Avon Park Holds Off Top-Seeded Palmetto

Playing with confidence and under control, Avon Park got 25 points from forward Alonzo Robertson and 23 points from center Cleveland Nobles en route to a 74-59 victory over Palmetto in district boys basketball on Friday night.

The key Class 4A-District 10 win improved the Red Devils to 8-4 in district play and clinched a probable No. 2 seed at the district tournament in two weeks in DeSoto.

"I'm very pleased with the win," said Avon Park coach Luther Clemons. "We didn't have much defensive effort in the first half, but we talked about that at halftime and stepped up the pressure in the second half.

"Alonzo showed up big tonight, Cleveland was solid and I believe we're going to win the tiebreaker with Sebring for second place in the district."

Robertson, a 6-foot-5 sophomore who also pulled down 15 rebounds, said some early practice paid off in the big win over the Tigers, who will be the No. 1 seed for the tournament.

"I've been struggling in practice," said Robertson. "So I came out early before the game and worked on my post moves.

"I got good position, made my first couple of shots and that helped my confidence."

Palmetto scored the first six points of the game, but Avon Park answered with a 9-0 run and took a 14-13 lead into the second period.

The Red Devils showed good patience and worked the ball inside against the Palmetto zone.

Robertson scored 13 points, all in the paint, and Nobles, who hauled in 11 rebounds, added seven points to give Avon Park a 35-34 lead at the half.

The smaller Tigers stayed close as Reggie Barty scored six of his team-high 11 points.

Avon Park's superior size wore down Palmetto as Nobles exploded for 10 points in the third quarter to give the Red Devils an eight-point lead heading into the final eight minutes.

Palmetto's Raymond Perry scored seven of his 11 points, including a 3-pointer, to pull the Tigers within eight points with 5:45 remaining.

Avon Park responded with back-to-back buckets by Tekovin Miller and Avierre Conner to push the lead back to double digits.

Palmetto missed its next several shots and the Red Devils ran their offense, took time off the clock on each possession and made their free throws to seal the win.

"That's the best half of basketball we've played this season," said Clemons. "We showed good patience, didn't turn the ball over and made our free throws down the stretch.

"Palmetto is a good team and this kind of win should give us a lot of confidence heading into the district tournament."

If Avon Park is the No. 2 seed, the Red Devils would play Hardee in the first round of the tournament.

"If we play defense, don't turn the ball over and execute, we can play with anybody," said Clemons. "We're really tough at home, but we have to take that same intensity and effort on the road if we want to be successful in the district tournament."