Today and tomorrow, St. Francis Catholic Academy in Gainesville will once again host the Florida Get Down boys basketball tournament.
Former University of Florida guard Dan Cross is organizing and running the event for the fifth straight year.
Cross, who helped lead the Gators to their first Final Four in school history in 1994, is giving back to the community that helped him live out his college basketball dreams.
He said the level of talent continues to get better. Teams and players are traveling from all over the state of Florida and Georgia to compete.
One of the top players to watch this weekend will be University of Florida signee Isaiah Brown of Orlando Christian Prep. He is currently rated the No. 14 overall senior in Florida by 247Sports.
The Warriors (9-1) were Class 2A state runners-up last year.
Other teams to watch with D-I talent include Bell Creek Academy (Riverview), Central (Fort Pierce), Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach), Johnson (Savannah, GA), and Creekside Christian Academy (McDonough, GA).
Area teams include the host Wolves, Fort White and Eastside.
“The matchups are strategically designed to put the best teams and players up against each other to gain the maximum amount of exposure for fans, live stream, college coaches and high school student-athletes to receive higher academic and athletic achievements,” Cross said.
A total of 11 games are on tap for this weekend. They will be streamed by St. Francis Catholic on the NFHS Network. Fans will need an NFHS account to access the games.
Cross said putting together and managing a high-level basketball showcase will always have its challenges.
“It’s part of the business,” he said. “I choose to focus on the things that I can control versus the things I cannot control. Having good sponsors, community support, competitive teams surrounded by a strong staff is key to success.”
In fact, Cross said any business you invest in and grow will have high and lows.
“It has its roller coaster rides of experience but it is up to the person in charge to create a brand and high-level service that fans want to see,” he said. “These ingredients of a game day experience usually allow the highs to outweigh the lows. It’s the ultimate level of competition in managing the game of business and sports.”
Many former high school players who have participated in the Florida Get Down New Year’s Showcase are now playing on national college basketball TV networks.
“The goal is for participating high school student-athletes to be provided an opportunity to receive free higher education through a talent and skill set they possess on the court,” Cross said. “The talents and disciplines athletes possess have the ability to also transfer over to the next level of life.”
You can follow the tournament on Instagram and Twitter @FloridaGetDown and visit their website at FloridaGetDown.org for more information.
Other area tournaments include the Kingdom of the Sun at Vanguard (Ocala) and the Hitchcock’s Challenge in Alachua.
On Thursday in Alachua, Oak Hall defeated Eastside for its first win against a public city school in over 25 years, while Buchholz routed P.K. Yonge.
Host Santa Fe (Alachua) edged Suwannee (Live Oak), 49-48, and advanced to the final four of the Hitchcock’s tournament. The Raiders will play Nease (Ponte Vedra) at 5 p.m. this afternoon.
Williston, which defeated Hawthorne in Ocala on Wednesday, moved into the Kingdom final four with a 42-30 win against host Vanguard. The defending 1A state champion Red Devils (12-0) will play nationally ranked Winter Haven (9-1) tonight at 6:10 p.m.
Florida Get Down New Year’s Showcase at St. Francis Catholic Academy (Gainesville)
Friday, Dec. 29
1:30 p.m. – St. Francis Catholic vs. Lecanto
3 p.m. – Fort White vs. Union Grove (McDonough, GA)
4:30 p.m. – Creekside Christian Academy (McDonough, GA) vs. Bell Creek Academy (Riverview)
6 p.m. – Eastside vs. Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach)
7:30 p.m. – Orlando Christian Prep vs. Central (Fort Pierce)
Saturday, Dec. 30
Noon – Fort White vs. Lecanto
1:30 p.m. – Union Grove (McDonough, GA) vs. Stranahan (Fort Lauderdale)
3 p.m. – Blanche Ely (Pompano Beach) vs. Creekside Christian Academy (McDonough, GA)
4:30 p.m. – Central (Fort Pierce) vs. Johnson (Savannah, GA)
6 p.m. – Bell Creek Academy (Riverview) vs. Orlando Christian Prep
7:30 p.m. – St. Francis Catholic vs. Eastside