Sagemont advances to state final, chasing third consecutive boys’ basketball title

Different faces but Sagemont is on the cusp of getting the same results.

Sagemont disposed of Jacksonville Impact Christian 66-53 on Tuesday during a Class 1A state semifinal at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.

Sagemont will square off Thursday at 7 p.m. against Lakeland Victory Christian for the 1A state championship.

Sagemont senior guard Matthew Able played for Tampa Berkeley Prep last season. So he is thrilled at the opportunity to win a state title with Sagemont. He led all scorers with 25 points.

“I got knocked out in the semifinals last year to Riviera Prep so just to be back here and get a win and be in the championship game is a blessing and I am excited about it,” Able said.

Sagemont is looking for its third consecutive state title. It won back-to-back 2A over the past-two seasons. Sagemont also won the 2A title in 2011 and 3A title in 2014.

“It’s incredible. Anytime you can cement a legacy like that, it shows the longevity over a lot of good players,” Sagemont coach David Roe said. “It’s special for us and it’s special for the school and the players.”

Roe said there wasn’t much difference in moving from 2A to 1A this season.

“It all kind of just got shuffled around,” Roe said.

Sagemont senior forward Anthony Knowles finished with 18 points and five rebounds. He is also a newcomer to the lineup, having played at Mater Lakes last season.

“I won a championship my 10th-grade year and I know how it feels and I want to win another one,” Knowles said. “We meshed together because we are all good basketball players.”

Sagemont took a 32-28 halftime lead, after out-rebounding Impact 19-15 and getting 12 first-half points from Able and 10 from Knowles, who was 4-of-6 shooting with one 3-point bucket in the half.

“I think it was just a matter of turnovers,” Able said. “Those led to easy buckets for them. This would have been a 20-point win or a 30-point win if we didn’t turn the ball over.”

Sagemont shot out of the gate right after the opening tipoff, seizing a quick 10-1 lead but it slipped away just as fast as Impact Christian took a 20-18 lead at the end of the first quarter.

“They were a good team so they weren’t going to go away,” Roe said. “Basketball is a game of runs.”

This story was originally published February 25, 2025 at 5:34 PM.