Columbus fends off Cypress Bay to advance to first state basketball final four since 2011

Cayden Boozer and Kevin Noriega buoyed a beautiful inside-outside offense to send Columbus to state with a Region 4-7A final win over Cypress Bay on Friday at FIU’s Ocean Bank Convocation Center.

Boozer sliced through traffic to total a game-high 17 points in the 61-47 victory. Noriega swished a trio of treys en route to a dozen for the Explorers (27-2).

“We were trying to play how they wanted to play at the beginning of the game, then at halftime we decided to be ourselves,” Boozer said.

The Explorers head to the state semifinals for the first time since 2011 on their quest for the school’s first boys basketball title. They’ll face Lake Worth at 2:30 p.m. Friday at RP Funding Center in Lakeland.

“I was just letting it fly,” Noriega said. “There wasn’t even a thought. Got it. Let it fly.”

The Lightning (23-6) used its motion offense, perimeter shooters and spread the floor to slow the Explorers early on. The Explores answered with tough defense and power offense to outmuscle the Lightning for an 11-8 first quarter advantage.

Lighting senior guard Noah Kattan leveled the score to start the second frame. Noriega answers with consecutive 3-pointers to put the Explores up six.

Lightning forward Kevin Pazmino made a 3-pointer in the final minutes of the first half, but Cameron Boozer stopped that rally with an emphatic slam to give the Explorers a 21-20 lead at the break.

Kattan scored 10 of his 16 points through the first two quarters.

“They did a good job in the first half,” Columbus coach Andrew Moran said. “We talked to our guys in the second and they listened to the play calls, because it was hard to hear.

“Our guys played great in the end. It was a tough-it-out game.”

The Explorers held the momentum with a 9-0 run to start the third and brought a 37-28 lead into the fourth.

The Lightning cut the lead to four to start the final frame, but Boozer rocked the rim again to end the rally. The Explorers outscored the Lightning 24-19 in the fourth quarter.

Junior guard Garyn Bess scored 11 points in the win. Cameron Boozer totaled eight for the Explorers. Senior guard Maxwell Gordon scored 13 for the Lightning.

Columbus 61, Cypress Bay 47: C: Cay. Boozer 17, Noriega 12, Bess 11, Cam. Boozer 8, Abdullahi 7, Fragela 6; CB: Kattan 16, Gordon 13, Fried 7, Pazmino 6, Yanchkowitz 3, Turner 2. Three-pointers: C: Noriega 3, Fragela, Bess 2, CB: Pazmino 3, Kattan 2, Fried, Yanckowitz; Half: Columbus 21-20.

MORE SCORES

Region 4-6A: Stuart Martin County 52, Pembroke Pines Charter 47

Region 4-5A: Fort Lauderdale Stranahan 56, Miami Norland 43

Region 4-4A: Fort Lauderdale Calvary Christian 69, Miami Mater Lakes 59

Region 4-3A: Miami Riviera Prep 77, Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy 64

Region 4-2A: Weston Sagemont 80, Miami Christian 49

This story was originally published February 25, 2022 at 9:29 PM.