With eye on three-peat, St. Thomas Aquinas doubles up Lake Gibson in state semifinal rout

St. Thomas Aquinas thrives on chaos. It’s part of how the Raiders have won back-to-back state titles and how they’re now on the verge of making it three in a row this weekend.

St. Thomas Aquinas faced a hostile crowd Thursday in Lakeland, with Lakeland Lake Gibson on the opposite bench for the Class 6A semifinals, and instead rattled the hometown favorite with constant pressure, and a barrage of runouts and fast breaks for a 77-35 rout.

“Our game plan was to press and try to wear them down,” Aquinas coach Oliver Berens said. “You want to play fast, but you also want to make sure you’re disciplined.”

The Raiders (23-8) will be back at the RP Funding Center on Saturday to play either Punta Gorda Charlotte or Orange Park Oakleaf for the 6A championship, with a shot to complete the 15th three-peat in Florida High School Athletic Association history.

St. Thomas Aquinas jumped on the Braves early and Lake Gibson (16-11) never could bounce back. In the first three minutes alone, the Raiders had multiple steals, forced a travel by flustering a Brave with the press and even goaded Lake Gibson into a 10-second violation. St. Thomas Aquinas led 20-8 at the end of the first quarter and 42-25 at halftime. The Raiders’ lead eclipsed 35 points by the end of the third quarter, triggering a running clock for much of the second half.

It was the biggest rout of the week so far at the girls’ basketball final four.

The Braves committed 25 turnovers, and St. Thomas Aquinas finished with 17 steals and six blocks. The Raiders used their relentless pressure to generate more than enough offense, even with 16 turnovers of their own. A handful of times, St. Thomas Aquinas even got runouts off defensive rebounds, with guards releasing and racing to the other end of the court at almost the exact moment a shot went up for the Braves.

Star sophomore Nyla McFadden led the way with 27 points, 11 rebounds and three steals on 13-of-19 shooting. Star guard Karina Gordon, who signed with the East Carolina Pirates last year, had 16 points, four assists and two steals. Junior Kamryn Corporan added 16 points, seven assists and four steals. The Raiders assisted on 23 of their 34 field goals, with the vast majority coming in transition, and shot 54.8 percent overall.

“Defense obviously translates into offense,” McFadden said, “so once we just picked it up defensively and had our hands up, moving our feet, and getting stops and deflections, it just carried over to offense.”

The blowout was ultimately product of a season — really, more like a half a decade — of preparation.

Berens makes a concerted effort each year to put together as tough a schedule as he can. Even though the Raiders aren’t threatening to crack MaxPreps’ national top 25 or competing for national championships yet, a daunting regular season makes a weekend inside expansive George Jenkins Arena seem simple. An opponent like Lake Gibson, even in the final four, isn’t so intimidating when compared to No. 3 Montverde Academy, No. 18 Orlando Dr. Phillips, Orlando Lake Highland Prep or Paul VI from Chantilly, Virginia.

Throw in two years of experience in final fours — Gordon and senior Reina Green have both been a part of the last two championships — and St. Thomas Aquinas was entirely unfazed in the semifinals, and the Raiders don’t expect anything to change in the championship this weekend.

“Even though these are the biggest moments of the season,” Berens said, “we’ve had so many tough tests that are going to be prepare us.”