Jacksonville Fl- It was a slow start for Temple Christian in the Class 2A Regional Final versus Aucilla Christian. They nursed a 3-0 lead through six minutes into the first period, and led by a narrow 9-4 advantage at the end of one period. It wasn’t the start that the up and coming team from Jacksonville’s Westside envisioned, leading just 23-12 at halftime. Yet Coach Aaron Daise was not in a daze over his teams sluggish start. He settled his squad down at halftime, and got them to focus on playing their style of basketball. His halftime speech certainly worked as Temple Christian doubled their first half point total rolling to a convincing 69-48 win over Aucilla. Christian.
Jacksonville's Temple Christian looking to represent in the State Final 4! pic.twitter.com/Ji8ZGueCFL
— Duval Sports (@DuvalSports) February 25, 2017
Pressure, pressure and more pressure, is what Temple Christian deployed against the Warriors. They constantly harassed the ball handlers up the court, pressing them before they got to mid-court. It forced Aucilla into costly turnovers that Temple Christian capitalized on in the second half. #5 Donald Knight made several big plays along with #4 Zecuille Harrison, leading all scorers in the game. #1 Tariq McNeal got the scoring started for his team and continued to make big shots when called upon by his team. It was a total team effort which has guiged them to a 25-3 record on the season, and a final four apperance.
Halftime 23-12 Temple Christian leads Aucilla Christian 2A Boys Basketball State Tournament pic.twitter.com/QcPn1nDaXs
— Duval Sports (@DuvalSports) February 25, 2017
69-48 Final! Temple Christian over Aucilla Christian 2A Regionals Final 4 Bound! pic.twitter.com/YMJmoJjldK
— Duval Sports (@DuvalSports) February 25, 2017
Temple Christian will play Miami Christian in the final four next week in Lakeland, with the winner advancing to play either Florida Prep or North Florida Educational, another Jacksonville team representing the area at state.
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