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State champs crowned, others move on

A number of states have crowned new state champions while several traditional powers kept the title once again. Rivals.com takes a look from a number of the top performers from the weekend's high school action from across the nation.
Sunshine State championships earned
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After several tries, Lake Howell finally won a Florida state championship and it did it by doing what it does best – utilizing the big three of Nick Calathes, Chandler Parsons and Joey Rodriguez.
The trio all played a major part in Lake Howell's 85-42 stomping of St. Pete Lakewood. The win was the biggest margin of victory in the history of the Florida High School Athletic Association.
Calathes scored 23 points on seven of 13 shooting while Parsons scored 22 points on nine of 14 shooting and a perfect three for three from three. He also collected seven boards. Rodriguez, a VCU signee, was outstanding from the point guard spot, scoring 16 points and handing out 11 assists while not turning the ball over all game. He only missed two shots as well.
The three were named MVP of the tournament.
In a good old fashion Florida slugfest, Pompano Ely went to overtime to knock out Orlando's Dr. Phillips to claim an 80-77 win for the title. Super sophomore Kenny Boynton scored 28 points on 12 of 29 shooting before fouling out in regulation. He watched his supporting cast do the work in the extra period to claim the victory. Dr. Phillips had 38 big points from Ole Miss bound Chris Warren in the defeat.
Junior wing Ray Shipman scored 20 points (most notably 13 of 17 from the foul line) to help Miami Pace claim a 77-58 win over Kathleen and won Florida's 4A state championship. Kathleen was led by junior forward Kevin Foster, who scored 15 points and collected 10 rebounds.
Arlington Country Day won it's third straight 2A state championship thanks to Devon Lamb's 25 points, eight rebounds, five steals and three assists in a 72-43 win over Port St. Joe. ACD was down 23-21 at the half. Lamb was named MVP of the 2A tournament. Kentucky bound forward A.J. Stewart was handcuffed with foul trouble in the win.
Pittsburgh powers put on a show
Aliquippa and Jeannette went to war for the WPIAL class AA championship in Pittsburgh over the weekend. In the end, two big time efforts outweighed one.
New Mexico State signee Herb Pope scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while junior forward Jonathan Baldwin put in 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 73-69 Aliquippa (26-2) win.
Jeannette's five-star junior Terrelle Pryor was outstanding in defeat, scoring 28 points on 14 of 25 shooting from the floor. He also grabbed 11 rebounds and handed out four assists.
The championship was the fourth in five years for Aliquippa.
South Carolina crowns champions
Milton Jennings, a 6-foot-9 forward from Pinewood Prep in South Carolina, almost didn't make it to his state championship game. Traffic kept him stuck on the road instead of in the locker room and court for warm-ups. He arrived 30 minutes before the tip but helped his squad win its second straight SCISA 3A state title. The sophomore scored 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a 59-53 win over Hammond.
South Carolina signee Mike Holmes has to feel good about his decision to return home to Lee Central after a brief stint at Oak Hill Academy. The 6-foot-7 forward scored 20 points in his team's 38-27 win over Southside to claim Lee Central's second straight state championship.
Calhoun County High School in South Carolina is as close to a dynasty at the prep level as you can get. The class A program won it's fifth state title in eight years with a 75-48 win over Baptist Hill. Sophomore guard Alshon Jeffery, a 6-foot-4 combo, scored 18 points and helped Calhou County win it's 49th straight game. Jeffery is one to watch in the Palmetto State's 2009 class.
Texas playoffs rolling along
Mike Singletary's storied career at Kingwood High School is coming to a close and the Texas Tech signee is hoping to cap it off with a Texas state championship. The 6-foot-5 scored 25 points and secured eight rebounds in a 59-51 win over Clear Lake to move on to state. Kingwood has not lost to a Texas team all season.
South Oak Cliff High School has done two things very well in the last couple of years: win championships and suit up big men with outstanding nicknames. After watching current Kansas big man Darrell "Slim Shady" Arthur help the team win two straight state championships, SOC is leaning on junior big man J'Mison Morgan, aka "Bobo", to winning a third. The 6-foot-10 center scored 14 points in his team's 51-46 win over Spruce.
