- May 5, 2024
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More than 1,000 students packed into Flagler Palm Coast High School's gym Wednesday to watch their boys basketball team take on Seabreeze.
The cheerleaders were there, teachers were there, the entire band (and the drum line) was there. It was like being in a college gym. But this was high school.
It was loud. And for coach Gary McDaniel, who has scheduled in-school games each of the past three seasons, it’s a great environment. In-school games, he said, give the program an opportunity to expose the team to more than just the normal crowd.
“Players generally love it,” he said. “The home team usually feels a tremendous amount of pressure to do well.”
Coming off an opening-night loss to Spruce Creek — one of the area’s top teams — the Bulldogs headed into the game against Seabreeze with one goal in mind: win.
And for about 30 of the game’s 32 minutes, that goal appeared as if it was going to become reality. But throughout the fourth quarter and into the final minutes, the Bulldogs found themselves in foul trouble. Impact players Nysean Giddens and Marcel Williams had already fouled out. And for a team that has no senior players, there probably wasn’t enough leadership on the court.
Seabreeze, coming off an opening-night win over Matanzas, managed to tie the game at 49-49 with 1 second remaining.
Overtime.
Tied at 55 after four minutes, the teams went into second overtime.
Foul trouble really hurt the Bulldogs in the eight extra minutes, and Seabreeze went on to win the game, 60-57.
Giddens finished the game with 10 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks, including a huge block at the end of the first overtime period. D.J. James finished with 10 points, six rebounds and five steals.
It was a tough loss for McDaniel and his Bulldogs. But it was a learning experience.
“Playing in front of a large crowd helps players get the big-game experience,” McDaniel said.
That kind of experience is pretty high on McDaniel’s to-do list. He doesn’t have a senior on his roster, and most players lack big-game, varsity experience. But that’s OK, he said.
Not having any seniors is both good and bad for FPC.
“We are a very inconsistent team at this point, but we are moving in the right direction,” he said.
FPC continues its difficult early season schedule with the Turkey Classic tournament in Jacksonville. District play opens up after that tournament.
So what's the early-season mantra for McDaniel and his troops? Patience.
“Patience will be needed,” he said. “There’s no question that at some point, we will find our groove and should become very competitive.”
And how awesome would it be to have another in-school game later in the season when that does happen?
