Point guard is key to Gryphons’ success
By Kyle LoJacono
Staff Writer
CITRUS PARK — How does a playoff team replace a top-3 national recruit?
Sickles cannot replace power forward John Henson, who signed with North Carolina after graduating, but it has the next best thing — point guard Jordan Davis.
“We’ve leaned on Jordan since he was a freshman and that won’t change this year,” Sickles coach Rolando Garcia said. “He’s always played with a very high basketball IQ. We will probably need him to score a little more than he has in the past. He’s been setting people up for the last three years and we feel very comfortable with him running the show and making plays.”
Davis led Hillsborough County with 7.4 assists per game as a junior. The 5-foot-11 senior is considered the fifth-best point guard in Florida and is in the top-100 nationally.
“You kind of wonder where all the years went,” Davis said of entering his senior season. “I’m pretty pumped to do well this year and go out on top.”
Davis started playing basketball at age 4 and has always been a guard. He also competes in the triple and long jump events for the Sickles track and field team.
In basketball, the Gryphons won the Class 6A, District 7 title and reached the regional semifinals in 2008 before losing to Lakeland. They will need new players to fill the void left by Henson if they are to return to the postseason.
“Eric Floyd and Eric Taris will be the guys at the cornerstones of our frontcourt,” said Garcia, who lives in Land O’ Lakes. “Our frontcourt has heard for a year about how we’ve lost John and we won’t be as good up front. I think competitive guys like them will be looking to prove everyone wrong.”
Garcia said Floyd has a lot of ability, is a hard worker and should be able to contribute in his sophomore season. He stated that Taris, senior, is finally healthy after having trouble with his ankles from playing defensive end for the football team.
Davis agreed with his coach on the frontcourt.
“Taris has lots of game experience and Eric (Floyd) gets better every day,” Davis said. “Those two will help us tremendously down low.”
While Taris and Floyd are poised to take over in the frontcourt, they will have their work cut out for them to replace the 17.6 points per game, 159 blocks and 318 rebounds that Henson provided last year. The Gryphons may have been a team based on frontcourt scoring last year, but they will need to rely on their backcourt this season.
Fortunately for Sickles, Davis is not the only returning guard. Rashawn Rembert averaged 8 points per game and had 90 rebounds last year as a sophomore.
“He is one of a kind,” Rembert said of playing with Davis. “He just sees everything on the floor and is a real leader. If you mess up, he’s going to tell you.”
Rembert starting playing basketball around age 10. He was also a wide receiver for the Gryphons his first two years, but is now focusing solely on basketball.
“I like to lead more by example,” Rembert continued. “I talk a little more on defense, but I let my play do most of the talking.”
Sickles is in 5A-9 this year with Freedom, Gaither, Chamberlain, Leto, King and Hillsborough.
“Our biggest competitions will probably be King and Hillsborough,” Garcia said. “King made it to the Final Four in (5A) last year and Hillsborough won their district. But all our district teams can play, so there isn’t a dominant team.”
While it will be difficult to replace the scoring and defense of Henson, Sickles expects big things again.
“I think we are going to surprise a lot of people,” Rembert said. “People expected us to fall off the map without John, but, hopefully, we can go deep into the playoffs.”
Davis said of the upcoming season, “We have a very talented team, but we need to work together. We probably won’t be able to replace John’s shot blocking, but we’ll need to make it hard for people to get to the basket.
“Our main goal is to get through every district game and get to the playoffs. The more people doubt us, the more we’ll be motivated.”
Sickles Roster
Name Pos. Year
- Jordan Davis G Sr.
- Jack Holland G Sr.
- Jay Gillespie G Sr.
- Caleb Kamm G Sr.
- Logan Morrison G Sr.
- Eric Taris F Sr.
- Rashawn Rembert G Jr.
- Joe Broner F Jr.
- Giovanni Avila G So.
- Eric Floyd F So.
- Dan Harris G Fr.
- Malcolm Johnson F Fr.
