Coral Reef captures boys' 6A basketball title
BY ANDRE C. FERNANDEZ
a1fernandez@MiamiHerald.com
LAKELAND -- Charles Hankerson Jr. ran toward the stands, took off his jersey, and put on a T-shirt with the words ''We Did It'' written on it.
Although many might not have picked Coral Reef at the start of this boys' basketball season, Hankerson never doubted the Barracudas could be state champions.
Hankerson led Coral Reef to a 69-60 comeback victory against Orlando Olympia in the Class 6A state championship Saturday night that secured the Barracudas their first state title in any major team sport.
Hankerson finished with 27 points, nine rebounds and five assists to help Coral Reef (27-4) methodically erase a 12-point first quarter deficit. Jerron Granberry had 15 points and seven rebounds, and guard Steven Lopez overcame a scoreless first half to finish with five points and four assists.
Coral Reef coach Gaston ''Chachi'' Rodriguez achieved a historic milestone becoming the first boys' basketball coach in Miami-Dade County to win a state title at two different schools. Rodriguez won his first state championship at Champagnat Catholic in 2000.
The Barracudas are the first boys' public school team this school year in Dade to win a state title.
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CR (27-4): Granberry 15, Palmer 4, Lopez 5, Hankerson Jr. 27, Saunders 9, Vickers 7, Tameza-Rivas 2. OLY (28-5): McCoy 1, Green 9, Fields 31, Buie 7, Brown 6, Hamilton 4, Marshall 2. Halftime: OLY 26-20. Fouled Out: Brown. Three-Pointers: Fields 6, Buie 2, Brown, Granberry 2, Lopez, Saunders, Vickers. Rebounds: Green 12. Assists: Buie 6. Steals: Granberry 4.
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