After losing two tough games back to back, the Gators really needed a pick-me-up game to get back on track. Sadly, the cards they drew were exactly the opposite. Nope, instead they got to go into battle with the undefeated #3 team in 2A, the Many Tigers. They showed exactly why they were a top 3 team Tuesday, Jan. 19.
The Tigers started the game off with a 9-0 run. The Gators weren’t able to compete with the size and strength of Many. Finally, Lakeview got on the board when the “Mighty” Mike Shields fought his way inside and got a tough layup to go in. Many counters this with a mid-range jumper, a shot they dropped all night long. Andre Sowell got on the board with a corner three, followed by a deep spot up three from Shields. Javonte Howard made Lakeview’s third straight from downtown to tie the game 11-11, which was the score at the end of the first.
The Tigers started another run at the beginning of the second, but this time it was a 9-2 run, with the only point coming from C.J Washington who went inside and got a layup to just barely fall in after sitting on the rim for a second. Mykel Slaughter was the first to score after this run of Many’s, pulling up for his first points outside the paint this season with a midrange jumper.
Lonzo Driver got on the board with a three just a couple minutes later. Finally Howard got his second shot, an and-one layup, to fall close to the end of the first half. Howard sunk a free throw to give the Gators the lead. Lakeview led 22-21 at halftime. The second half started with Driver getting an easy steal and fast break from a bad Tiger pass. Once again, Many went on another run. This time it was 12-0, and Lakeview couldn’t answer with much. Many led by eight with a score of 37-29.
No matter what Lakeview tried in the fourth, Many found an answer for it, beating them on both sides of the ball. In the end, the top team came out victorious, as Lakeview was handed their sixth loss of the season with a score of 54-41.
For the first time this year, Lakeview has lost three in a row. With this the most important part of the season, they need to do something to turn that around, and fast.