Duncanville, the top team in Texas, improved to 37-0 with a 68-48 win over Mansfield Summit to move on to the state tournament. D'Walyn Roberts, a 6-foot-7 forward, scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the win.
Boston College bound point guard Biko Paris scored 18 points to help his Cyprus Christian team claim a 66-37 win over Cedar Hill Trinity Christian to win the TAPPS 4A championship.
Big games, big match-ups out West
Mesa (Ariz.) Mountain View is accustomed to winning big games and dancing all the way to March. This year is no different as the two-time defending state champions will play for a third straight title on Wednesday after a big 71-51 win over Trevor Browne High School.
Mountain View was paced by future UNLV guard Kendall Wallace, who scored 26 points and hit five three-pointers. Future Cal forward Harper Kamp added 20 points and 11 rebounds in the victory.
Awaiting Mountain View is Jerryd Bayless and his St. Mary's club. Bayless was outstanding in a 72-69 win over top ranked Desert Vista High School, scoring 37 points and connected on all 13 of his free throws. Desert Vista had 29 points from future New Mexico guard Ty Abbott.
Future Duke forward Kyle Singler played his final game at South Medford and closed out his home court career with a bang. The McDonald's All-American scored 35 points in a 77-59 win over Oregon City in the second round of the OSAA 6A playoffs.
Singler scored 26 of his 35 points in the second half. He was benched in the first half because of a busted chin that required medical attention. Singler added nine rebounds and four assists while shooting 13 of 21 from the floor. Teammate Michael Harthun, a junior, added 22 points.
Oregon City had 23 points from junior guard Brad Tinsley and 19 from unsigned senior forward Jared Cunningham, one of the top unsigned prospects in the West.
News & Notes from around the country
A game after scoring 40 dynamic points, Memphis combo guard Elliot Williams was held to 19 points as his St. George Academy lost to Memphis University School in the championship game. MUS was lead by Elliott Cole, who scored 31 points in the 70-50 win.
In a battle of private school versus public school champs, Michigan State bound point guard Kalin Lucas stepped up with 37 points to help his St. Mary squad beat Redford in an 81-79 overtime win in Detroit. Redford was without Michigan signee Corperryale Harris for the first half, who sat for undisclosed reasons. He did score 25 points in half a game's work.
Future Georgia point guard Dustin Ware scored 25 points, grabbed six rebounds and recorded four assists for his North Cobb Christian team en route to a 56-48 win over Suitland to win the GISA class 3A title. The game before, Ware battled it out with fellow 2008 guard Andre Young in what observers called one of the best games in the two guard's careers. Ware scored 25 while Young put in 30 in the defeat.
LeFlore finally did it. After a couple of swings for the 6A state championship in Alabama, the Rattlers finally hung on and claimed the title with a 64-61 win over Jeff Davis High School.
Led by sixth man Joshua Wesley's 22 points and six of nine three-pointers, the nationally ranked program held off a pesky Jeff Davis team. Starters Nick Williams, who was hampered by foul trouble, and Chris Blake, one of the top unsigned seniors in the Southeast, step up with his perimeter shooting.
Williams, a 2008 Marquette commitment, scored 13 points before fouling out while Blake added 10.
Jeff Davis had an outstanding game from Courtney Fortson, an electric unsigned senior guard. The 5-foot-11 point guard scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. He'll be headed to prep school next year along with teammate Varez Ward, who added 14 in the defeat.
Madison Academy won its second straight 3A state title in Alabama with a 72-69 win over Lauderdale County. Madison rode the great play of sophomore point guard Kerron Johnson, who scored 19 points on six of seven shooting from the floor, while handing out eight assists and grabbing seven steals. Junior big man Bawa Maniru added 14 points in the championship game.
Corey Raji, a Boston College signee, would not be denied in the New Jersey state semi-finals. The 6-foot-6 forward scored 34 points, grabbed 20 rebounds and blocked four shots in a 68-56 Westwood win over Englewood.
North Carolina big man Victor Davila dunked home the winning basket for his Starmount Christian squad in a 51-49 tug-of-war double overtime battle against Shelby High School. The four-star junior recorded a triple double with 15 points, 15 rebounds and 10 blocks in the victory.
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