LAKELAND, Fla. – Providence ran into a buzz saw in undefeated Sagemont (Weston) Tuesday afternoon losing 78-59 in the FHSAA 3A basketball semifinals.
Grayson Allen, who is headed to Duke in the fall, still feels it was a successful season.
"It's definitely a little bit of a disappointment," he said. "I'm keeping my head held high and I think the whole team is because we really had a great ride this season."
Providence had won two of the last four 3A championships and head coach Jim Martin expects his squad, even with the loss of Allen and Christian Terrell, to return next year.
"We plan on being here again next year," Martin said. "We like coming to Lakeland. We just have to play a little bit better defense next time we come."
The Stallions fell behind early, trailing 28-14 after the first quarter and 42-30 at half.
Allen's steal and layup with 3:09 left in the third quarter cut the Lions lead to 51-44. Sagemont responded with a 9-0 run to close the quarter and led 60-44 headed to the fourth quarter.
Providence never threatened the lead in the final stanza and the Lions prevailed by 19 points.
The Stallions end their season at 28-5.