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Tampa Bay Times' all-Tampa Bay boys basketball

 
Our all-area players of the year: Lakewood’s Anthony Lawrence Jr., Tampa Prep’s Juwan Durham and Mitchell’s Lawrence Watt.
Our all-area players of the year: Lakewood’s Anthony Lawrence Jr., Tampa Prep’s Juwan Durham and Mitchell’s Lawrence Watt.
Published April 3, 2015

By Bob Putnam | Times Staff Writer

Hillsborough County Player of the Year: F Juwan Durham, Jr., Tampa Prep

One of the best big men in the nation, the 6-foot-10 power forward made his presence known around the basket, averaging 22.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.7 blocks. Ranked 24th nationally in the 2016 class, Durham has the length and athleticism that gave the Terrapins an added dimension on both ends of the floor. He helped Tampa Prep win its 10th straight district title and make the Class 3A region finals a seventh straight season.

Season highlight: Durham scored a season-high 42 points in a 69-55 win over Seffner Christian on Jan. 20. He also had eight rebounds and five blocked shots. "I was asking my coach to take me out of the game because I was pretty tired but he was ignoring me," Durham said. "I was wondering why. I found out I had 40 points at the time and he wanted me to get to 42. I stayed in and kept on scoring and shooting."

Best game of the season: In the region quarterfinals, Durham was perfect from the field, scoring on all 13 attempts (nine field goals, including one 3-pointer, four free throws) to finish with 23 points in an 85-26 win over Seffner Christian.

Pregame ritual: Durham runs on a treadmill for five minutes, prays and listens to music.

Future plans: In the region semifinals, Durham tore his ACL, ending his season. He already has had surgery and is going through rehabilitation. He is expected to resume playing by August. The injury pushed back his recruitment and he'll likely take visits in the fall before announcing his commitment in November.

On dealing with the knee injury: "It was really tough because it was like eating all your dinner and waiting for dessert and your mom says you have to go to bed. It was something that had to happen, and God was telling me I needed a break, I guess."

North Suncoast Player of the Year: F Lawrence Watt, Sr., Mitchell

After graduating four players who made significant contributions last season, the Mustangs turned to Watt to provide leadership and help the program remain a consistent playoff threat. Watt did it all, averaging team highs in points (21.5) and rebounds (7.0) while guiding Mitchell to its second district title and second region semifinal in the past three seasons.

Season highlight: In the Class 6A region semifinal against Armwood, Watt hit a floating jump shot as time expired for a 53-52 win. That buzzer beater was the first of his career and took the sting out of a last-second loss to eventual state semifinalist Lennard in the 2014 region quarterfinals.

Best game of the season: Three times this season, Watt surpassed 30 points in a game. His highest total was 38 in a 63-50 win over Dixie Hollins on Jan. 20. Watt made 15 field goals and was 4-of-5 on free throws.

Did you know? Lawrence almost did not attend Mitchell. He considered East Lake as a freshman but decided to stick with the Mustangs because of the opportunities he would have there.

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Future plans: In the fall, Watt committed to Saint Leo University. He will be reunited with former River Ridge standout John Childs. Watt will continue to play travel ball until he starts college in the summer.

On reaching the region semis: "It meant a lot not only to me but the team as well to get back to the playoffs, especially after an upsetting year last season where we got knocked out of the playoffs much earlier than we expected. To be able to stay in the playoffs a while just made the whole season special, especially for me as a senior."

Pinellas County Player of the Year: G Anthony Lawrence Jr., Sr., Lakewood

A 6-foot-7 guard, Lawrence provided the bulk of the scoring after losing two Division I players in Jacobi Boykins (Louisiana Tech) and Michael Clark (St. Francis), who played key roles in helping the Spartans reach the Class 5A state title game last year. Lawrence averaged a bay area-best 30 points along with 12 rebounds and five assists per game.

Season highlight: In December, Lawrence dunked on Orlando Liberty Christian's 7-foot-6 player, Tacko Fall. The play made SportsCenter's top 10 for the night. A month later, Lawrence surpassed 2,000 career points. He finished with 2,338.

Best game of the season: Twice this season, Lawrence set a school record for points in a game with 46. Both came against district foe Bradenton Southeast.

Did you know? Lawrence's best friend is Barry Brown. They are both Division I players who attended each other's signing day ceremonies in November. Their fathers are best friends, too.

Future plans: Lawrence signed with Miami, the same school his father, Lakewood coach Anthony Lawrence Sr., played for in the late 1980s. Lawrence is not playing travel ball this spring because he will be with the Hurricanes after graduating in June.

On dunking over 7-foot-6 Tacko Fall: "I told him I was going to dunk on him a week before we played them and on the tip-off I told him I was going to do it. He didn't agree with me. Then I just took a chance. I had to."

Coach of the year: Chris Blackwell, St. Petersburg

Returning just one starter and playing a brutal schedule, the Green Devils stumbled at times during the regular season and finished as the runnerup in Class 8A, District 8. But St. Petersburg came of age in the playoffs, beating Newsome and Wharton on the road, and Orlando Oak Ridge at home to reach the state semifinals for the first time since 2012.

First team

G Marco Behori, Sr., Seminole: The 5-foot-11 guard led the Warhawks in scoring in each of the last two seasons and surpassed 1,000 points in his career. He also led his team to its fourth straight playoff appearance.

G Barry Brown, Sr., Gibbs: The Kansas State signee averaged 22.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and three assists. In the region final, he scored a season-high 35 points, including seven 3-pointers, to lead the Gladiators to their first state semifinal since 2011.

F Scottie James, Sr., Tarpon Springs: He averaged a double double with a team-best 19.4 points and 13.8 rebounds in leading the Spongers to their first trip to the final four since 1943. James also finished his career with more than 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds.

G Jonathan Jean, Sr., East Bay: The Furman signee is the Indians' all-time leading scorer. This season, he averaged 20.3 points, including a season-high 39 against North Marion in the Kingdom of the Sun tournament, and led East Bay to its first region final since 1968.

G Maurice Moore, Sr., Jefferson: A standout in football, Moore also excelled on the basketball court, averaging a team-leading 19.5 points and 5.9 rebounds to help the Dragons reach the region final and the state semifinals for the first time since 1974.

Second team

G Darius Banks, So., St. Petersburg

G Daniel Davis, Sr., Tarpon Springs

G Thomas Dziagwa, Jr., Tampa Catholic

G Ethan Haslam, Sr., Academy at the Lakes

F Jacob Mathis, Jr., Berkeley Prep

Third team

G Travis Bianco, Jr., St. Petersburg

G Brady Grimm, Sr., Shorecrest

F Kevin Knox, So., Tampa Catholic

G Jeremy Oppenheimer, Jr., Zephyrhills

F Christian Whidden, Sr., Jesuit

Honorable mention

Armwood: Devonte Myles; Boca Ciega: Terrell Burney; Brooks DeBartolo: Jarred Anderson; Calvary Christian: Eddie Williams; Fivay: Jerome Merrit; Hernando: Mark Wilson; Land O'Lakes: Brandon Dorsey; Largo: Dakarai Allen; Leto: David Jones; Mitchell: Brian Powers; Nature Coast: Joey Dudek; Newsome: Danny Morales; Wiregrass Ranch: Anthony Castillo, D.J. Ward; Wesley Chapel: Theo Williams