Fort Myers, Fla. – The Villages High School boys basketball team secured one of the biggest wins in program history Friday night in Fort Myers.
The Buffalo pulled away late in a matchup of nationally ranked foes at the 52nd annual City of Palms Classic, recording a 65-59 victory over St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) inside Suncoast Credit Union Arena.
Aaron Britt, Jr. tallied a team-high 23 points to lead the way for The Villages (8-1 overall), while Jomar Bernard had 16 points and Herly Brutus tallied nine – all in the second half – to help No. 24 VHS take down the nation's No. 8 team in the MaxPreps Top 25 poll.
The Buffalo led by six points through three quarters of play, just as they did nearly a month ago against No. 4 IMG Academy at the Miami Tip-Off. VHS dropped that marquee affair, 57-45, but proved lessons could be learned by way of disappointing defeats.
The Villages scored the first five points of the final quarter Friday night against St. John Bosco (8-1), extending its advantage to 49-38 and stunning a neutral-court crowd that seemingly penciled the powerhouse program from California into Saturday's second round.
That strong finish came after VHS shrugged off a 2-of-10 shooting start and a five-point deficit through one quarter of action, eventually holding a 26-24 lead at the half.
A competitive third quarter between two of the country's most talented squads saw the Buffalo hang on to a 44-38 advantage entering the fourth, striking up yet another closeout situation for VHS against a fellow nationally ranked squad.
There was no heartbreak on this night, however, even as a quick 6-0 spurt by the Braves later on made it 56-52 with 1:35 to play.
The Villages didn't flinch late, knocking down 7-of-8 attempts from the free-throw line over the final 90 seconds to stave off the Bosco comeback effort in the waning moments. VHS finished 14-of-19 at the charity stripe and an even 50% (21-of-42) from the field overall.
The Buffalo advance on to the second round Saturday night, where they'll meet Archbishop Stepinac (White Plains, N.Y.) with tipoff scheduled for 9 p.m.
Cody Hills can be reached for questions or comment via email at cody.hills@tvcs.org.
