Impact cut into an 11 point lead by School House Prep in the 4th quarter of the Class 2A State Championship game as Devean Knowles hit a big three pointer to cut the lead to 4-points with 3:52 to play. Impact’s full court pressure was the answer for the once poised and hot shooting of School House Prep. It forced them into turnovers late in the game. Jordin Jackson would hit a bank shot to tie the game at 49-49 late in the fourth. Both teams couldn’t close out the game in regulation as the game went into overtime.
In overtime, Calvin Johnson hit the first two shots for Impact and Jordin Jackson hit a big shot as they never looked back. The Lions went on to win 56-54 victory.
For Impact, they returned to Lakeland after defeating Florida A&M High 64-62 Friday night. Impact last went to the State Championship game in 2018 when they fell to Miami Christian 59-46. This time they took on School House Prep (20-8) hoping to contain their star Anthony Lopez Jr who led the Wolfpack in scoring (20.5ppg).
Calvin Johnson led the team with 12.7 ppg, coming into the game. Yet the team had many talented play makers like Jordin Jackson(11.9 ppg) and Timothy Grant (9.4 ppg). Impact showed their true championship pedigree as they turned an early defensive struggle against School House in the first half, into an offensive showcase in the fourth quarter.
Jordin Jackson finished with 15 points, Calvin Johnson scored 14 points to lead them to victory. Impact will face the winner of Orlando Christian vs Bayshore Christian today. The Class 2A championship game will be held on 3/6/20 at 4:30pm.
Coach Ben Jones has his team playing their best basketball at the right time. They return to the championship for the second time in three years. Said after the game, ” It’s not me its all them, the kids were battle tested and it paid off in the end”.
2020 Boys Basketball State Tournament Class 2AImpact Leading Scorers :
Jordin Jackson- 15 pts
Calvin Johnson -14 pts
Timothy Grant- 9 pts
Devean Knowles- 8 pts
R.J Bryant- 7 pts
School House Prep Leading Scorers:
Cedrick Saint Jean- 15 points
Jose-Luis Benitez – 10 points
