JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — On February 20, 2020, the #1 seed North Florida Educational Institute Eagles (23-4) squared off against the #8 seed Beaches Chapel (16-3) in the 2A Regional Quarterfinals game. This match-up reflected similarly to the first time these teams met this season in their season openers. NFEI came out on top in the first match-up 86-38.
The first quarter saw the Eagles hold the Lions to single digits, as they led after one with a score of 18-7. The Eagles had Deangelo Elisee to thank for that. After one he had 12 of the Eagles 18 first quarter points. He also helped hold the Lions scorers to single digits.
The second quarter saw more of a fight from the Lions. Their defense picked up and Noah Williams converted on 5 out of 6 of his free throw attempts. But the Lions could not find an answer to stopping Dahntay Tillman. After a quiet first quarter, he went off for 7 points to help the Eagles go into the locker room with a 19 point halftime lead.
The third quarter was the most competitive quarter of the whole game. The Eagles only edged out the Lions by 5 points. Tillman carried the Eagles with 7 points in the third quarter but the Lions team effort did not go unnoticed. The Lions were forcing the Eagles to make silly turnovers and were fighting for every loose ball and rebound. Aiden Sullivan helped control the Lions’ tempo throughout the third quarter but the Eagles still managed to build on their 19 point halftime lead and made it 24 at the end of three.
The final eight minutes saw the Eagles win that quarter as well, 23-11. Tillman added another 6 points to his 14. Xavier Fearon came off the bench and contributed 4 points in the fourth for the Eagles. Williams scored 6 of the Lions 11 fourth quarter points to end the night as the team’s leading scorer with 13. Tillman finished with 20 while Elisee finished with 18. NFEI won with a final score of 79-43.
While Beaches Chapel’s season comes to a close, NFEI has one more game to prepare for. On Tuesday, February 25th the Eagles will take on #5 seed Impact Christian Academy (16-8) for the third time this season. ICA defeated #4 seed St. John Lutheran by a score of 68-25. Tip-off is set for 7 pm at NFEI.
2020 Boys Basketball State Tournament Class 2A
