BROOKSVILLE – Over the years, Nature Coast boys basketball head coach Dave Pisarcik has entered his team into holiday tournaments with an eye toward the future.
Winning is nice, but preparing for postseason play is paramount for the Sharks. Yet those two things aren’t mutually exclusive, and they certainly weren’t on Wednesday night at Hernando High.
In a Hernando Holiday Classic final pitting two undefeated teams, Nature Coast rallied from a double-digit deficit early in the second half to pull out a 59-56 victory over Tampa-Chamberlain.
“I think it gives us confidence,” Pisarcik said. “I think right now we’re playing pretty well. We struggled at the beginning of the season, but with this type of schedule and this tournament, we sort of turned it on a little bit. I think we’re playing well, it gives us confidence, and wherever it goes from here, we’ll find out.”
For the tournament, the Sharks (11-0) had already defeated Valrico-Bloomingdale on Monday, 63-49, and Tampa-Cambridge Christian on Tuesday, 66-55.
Against the Chiefs (8-1), Nature Coast had trouble keeping Reggie Lowe from breaking free on the perimeter, as he knocked down three separate 3-point shots in the first quarter.
Kaine McColley also hit on three attempts from beyond the arc in the second, though the Sharks still trailed 34-33 at the half.
Chamberlain started the third quarter on a 9-0 run to build a 43-33 advantage, forcing Pisarcik to call a timeout.
“I felt we weren’t moving the ball and we weren’t executing our offense like we’re supposed to,” Pisarcik said. “We called a timeout, I tell the guys where to throw the ball, and back-to-back-to-back possessions we score, and we were back in the game because they executed. We’re going to be good if we execute on both ends of the floor.”
Jordan Baxter was key in the comeback, using his length and athleticism to dominate the offensive glass. He scored six points in the third and added two early buckets in the fourth to tie the game at 45.
“Energy, energy. I think it was my duty to get my team riled up, get my players going, to get them to believe in themselves and start picking it up,” Baxter said. “I was just getting those rebounds and I was just feeling it.”
“Baxter took over the offensive rebounds, and on defense we were trying to keep to our assignments and play better,” McColley said. “That’s how we won, on defense.”
Chamberlain built a 51-45 lead in the final period, but the Sharks tied it up with just over two minutes left on a steal and layup by Treyvon Reiser. McColley’s two free throws with 2:13 left gave Nature Coast a 53-51 edge.
The final lead change came a minute later when Robert McAfee hit a pair from the charity stripe, putting the Sharks ahead 57-56.
After Lowe missed on a 3-point attempt, Anthony Valante made two free throws with 5.6 seconds remaining. McColley was called for a foul on the floor, leaving just 0.9 seconds for Lowe to throw up a failed corner 3-pointer at the horn.
“It’s good, three team wins against three teams from Tampa,” McColley said. “It really doesn’t mean nothing overall, but we’re glad that we came out here and won three games and won the championship.”
Lowe, who hit on six 3-point tries, led the Chiefs with 20 points, while Myikel Wilson added 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Terrel Sanders had 12 points, five boards and two blocks.
McColley, who along with McAfee made the All-Tournament team, ended up with 20 points and six rebounds. Baxter posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Valante chipped in 10 points.
“It shows where we’re at and where we can be,” Baxter said. “It lets us know that we’re capable of going where we went last year and further.”
Tournament host Hernando went 1-2, losing to Lutz-Steinbrenner on Monday, 75-58, beating Weeki Wachee on Tuesday, 80-34, then falling to Bloomingdale on Wednesday, 81-67.
Weeki Wachee also lost to Chamberlain on Monday, 62-32, but finished on a high note with a 52-51 victory over Leto on Wednesday.
Muhannad Abdaldean represented the Leopards and Ian Hornung the Hornets on the All-Tournament squad.
Follow Chris Bernhardt Jr. on Twitter @cpbernhardtjr.