Lakewood Ranch High’s history-making basketball game draws record crowd

Cars flooded the asphalt parking lot, with additional parking lined around the grassy areas around Lakewood Ranch High’s entrance.

The overflow parking was a signal, just like the separate lines for entry into the gym.

Last Friday’s Class 8A-Region 3 boys basketball final between the host Mustangs and St. Pete High created an electric atmosphere.

That standing-room only crowd, which witnessed the Mustangs advance to the first state semifinal in program history, tops this week’s Numbers Game.

We’ll also dabble into postseason wrestling, which is barreling down to states this weekend, while checking in briefly with Pittsburgh Pirates spring training.

Here we go:

1,300

Estimated people crammed into Lakewood Ranch High’s gym last Friday to witness the Mustangs make history. There were 1,080 tickets sold. The remaining people comprised the band, cheerleaders and others with Florida High School Athletic Association passes. It’s considered the biggest crowd for a basketball game at Lakewood Ranch High.

1.2

Average height difference in inches between Tampa Sickles’ probable starting lineup and Lakewood Ranch’s probable starting lineup for Friday’s 8A boys basketball state semifinal at The Lakeland Center. The Mustangs were at a height disadvantage against St. Pete High and were outrebounded by a 3-1 margin on the offensive glass (almost 2-1 in total rebounds). Yet, the Mustangs earned a 73-68 victory to send them into Friday’s 2 p.m. scheduled tip with Sickles.

2004

The last time a Manatee County public school advanced to the state semifinals in boys basketball. That season, Southeast reached its fourth semifinal in program history but was defeated. The Seminoles own the lone state championship among county schools with the Peter Warrick-led team of 1995 that went 31-0. Among county private schools, Bradenton Christian has six trips to the final four. The Panthers snagged runner-up finishes in 1997 and 2016 but have not won a state championship. Within the 941 area code, Sarasota Booker has the most state titles with four.

133

Program-tying wins record that Southeast High’s Stephen Kelle attained when he captured an individual region championship last weekend. Kelle, who competes in the 182-pound weight class, can surpass Ricky Almodovar’s wins record at the Class 1A state wrestling meet this weekend at Kissimmee’s Silver Spurs Arena. Kelle (46-1 this season) was one of four county wrestlers to win region titles in 1A. In Class 3A, four wrestlers claimed region titles. Among the state qualifiers who won region championships from the county, Manatee’s Marshall Craig (56-1), Lakewood Ranch’s Hunter Reed (42-1), Manatee’s Charles Small (55-2) and Southeast’s Darrien Grant (43-1) join Kelle as top medal contenders.

32

Percentage drop in attendance between the Pirates’ home opener at McKechnie Field in 2016 to last Saturday’s home opener at LECOM Park. The 2016 opener occurred on a Wednesday against the Detroit Tigers, who visited from Lakeland to produce nearly 7,000 fans, while Saturday’s 2017 Grapefruit League home opener was against the Baltimore Orioles, who visited from neighboring Sarasota to see a little more than 4,700 fans. Plus, the O’s contest was on the weekend, which usually draws better. Weather was sunny, too. Potential factors for the lower number is the Pirates are coming off a season in which they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012, didn’t make a bunch of offseason moves to bolster the roster from that 2016 team, the World Baseball Classic’s return meant an earlier start in February compared to March, an unusually mild winter up north and protesting of the park’s name change.

This story was originally published February 27, 2017 at 2:11 PM with the headline "Lakewood Ranch High’s history-making basketball game draws record crowd."