By Marshall Tempest
Apopka Chief Staff
After defeating the Winter Park Wildcats on Monday, Feb. 17, the Blue Darters are preparing for the regional finals. They need just one more win to reach the FHSAA Final Four alongside the three other regional champions in Class 7A. Standing in their way is Seminole, which will visit Apopka for a 7 p.m. tipoff on Thursday, Feb. 20.
Thoughts from head coach Scott Williams
After the win over the Wildcats, head coach Scott Williams told me that over the last few weeks, since the beginning of the state tournament, the Blue Darters have been focusing solely on the challenge ahead and not on hypotheticals or future scenarios. Because of this, Apopka has been well-prepared for their spaced-out matchups. However, during a week like this, when the Blue Darters face a team they haven’t prepared for with just two days to get ready, that approach can become straining.
“I’ll be honest. I have been very specific about not even thinking about prepping for either potential opponent (Creekside or Seminole) before tonight. Seminole is a vastly different team than we played them earlier in the season (65-59 win in November 2024) because they have all of their guys this time around. I don’t know anything about them – if you were to talk to me 24 hours from now, I’ll know a lot about them,” Williams said after the win over the Wildcats in the regional semifinal of the state tournament.
Even though he has not done any preparation, Williams has an idea of what they’ll face when they go up against Seminole on Thursday, Feb. 20.
“We know that they are going to pressure us. We know that they are going to trap relentlessly – that is what they do so well. So we’ll have to have a really good plan for that. That’s not always our strength, so we’re going to have to mitigate that by being really smart about what we do.”
When I asked Williams what hosting a regional championship game in the state tournament felt like, he was pure class. He put the city and the team before himself.
“I mean, it’s everything to this community and this school, and I hope that the place is just fired up and excited,” he said. “Our kids deserve that. They deserve for this place to be absolutely standing room only, and hopefully, we can give them a performance they can be proud of.”
Williams and the team are also very happy about the recent turnout at games, which has been excellent. It was almost packed on Monday night, and on Thursday, the coach and the boys want no seats left.
As Williams pointed out, his team will face a Seminole team at full strength for the first time, but Apopka has had a chance to get healthy as well. Players like Trent Jean, who had not played since Apopka’s 49-48 win over Lake Howell on November 30, 2024, are now back. Jean is transitioning into the regular rotation, adjusting to the very steep learning curve that is the state championship tournament after a two-month hiatus from a finger injury. Other members of the team, like Alex Congdon and Zackarick Davis, who had been injured before the district and state tournaments, are ready for minutes, too, with Davis even earning some valuable minutes on the court in the win over Winter Park.
Apopka vs. Seminole by the numbers
The Blue Darters enter the Regional Final of the FHSAA 7A Boys Basketball State Tournament with a 21-7 record, on a four-win streak, a Class 7A District 3 Championship, an 11-2 record in home games, a ranking of 40th in the state according to FHSAA as of the end of the regular season, and one more win until the Final Four.
Sanford Seminole enters the regional final with a 15-11 record, a two-game winning streak, and an away record of 2-4. According to the FHSAA, they are ranked 115th in the state at the end of the regular season. If not for Apopka, Sanford could potentially reach the Final Four.
Sanford averages 61.2 points per game this season, along with 29.4 rebounds, 11.4 assists, 9.1 steals, 2.9 blocks, and 13.4 turnovers. Seminole has one player averaging over 10 points per game at 16.8 ppg, with the following highest scores at 7.2 ppg and 6.4 ppg. Sanford is a strong, athletic, defensively resilient, and explosive team that Apopka must contain.
After their victory against Colonial on Wednesday, February 12, Apopka is averaging 56.1 points per game and shooting 42.8 percent from the field. They also averaged 31.6 rebounds, 10.9 assists, 10 deflections, 10 steals, 2.6 blocks, and 15.2 turnovers per game this season. Jude Angervil, Jermichael Johnson, Jahi Bowden, and Larson Taylor, the team’s leading players and seniors, Jude Angervil, Jermichael Johnson, Jahi Bowden, and Larson Taylor, have been vital to the team’s offense, defense, and leadership on the court.
Angervil leads the team with an average of 13.9 points per game, shooting 47.7 percent from the field and 32 percent from three-point range this season. He averages 0.9 assists, 5.8 rebounds, 2.4 turnovers, 1.5 deflections, 1.5 steals, 1.2 blocks, and 2.2 fouls per game this season. This year, Angervil has developed into an excellent shooter capable of scoring from almost anywhere on the court, particularly excelling inside, where he has a natural touch for finding the bottom of the net. Defensively, he’s an obstacle to get by in the paint at 6’5” while also effectively guarding the perimeter for a larger forward and proving to be a threat on the boards with his impressive agility and wingspan.
Johnson ranks second in points per game, just behind Angervil, with an average of 12.9 points. He shoots 47.7 percent from the field and 25 percent from three-point range this season. He averages 1.9 assists, 5.7 rebounds, 2.6 turnovers, 1.7 deflections, 1.8 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 1.9 fouls per game. This season, Johnson has been Apopka’s versatile, jack-of-all-trades player, addressing whatever the team needs to win, whether it’s rebounding, scoring, playmaking, or defensive stops. He can score and defend from anywhere on the court. Johnson consistently finds ways to contribute in each of these areas, especially when the Blue Darters really need him to.
Bowden ranks third in points per game, but like Johnson, he is an all-around player who excels at guiding the team through challenges. Bowden averages 9.6 points per game this season, shooting 40.7 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from three-point range. He also contributes an average of 2.9 assists, 4.6 rebounds, 2.4 turnovers, 2.3 deflections, 2.2 steals, 0.3 blocks, and 2.1 fouls per game. When he has the ball, Bowden is a dynamic presence on the court, able to use his ball-handling skills to accelerate suddenly and find an open spot for a jump shot or a lane to the basket. He also excels as a playmaker and floor general. On defense, Bowden consistently guards opponents out of his position and often faces the toughest matchups due to his strong instinct for creating transition opportunities from opponents’ mistakes.
Ranked fourth in points per game but number five on the floor, Taylor is Apopka’s old-school big man. He is averaging 5.4 points while shooting 56.5 percent from the field this season. Additionally, Taylor is recording 0.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.6 turnovers, 0.6 deflections, 0.7 steals, 0.2 blocks, and 1.9 fouls per game. Larson contributes many things on the court that don’t appear in the stat box. At 6’5”, he is a formidable presence in the paint, capable of altering the shots of driving defenders just by being there. He is also unselfish, often passing the ball instead of forcing a bad shot, even when others might. Taylor serves as the cornerstone of this team’s presence in the paint on both ends of the floor.
These four seniors have worked hard every step of the way and told themselves back in the summer of 2024 that Lakeland and being in the Final Four was the goal. Now Angervil, Johnson, Bowden, Taylor, as well as the rest of the team are just one game and one victory away from making that dream a reality.
