GAINESVILLE (March 7) — The eight individual class finalists for the 2016 Florida Dairy
Farmers Mr. Basketball and Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year have been announced following balloting by a statewide panel of high school boys’ basketball coaches and media members. Every finalist was the leading vote-getter in their classification, making each one the Player of the Year or Coach of the Year in their class. The two overall winners will be announced following a final round of balloting by coaches and media.
Following are the eight finalists for the 2016 Mr. Basketball Award (area winners in bold):
Myron Dewar, Senior, Guard/Forward, Coral Springs, Class 8A Player of the Year
Dewar led his school to its first state championship by averaging 29.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 5.8 assists per game, including a 40-point effort in his team’s regional final win over 2015 state champion Wellington.
Tony Bradley, Senior, Center, Bartow, Class 7A Player of the Year
The McDonald’s and Jordan Brand All-American and University of North Carolina signee averaged 22.8 points, 12.6 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game in leading his squad to a spot in the regional finals.
Dewan Huell, Senior, Forward, Miami Norland, Class 6A Player of the Year
Last year’s Class 6A Player-of-the-Year is a McDonald’s All-American and University of Miami signee who averaged 16.5 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game in leading his squad to the regional finals.
Christian Carlyle, Senior, Guard, Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville), Class 5A Player of the Year
The Florida Gulf Coast signee averaged 23.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in leading his team to a 27-5 record and a spot in the Class 5A state championship game.
Kevin Knox, Junior, Forward, Tampa Catholic, Class 4A Player of the Year
Knox averaged 29.6 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.9 blocks per game in leading his team to a 26-5 record and a spot in the Class 4A Final Four.
Kyle McWilliams, Senior, Guard/Forward, Maclay, Class 3A Player of the Year
The Florida Southern signee averaged 26.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game in leading Maclay to the district championship.
Mark Gordon, Senior, Guard/Forward, Mt. Dora Christian, Class 2A Player of the Year
Gordon averaged 33.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 3.7 steals per game, including a season-high scoring game of 60 points in leading his squad to a district runnerup finish.
Trent Forrest, Senior, Guard, Chipley, Class 1A Player of the Year
The Florida State signee repeated as Class 1A Player of the Year and led his squad to its second straight state title, averaging 29.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists. He scored 62 points and added 21 rebounds in the two state Final Four games.
Following are the eight finalists for the 2016 Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year:
Devin Barta, Coral Springs, Class 8A Coach of the Year
In his third year at Coral Springs, Barta led the school to a 22-7 record and its first state championship. His record at Coral Springs is 52-26 and 74-54 overall in five years of coaching.
Melvin Randall, Blanche Ely, Class 7A Coach of the Year
Despite a 15-13 regular-season mark, Randall led his squad to its second straight title, and fourth in the past five years. In 15 years at Ely, Randall has posted a 324-101 record with six state titles. His 23-year record is 524-154, with another pair of state titles at Deerfield Beach (1997 and 1999).
Darryl Burrows, Dillard, Class 6A Coach of the Year
Burrows led his squad to a 28-5 record and the state title, the school’s sixth state championship during his 23-year tenure. His overall record is 536-141 and includes three other Final Four appearances (1995-97-98) to go with the six state titles (2000-01-02-03-08-16).
Shane Whitsett, Poinciana, Class 5A Coach of the Year
Whitsett led his team to a 27-5 record and Poinciana’s first state title of any kind in the school’s 25-year history. In three years as the boys’ coach he has a 67-18 record and is 88-23 overall (one year as girls’ coach).
Anthony Candelino, The Bolles School (Jacksonville), Class 4A Coach of the Year
Candelino led his squad to a 30-3 record and the Class 4A state title. In his six years at Bolles, he has compiled a 133-29 record.
Ben Wilson, Windermere Prep, Class 3A Coach of the Year
Wilson led his squad to a 27-5 record and the school’s first state title. In seven years, he has posted a 116-75 overall record.
Joe Dawson, Grandview Prep, Class 2A Coach of the Year
Dawson led his team to the state’s only unbeaten record (34-0) on its way to the state championship.In 20 years at Grandview Prep, he has a 327-41 record with two state titles (2013, 2016) and seven other Final Four appearances. His 20-year record is 523-94, including another state title at Miami Pace (1996).
Mike Gates, Chipley, Class 1A Coach of the Year
In his first year as head coach, after serving as an assistant at Chipley for 31 years, Gates led his team to a 28-3 record and its second straight state championship.
Final voting numbers by class (top three):
Class 8A
Player School Points
Myron Dewar Coral Spings 146
John Mooney Lake Brantley 62
Ezacuras Dawson South Miami 34
Class 8A
Coach School Points
Myron Dewar Coral Spings 146
B.J. Ivey Riverview 110
Robert Doctor South Miami 22
Class 7A
Player School Points
Tony Bradley Bartow 162
Darius Banks St. Petersburg 90
Trevor Goodrum Jr. Blanche Ely 50
Class 7A
Coach School Points
Melvin Randall Blanche Ely 128
Chris Blackwell St. Petersburg 74
Michael Soliven Melbourne 58
Class 6A
Player School Points
Dewan Huell Miami Norland 126
Keon Clergeot Auburndale 72
Evan Hinson Deltona 36
Class 6A
Coach School Points
Darryl Burrows Miami Norland 142
Phil Price Largo 90
Terrence Harris Pensacola 30
Class 5A
Player School Points
Christian Carlyle Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) 152
Jeremy Oppenheimer Zephyrhills 82
Nate Louis Poinciana 32
Class 5A
Coach School Points
Shane Whitsett Poinciana 122
Jerry Buckley Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) 83
Neal Goldman Jesuit 40
Class 4A
Player School Points
Kevin Knox Tampa Catholic 146
Collin Smith The Bolles School (Jacksonville) 72
Justin Brown Westminster Christian 60
Class 4A
Coach School Points
Anthony Candelino The Bolles School (Jacksonville) 158
Steve Henderson Holy Trinity 84
Don Dziagwa Tampa Catholic 32
Class 3A
Player School Points
Kyle McWilliams Maclay 100
David Nickelberry Windermere Prep 84
Chaundree Brown The First Academy 46
Class 3A
Coach School Points
Ben Wilson Windermere Prep 144
Ehren Wallhoff Westminster Academy 78
Chris Osmon Santa Fe Catholic 18
Class 2A
Player School Points
Mark Gordon Mt. Dora Christian 122
Shawn Occeus Grandview Prep 104
Ryan Leunk Bradenton Christian 58
Class 2A
Coach School Points
Joe Dawson Grandview Prep 146
Scott Townsend Bradenton Christian 84
Dan Sheppard Lake Wales Vanguard 23
Class 1A
Player School Points
Trent Forrest Chipley 152
Zach Varnum Paxton 68
Darion Wilson Wildwood 64
Class 1A
Coach School Points
Mike Gates Chipley 134
Jeff Bradley Paxton 74
Chuck Mehl Bell 36
