Final Observations from the Don Kelso/Closetmaid Tournament

December 27 through December 29, Ocala Forest High School hosted Don Kelso State Farm Girls basketball tournament which featured some of the top talent throughout the state.

The tournament was divided into two brackets (Don Kelso and the Closetmaid) and featured high powered Florida teams such as: Miami Norland, Haines City, St. Thomas Aquinas, Boone, Palatka and Winter Haven.

The tournament also featured some of the state's best talent: Foluke Akinradrewo (St. Thomas Aquinas), Vontrice Dennis (Norland), Eboni Sadler (Norland), Shemetrice Tarver (Haines City), Nikki King (Haines City), Brittany Denson (Winter Haven), and Laquesha Gamble (Winter Haven).

In the tournament, Polk County showed its basketball dominance as Haines City took the title in the Closetmaid and Winter Haven took the title in the Don Kelso State Farm.

In the final game of the Closetmaid bracket, Haines City defeated a young but talented Palatka team 58-40 to win the title. The Hornets were led by Center, Nikki King who finished with 12 points and dominated the paint from start to finish. Palatka showed resilience as they battled back from a 12 point halftime deficit, but at the end Haines City was too tough as they pulled away for the victory. Palatka's Chrishea Johnson did make the all tourney team along with Nikki King from Haines City and Shemetrice Tarver (who was the tourney's MVP).

For Winter Haven, the Blue Devils continued to roll along winning their second tournament of the year in an impressive fashion with a 48-36 victory over nationally ranked Mater Dei High from California. Winter Haven used a 12-0 run to start the game and never was threaten. Winter Haven was led by Brittany Denson and Crystal Campbell who finished with 12 and 11 points respectively.

In one of the closest MVP voting in tournament history, Amber Smith, sophomore Point Guard narrowly edged out her teammate, Brittany Denson.

"Winter Haven is by far the best team in the state," tournament director Robert Moramarco said. The Blue Devils return with the core of their team from last year which lost in the finals. They are led by returning seniors, LaQwesha Gamble and Crystal Campbell. The Blue Devils' strong team turned into a dominant team when All Florida Prospects Center, Brittany Denson transferred to Winter Haven from Kissimmee Osceola.

As far as tournaments go, this is one of the better tournaments for girls basketball in the state. With an abundance of college scouts and great teams the Don Kelso State Farm Tournament is a great place to showcase all of the talent in the state of Florida.