Lakeland, Florida– It took every second of the Boys Basketball Class 5A State Semifinal game, but Thursday Bishop Kenny held of Tampa Jesuit 55-54 to advance to the championship game.
Kenny and Jesuit began the game feeling each other out, as both teams traded shots to keep the game close. Lee Green would begin the scoring onthe afternoon by hitting a shot in the paint. Green would be one of three players for Jesuit to score in double figures. Green scored 11pts, DJ Snyder scored 14 points, and Stevie Darst would finish with 11 points. Darst led Tampa in scoring midway through the contest, as Jesuit did an excellent job of finding the open man for the shot.
Bishop Kenny on the other hand relied on their leader Christian Carlyle to score the basketball, and score he did! Carlyle drove to the basket, pulled up for jumpers and soared for offensive rebounds. 
Jesuit could not sop him on the afternoon. He scored 14 points in the first half as Kenny led 32-24. He duplicated his first half point total in the second half, scoring 28 points for the game. And Kenny would need all 28 of his points.
Late in the fourth period, Jesuit made a furious run to cut Kenny’s nine point lead to just two. With only seven seconds left on the clock, Kenny’s Chris Joyce would split two free throws extending the Kenny lead to three points. Joyce finished with 9 points in the game. A foul ensued putting Jesuit’s DJ Snyder on the line. Snyder missed his first attempt but made his second, to cut the lead to two points with only 2 seconds to play. Snyder would have another chance to tie the game, but missed the free throw to tie the game with one second remaining as Kenny would survive the late scare.
Christian Carlyle 28 points to lead Bishop Kenny to the class 5A Championship game! pic.twitter.com/qaRLZ5o62A
— Duval Sports ™️ (@DuvalSports) February 25, 2016
.@BishopKennyHS Christian Carlyle and HC Jerry Buckley talk about trying to make history with a state title Saturday pic.twitter.com/2VRAFbWh02
— FHSAA (@FHSAA) February 25, 2016
The Crusader’s are playing at an extremely high level, and Coach Jerry Buckley is an important reason for his team’s success. His team is not one dimensional, and it’s constructed this way to succeed. When Tampa attempted to take Carlyle out of the game, Gabe Merete was able to clean up, scoring 8 points. Others like Grayson Roth, Lou Larmoyeux, and Adam Bowenschulte were able to contribute mightily on defense proving that the Crusaders passion isn’t just fueled by their raucous home court crowd, but by their head coach as well. Play like this almost always translates into championships, and the sky is truly the limit for Kenny as they attempt to soar on Saturday!
"Turn out the lights.. The party's over in Lakeland!"Bishop Kenny defeats Tampa Jesuit to advance to the title game! pic.twitter.com/xhkT997rVY
— Duval Sports ™️ (@DuvalSports) February 25, 2016
