Marjory Stoneman Douglas Boys Basketball Play Winter Break Tournament

By: Matt Rothman

While most teams are off during winter break, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas boys basketball team was busy playing in the Jim Clark Holiday Classic Tournament in Orlando.

After two tough losses to begin the tournament, the Eagles concluded the weekend with a win against Foundation Academy out of Winter Garden, 59-47.

For the Eagles, it was the bench that carried the team.

Head Coach Teddy Lyons and Assistant Coach Jason Sucarichi were unhappy with the way their starters were playing. They took a chance on their reserves, and it paid off.

Thomas Frazier sparked the team with four three-pointers and had a team-high of 16 points. A junior, his defense was also on display as MSD held the opposition to under 50 points for the second time this season.

The Eagles only had two other players in the double figures: Daniel Haviv scored 10 points and had several key hustle plays throughout the game, and Adrian Naile chipped in with 13 points.

The win was there second of the season. MSD beat South Plantation 60-30 earlier this year. Coming out to Orlando, Lyons hoped it would energize his team a bit after a slow start and allow them to bond.

“It’s great for our confidence to get out of here with one win, but we still have a lot of work to do if we’re going to give ourselves a chance to beat the better teams,” said Lyons. “It’s my job to get our team to a place of playing hungry and desperate, and I will.”

While the road ahead does not get much easier, MSD will be happy to return home to Parkland after playing their last eight games on the road. Their only home game was their season opener on Nov. 25.

One thing that can also benefit them by playing in a three-day tournament is that the next three games will all be on consecutive days. They open the new year on Jan. 7 against Flanagan High School before facing two of the most premier schools in Fort Lauderdale and Northeast High School on January 8 and 9.

They will finish the home-stand up with Everglades High School on Jan. 14 before Lyons gets his first opportunity to coach against his former school, Cardinal Gibbons High School.