Bulldogs Roll Red Devils

FROSTPROOF -- Getting off to a slow start proved costly for the Avon Park boys basketball team on Saturday night.

Frostproof took advantage as senior center Tony Pinion scored a game-high 17 points to go along with 10 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs past the Red Devils 59-45 in a non-district game.

To further compound the situation, Avon Park's 6-foot-7 sophomore center Cleveland Nobles picked up three quick fouls and spent most of the second quarter on the bench as Frostproof took a commanding lead.

"We're struggling as a team," said Nobles. "We're not doing things the right way, we're not executing and it's costing us games."

The loss dropped the Class 4A Red Devils to 2-12 on the season, while the 3A Bulldogs improved to 14-5.

"Losing Cleveland hurt us, but we didn't play very well either," said first-year Avon Park coach Luther Clemons. "Tim Dennis came in and did a real good job, but this is his first year of basketball at any level and he's still learning the game.

"We didn't execute our offense and made too many turnovers against a good Frostproof team."

The Bulldogs came out energized and stormed out to a quick lead as Pinion scored six points in the paint and sophomore guard Nickell Robey, who finished with 15 points, added five for a 17-6 advantage after the first eight minutes.

Frostproof extended its lead thanks to a full-court press that forced numerous Red Devil turnovers.

Robey poured in six points and Pinion chipped in with four as the Bulldogs took a 28-14 lead into the half.

Avon Park rallied in the opening minutes of the third quarter as Nobles dominated in the paint and scored six of his 10 points to pull the Red Devils within 32-24.

But a charging call put Nobles on the bench with his fourth foul and Frostproof took advantage of his absence as Mason Gravely scored six points in the paint to give the Bulldogs a 46-30 lead heading into the final eight minutes.

Dennis, who finished with 11 points and eight rebounds, did the best he could in place of Nobles, but Pinion got free for seven points, including a crowd-pleasing dunk on a break away to give Frostproof control of the game.

"Dennis gave us a good effort," said Clemons. "I could have put Cleveland back in, but I didn't want to take a chance on an injury or something when we were so far behind in a non-district game."

Derrick Mckenzie came off the bench to score all seven of his points in the closing minutes, but it wasn't enough to rally the Red Devils.

Avon Park plays at District 10 opponent Braden River on Tuesday, hosts Lake Placid on Thursday and the Red Devils are at Palmetto on Friday night.

With the district tournament coming up in two weeks, time to get things straightened out is running out.

"We have the talent to play with anybody in our district when we execute and play our game," said Clemons. "I'm going to bring up some guys from the junior varsity to give us more depth.

"We can't get down on ourselves, we have to stay positive and work to get better."

BOYS BASKETBALL:

Sebring, 69 Riverdale 53

FORT MYERS -- Sophomore forward Joe Young scored a game-high 16 points, pulled down 11 rebounds and added three blocks to lead Sebring to a 69-53 non-district win over Fort Myers Riverdale on Saturday night.

The win improved the Blue Streaks to 12-7.

"It was a good win," said Sebring coach Princeton Harris. "Our full-court press forced a lot of turnovers and the Riverdale coach said it was the most pressure his club has seen this year. "We had some foul trouble in the first half, but we stayed focused and came away with a solid win."

Senior forward Sam Robinson chipped in with 14 points, while Chris Grubb had 12 points and Nate Orozco added 10.

Sebring is back in action with critical District 10 home games against Palmetto on Tuesday and Hardee on Thursday night.

"If we can win both of those games, we have a shot at the No. 1 seed," said Harris. "We're playing well and we want to be playing our best at tournament time."