Sagemont joins elite company after winning third consecutive boys’ basketball state title
When you have as many scoring threats as Sagemont’s boys’ basketball team did this season, a different player may dominate the stat sheet on any given night.
And then on some nights, everyone eats.
Such was the case on Thursday night at the RP Funding Center as the Lions broke open the Class 1A state championship game in the second half with four players scoring in double figures on their way to a historic 84-59 victory over Lakeland Victory Christian.
“We have a saying, ‘There’s no stats on rings or banners,’” Sagemont coach David Roe said. “If it’s that person’s night, trust him to make the play and we did tonight.”
On this night, it was senior wing and Coastal Carolina signee Patrick Liburd in whom the Lions trusted.
Liburd scored a game-high 29 points, and added nine rebounds, four assists and three blocks to his stat line as Sagemont outscored the Storm 49-30 in the second half.
“This one was definitely sweeter,” said Liburd, who joined the team last season. “I wanted to go out my senior year with a bang. I was feeling nice. Our trainer, coach Kenny (Stuppard), got me right for this game. All the early mornings and late nights training together got us to this point.”
The Lions shot 13 of 25 from 3-point range in a barrage that started early in the first quarter and rarely let up.
Thomas, who finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, didn’t do as much of his damage from the 3-point line. Instead, Thomas battled inside and was the benefactor of a couple of alley-oop dunks, which he said is how the Lions “build momentum.”
“It’s a great feeling because not a lot of teams get to do this. It’s truly a blessing. It’s great to get the young guys get their first one and I remember how good that felt when it was my first.
“Everybody was hitting threes and everybody was flowing.”
Sagemont (22-8) won its third consecutive state championship and fifth overall for its program. The “three-peat” put the Lions in a special place among Broward County’s all-time best as Sagemont became only the third county team to win three or more consecutive state championships, joining Fort Lauderdale Dillard (four in a row from 2000-2003) and Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy (2017-2019).
“Everyone wants to accomplish something like this,” Roe said. “As you go on, you have to do it with different guys and it always creates a different challenge, and your team takes on a different identity and a different chemistry. I’m really happy for our players and our school.”
Sagemont finished last season’s state title run with a talented lineup in store for the 2024-25 campaign with Liburd returning as well as forward Kevin Thomas, a four-star 2026 prospect with multiple Division-I offers.
The Lions added even more scoring punch when Matthew Able, a 6-5 senior guard, transferred in from Tampa Berkeley Prep, and 6-1 senior guard Anthony Knowles transferred in from Miami Mater Lakes Academy.
“They’re so talented skill-wise and they added a lot,” Roe said. “We weren’t as deep as in years past when it came to size. You have (Liburd), a wing, playing in what’s usually a larger man’s spot. This group took a little bit to figure out how everything clicked and I think we showed tonight that we figured it out.”
Knowles, who finished with 10 points and four key assists, won his second state title after having won the first his sophomore year at Mater Lakes.
Able finished with 20 points and seven rebounds on Thursday, but his efficiency from the field (8 of 15 shooting) and defensive contributions (five steals) were huge factors.
Able, who smiled and celebrated on the court after Thursday’s game, had experienced the opposite feeling last season when his team at Berkeley Prep lost a one-point heartbreaker to Riviera Prep in the 3A state semifinals.
“As soon as I got here we became a family,” said Able, who had played travel ball with Knowles before arriving at Sagemont. “We worked out in the gym constantly and it was just an amazing group of guys.”
This story was originally published February 28, 2025 at 5:36 AM.
