Orlando Christian Prep

March 6, 2022 --Lakeland, Fla.

For the second time in school history, the Orlando Christian Prep boys basketball program won their third consecutive state championship with a 66-49 victory in the FHSAA Class 2A State Championship over second-ranked in Class 2A Sagemont School of Weston at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.

The Warriors have won 10 state championships in Lakeland over the course of 15 state semifinal and final appearances held in that arena since 2008. Orlando Christian Prep has the third-most basketball championships in the state of Florida, trailing Miami HS (19) and Malone HS (14).

Head coach Treig Burke has been part of the program for every trip and win. After serving as an assistant coach for several years since the 2007-08 team won the championship, Burke became the head coach six years ago and led the Warriors to the final game of the season each season, now winning his 5th championship in six seasons.

His message to his team has been consistent each of the last three years and the team has listened. As quoted in the Orlando Sentinel following the win against Sagemont, 

“All I asked today is play tough, play together. Give it your best,” Burke said about his message. “Selflessness and defense wins championships.”

The toughness and selflessness in the championship game, and last three seasons, can be found in seniors AJ Brown and Ven-Allen Lubin. Both are four-year varsity players having started and played major roles since their sophomore season. 

Brown rebounded from a tough shooting game in the state semifinals to have a game-high 21 points on 4-of-8 field goals from the 3-point line, and a mix of mid-range jumpers and jaw-dropping drives to the basket that have been his calling-card. Committed to Ohio University, Brown lead OCP in scoring this season averaging 17.8 points per game.

Lubin, a University of Notre Dame commit, was the fearless defender and opportunistic offensive player that led Orlando-area coaches in the FACA (Florida Athletic Coaches Association) to name him District 11 Class 2A Player of the Year. He scored 15 points and snagged 14 rebounds.

Sophomores Ameer Ramadan and Isaiah Brown were the "x-factor" that OCP needed to be at their best offensively, and pesky defensively against Sagemont's guard and leading scorer Adrian Cruz, who scored 40 points in the state semifinal game. Cruz was held to 15 points on 6-of-22 shooting from the field. Overall, the Warriors held Sagemont to 34.5% (20 of 58) from the field and 24% (9 of 38) from the three-point line.

Ramadan scored 13 points (5 of 5 FGs) and had four assists. Brown had eight points, eight rebounds and three assists.

Leading 33-30 at halftime, OCP made some important defensive adjustments and held Sagemont to four points in the quarter. Sagemont also got into foul trouble in the first four minutes of the 3rd quarter as OCP was in the bonus by the midway point of the 3rd and built a double-digit lead. Despite scoring 15 points in the third, OCP missed seven free throws in that quarter, and later 10 in the fourth period.

The Warriors were never able to deliver the knock out punch as Sagemont reduced the lead to six with 4:07 to play in the contest. The steady body blows to the midsection via clutch free throw shooting by Lubin and (Isaiah) Brown, led to OCP scoring 12 of the final 15 points in the game.

In four years playing for OCP, (AJ) Brown and Lubin have combined to help the Warriors win 105 games with 12 losses, three state championships, four state championship appearances, an Orlando-area best 48-game winning streak, and the only unbeaten season in school history (27-0, 2020-21). Their legacy and names will be discussed among some of the other great names that have represented this program the past two decades - Janney, Clanton, Patterson, Castellanos, Cohen, Henriquez, Thompson, and Little.

The Warriors finished the season 26-4, 16 consecutive wins and 21 consecutive wins in the state playoffs. Congratulations to the players and coaches on another memorable season.

Parts of this story came from media reports by The Orlando Sentinel.