Bishop Kenny girls back in familiar territory in Class 4A state semifinals

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A glance at the Class 4A girls basketball state semifinals and Bishop Kenny’s final four opponent for Thursday’s game in Lakeland.

Class 4A girls basketball state semifinals

Bishop Kenny (25-4) vs. SLAM Academy (23-3)

Where: RP Funding Center, Lakeland

When: Thursday, 1 p.m.

Watch it: Game can be streamed through the NFHS Network. Cost is $11.99 for a monthly pass.

Winner gets: Lake Highland Prep or Lakewood in the Class 4A state championship on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

Glance: The Crusaders have been superb at getting to the final four. Former coach Charlsea Clark started that streak and current coach Will Mayer has kept it rolling right along. This marks Kenny’s sixth straight trip to Lakeland. Clark took Kenny three of those times and this is Mayer’s third trip with the Kenny girls. He also took the Creekside boys team to the championship game in 2018. Kenny’s success is fundamental to the core. F Clare Coyle (13.9 ppg, 8.6 rpg), G Riley Talbert (10.9 ppg) and G Sydney Roundtree (5.6 ppg) are all seniors who have been here before. Freshman G Kathleen Crawley (8.1 ppg) is another player to keep an eye on. These teams have met once this season, a 53-36 win by SLAM. A win likely sets up another collision against dynasty Lake Highland Prep, which is looking for its fifth consecutive state championship. The Crusaders had Lake Highland on the ropes in last year’s final before the Highlanders rallied for a 55-45 win. Two of Lake Highland’s four championships have come in wins over Kenny in the final.