlin Veley. "I thought we played a really good and under-control second half. It's just going to take us some time to get going as a team."

Pendleton's players were in midseason form, in just their first game of the season, with all the players dedicated to a year-round basketball-only training regimen.

Panther forward Joey Moreau scored a game-high 20 points, including six 3-pointers to help Pendleton to an early 19-5 lead moments into the contest.

Trailing 41-24 at the half, Lake Placid found its legs in the second half, outscoring the Panthers 33-30, with Josh Hickey leading the way for the Green Dragons with 18 points, while Veley and Travalier Sholtz pitched in 12 and seven points, respectively.

LP head coach Levi Williams was enthusiastic about his team's play in the second half, but stressed the Green Dragons are a work in progress.

"These young guys did a good job tonight," Williams said. "I thought that we handled the pressure in the second half fairly well, we just can't have the constant helter-skelter play like we did in the first half.
"We made some adjustments and found our shooting touch late in the game, but we missed way too many lay-ups."

Down 54-33 late in the third quarter, the Green Dragons scored eight straight points, with Jaquez Dillon crashing the boards for several offensive rebounds and scoring on a tip-in to cut the Panther lead to 13 points. But Pendleton opened the fourth on a 7-2 run to increase the lead back to 21 and held off Lake Placid for the win.

The Green Dragons played Orlando Christian Prep in the second day of the Bill Jarrett Tip-Off Classic on Saturday. For game results, see Monday's Highlands Today.

Orlando Christian Prep 78, Avon Park 25

AVON PARK — Keith Clanton scored a game-high 24 points — including five dunks — as the Orlando Christian boys basketball team rolled past host Avon Park in the late game of the Bill Jarrett Tip-Off Classic on Friday.

Clanton, the 6-foot-8 junior center, got the pro-Avon Park crowd pumped up with a pair of alley-oop dunks in the second half, showing off the skills that are being honed for a possible Division-I college destination.

"I've been working hard all summer on my shot," Clanton said. "I'm more focused this season and conditioning is a priority right now, so I run every day to get better."

Avon Park had no answer inside for Clanton, who had three blocks in the first quarter alone, and the Devils finally had to rely on outside shooting for any offensive production.

The lack of practice time for the varsity team showed in their execution, as shots were short and passes were off-target at times, leading the Devils to fall behind 19-6 after the first quarter.

"I'm not sure what to expect from this team tonight," AP head coach Luther Clemons said before the game. "We only had seven hours of practice with the varsity team before our first game."

Xavier Caldwell led the Red Devils with eight points, while junior Virgil Cooper and Ernest Mercian had five points in the loss.

Avon Park played Pendleton in the late game on Saturday night. Check back for complete results.

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