Montverde cruises to win over St. Francis

Montverde (Fla.) coach Kevin Boyle had last year’s overtime win over St. Francis (Ga.) in the back of his mind as the teams met again Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the Beach Ball Classic.

The Knights came close to beating Boyle’s Eagles in last year’s City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Fla., but this time it was a different story.

Montverde – No. 1 in the USA Today Super 25 Poll – got out to an early lead and used a balanced attack to hold off St. Francis for an 81-55 victory at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center to advance to the semifinals.

“We’re excited to move on; this is such a great tournament,” Boyle said. “[St. Francis] gave us an overtime game last year, which we were lucky to win at the City of Palms. So we knew they were capable of beating us if we didn’t play well.”

Boyle didn’t have to worry about that Tuesday. His Eagles came out ready to play, opening the game on a 25-9 run and taking a 22-point lead into halftime.

“We know what we’re supposed to do when we get on the court. We came out and executed early and that was important for us,” Montverde junior Anfernee Simons said. “I thought we played good. We were just carrying over what we did [Saturday].”

The Eagles also limited St. Francis’ star point guard Kobi Simmons to just eight points and shooting guard Anthony Showell to just five in the first half, which Boyle said was huge.

“I thought we did a real good job on their guards, Kobi and Anthony Showell. I think in the first half, we held them to 2-for-11 from the field,” Boyle said. “I thought we really guarded them well, and I think we guarded the 3-point shot well in the first half.”

However, Boyle wasn’t as pleased with his team’s performance in the second half.

“We had a little bit of a lapse in defense and rotating, and kind of let up a little in the second half,” he said. “It’s hard when you’re up by 25 to push it to the next level; we try to be consistent throughout the game. But we’re just excited to move on, it’s such a great tournament. St. Francis, I have a lot of respect for them; coach [Drew Catlett] does a terrific job.”

Simons finished with 13 points, three rebounds and two assists, but the play of big men Bruno Fernando and Silvio De Sousa -- both natives of Angola -- gave Montverde the boost it needed down low.

Fernando had a team-high 17 points on 7-for-8 shooting, and De Sousa added 13 points on 5-for-5 shooting.

“I thought Bruno -- he’s been a little banged up -- played really well today,” Boyle said. “Together, [Fernando and De Sousa] were 12-for-13 from the floor. They’re both pinning people in from deep, they’re both attacking the rim. So their field goal percentage is off the chart.

“… Anfernee is a really capable shooter. He hasn’t shot it consistently, like we know he’s capable of. We’re starting him because we think he’s going to come out of the shell, and he’s a new player to this team. I think he was just new to the environment at first, but now he’s starting to come out.”

Meanwhile, Simmons finished with a game-high 18 points, but fouled out with over five minutes left. Showell scored 17, and Chance Anderson came up with 11 points and 10 rebounds for St. Francis, which will have to play Archbishop Moeller (Ohio) on Wednesday at noon.

Knights coach Drew Catlett is eager to see how his team responds with such a short turnaround.

“You know, the toughest thing is we have to regroup because we have to play [Wednesday] at noon,” Catlett said. “After playing a physical game like that, the guys are pretty spent. I’m anxious to see what kind of heart we have with a gut check tomorrow coming back; Moeller can play and they’ve had two days off. So they’ll be ready to go and we’ll need to be prepared too.”

Catlett gave credit to Boyle and his Eagles for being the national powerhouse they are, winning the Dick's National High School Championship live on ESPN at Madison Square Garden three years in a row.

“It’s always good to measure yourself against good teams like that,” Catlett said. “My last year’s team was a lot better; I lost four starters. But my kids competed tonight and didn’t back down. Montverde is constantly in the top 5, top 10 for a reason. They have a lot of good players.”

The Eagles will look to keep things rolling as they’re back in action Wednesday. Montverde will play Seton Hall Prep (N.J.) in the semifinals at 7 p.m.

“We just need to play like we have been and that’s playing team basketball,” Simons said.

This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 10:37 PM with the headline "Montverde cruises to win over St. Francis."