Bucknor leads Miami High girls to opening win in Junior Orange Bowl hoops tourney
If it was a hoops fix you wanted, it was a hoops fix you got on Friday as a load of boys’ and girls’ basketball quarterfinal games beginning a 9 a.m. and running late in to the evening kicked off the 25th Annual Junior Orange Bowl Basketball Classic at Palmetto High School.
The headliner performance came on the girls’ side from two-time defending state runner-up Miami High.
Fresh off a trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where they won two of three games in the CresCom Bank Holiday Invitational, the Stingarees opened up the Junior OB Tournament with a 53-37 win over Cornerstone Christian from Willoughby, Ohio.
As she does often, Colleen Bucknor, the Miami Herald’s 9A-6A Player of the Year last season, led the way with 18 points, a dozen rebounds and four blocked shots as MHS pulled out to a 29-15 halftime lead and was never threatened.
Kiara Cruz also enjoyed a big afternoon as she finished with 15 points, including three three-pointers. Jeanine Scott also contributed with eight points and two steals. Miami High, which improved to 10-2, moves into Saturday afternoon’s semifinal where the Stings will take on Palm Beach Lakes at 5 p.m.
On the boys’ side, Anthony “AJ” Lopez scored 20 points while Joaqin Maza was 4-for-8 from beyond the arc to lead Miami Schoolhouse Prep to an easy 76-53 win over Bullitt East High School from Mt. Washington, Kentucky.
Schoolhouse will take on Mater Academy in a 6:30 p.m. semifinal on Saturday after the Lions (9-2) held off Centerville (Ohio) 54-46 in their quarterfinal. Malik Reneau led the way for Mater with 18 points and eight rebounds.
North Miami fell behind Mount St. Joseph (Maryland) 25-12 after one quarter and could never catch up as the Pioneers dropped an 81-56 decision. Vee’lesk Avin had a huge game for North Miami (8-2) as he poured in 26 points to lead all scorers.
Palmetto took on Mount Lebanon (Pennsylvania) in the late game. The two championship games are scheduled for Monday, Dec. 30 at 6:30 p.m. (girls) and 8 p.m. (boys).
OTHER GIRLS’ QUARTERFINAL GAMES
▪ Norland 50, Tampa Chamberlain 27: Ronaltha Marc (15) Jaiyah Harris-Smith (15) and Tamar Nijhove (12) led the way for the Vikings (8-3) as they combined for 42 of Norland’s 50 points. Nijove did her damage from beyond the arc, draining four three-pointers, and Marc and Harris-Smith also pulled down five rebounds apiece. Norland will take on Vance (N.C.) in a semifinal game at 3:30 p.m.
▪ Palm Beach Lakes 72, Nova 62: Sh’Naya Anderson and Zaida Gonzalez led the way for Lakes with 19 points each as the Rams jumped out to a 21-6 lead after one quarter and were never threatened. Sarei McGill and Joey Delancy led the way for Nova (9-2) with 18 and 14 points, respectively
▪ Vance (N.C.) 89, Homestead Keys Gate Charter 73: Amber Mateo and Amari Hunter had big games, scoring 22 and 20 points, respectively, but it wasn’t enough to carry Keys Gate to the win as it fell behind 30-17 after one quarter and trailed the entire way.
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE
GIRLS: 9 a.m.: Keys Gate Charter vs. Tampa Chamberlain; 10:30 a.m.: Nova vs. Cornerstone Christian (OH); SEMIFINALS: 3:30 pm.: Vance (N.C) vs. Norland; 5 p.m.: Palm Beach Lakes vs. Miami High
BOYS: Noon: Bullitt East (Ky.) vs. Centerville (OH); 1:30 p.m.: North Miami vs. Palmetto or Mt. Lebanon, Pa.; SEMIFINALS: 6:30 p.m.: Mater Academy vs. Schoolhouse Prep, 8 p.m.; Mount St. Joseph (Md.) vs. Palmetto or Mt. Lebanon, Pa.
SIGNING
He may still a ways off from graduating from high school but that didn’t keep Riviera Prep. freshman Eric Fernandez, Class of 2023, from making up his mind early on where he wants to take his baseball talents. Earlier this week, Fernandez, a Miami Herald First Team All-County player last season as an eighth-grader, verbally committed to play for the University of Miami. A 6-1 left-handed hitting shortstop, Fernandez hit .490 as Riviera Prep launched its inaugural baseball season.
