EAGLES STUN SOUTH MIAMI
RECORD NOW 4-0!

A stifling Southwest zone defense held host South Miami to four second half field goals in a 40-35 victory. Michael Juachon, Leo Torres, and Ray Lleonart neutralized the Cobras' height advantage with physical play in the paint. 6'7" South Miami center Javari Ladson picked up 3 fouls in the first 5:35 of the first quarter and had only 4 points. The Eagles (4-0, 4-0) jumped out to a 9-2 lead but then went into a funk on offense, turning the ball over numerous times in the second quarter. The Cobras, regional semifinalists a year ago, outscored Southwest 13-2 in the second quarter to take a 20-13 lead at the half. South Miami (2-2, 1-2) scored twice in the first 1:20 of the third period to go up, 25-13. They only scored one more basket until 43 seconds remained in the game. The Eagles took the lead on a Lleonart bucket with 53 seconds left in the third quarter and never relinquished it. Gio Gonzalez scored 6 of his game-high 18 points in the final period. His basket with 3:09 remaining gave Southwest its biggest lead at 38-29. Torres had 10 rebounds, including a monster board with 1:50 remaining when he soared high over a Cobra to take the ball away. The Eagles are off to their best start since the 2000-01 team won its first 6 games. This is the first Southwest team in coach Tom Moore's 26 seasons to win its first four district games.
The scoring:
Gonzalez 18
Juachon 14
Torres 4
Lleonart 2
Mola 2