Lake Mary, Lake Howell Fall Short in FHSAA Boys Basketball Semifinals

Two Seminole County programs made the trip to Jacksonville with state title hopes and came home with third-place finishes. Lake Mary and Lake Howell both reached the 2026 FHSAA Boys Basketball Championships Final Four at the University of North Florida, and both were eliminated in the semifinals within 24 hours of each other.

Lake Howell's exit came first. The Silver Hawks, 25-6 on the season, held a lead as late as the final moments of the fourth quarter in their Class 6A semifinal on Thursday against Evans. Then Evans clamped down defensively, holding Lake Howell without a field goal for over six minutes and converting 12-of-16 free throws in the final minutes to pull away 63-51. The Silver Hawks had built one of the county's stronger seasons but could not hold off a team, Evans finished 23-8, that won the game at the foul line when it mattered most.

Lake Mary drew a more daunting bracket assignment. The Rams, entering at 23-9, faced the five-time Class 7A state champion Miami-Columbus Explorers in their Friday semifinal. Columbus, now 26-6, had knocked out Seminole in the 2025 semifinals and wasted no time asserting itself again, scoring the first 15 points of the game.

Lake Mary did not fold immediately. Owen Ceynowa hit a pair of three-pointers, Tyler Schenck converted a layup in between, and another Ceynowa play cut the Columbus lead to 19-10 with two minutes left in the first half. But the Explorers responded with an 18-3 run to close the half, taking a 37-13 lead into the locker room. Columbus won 68-42 across the full 32 minutes.

The Rams arrived at UNF having won 9 of their last 10 games, earning an at-large regional bid after dropping the district final to Seminole. They then eliminated Lake Howell, Atlantic Coast, and Winter Park to claim the program's first Regional Championship and first Final Four appearance. That run now stands as the high-water mark in Lake Mary boys basketball history.

Both programs finished tied for third in their respective classes. For a county that sent two teams to the same Final Four weekend, the 2026 season represents a legitimate benchmark, even without a trophy to show for it.