March Madness: Windermere boys hoops two wins away from state title

Just as a variety of films or plays can be broken down into three acts — or sections of the story — so can Windermere High’s journey to the 2024-25 FHSAA Class 7A boys basketball Final Four. 

Led by District 5 Player of the Year T.J. Drain and longtime area coach Mark Griseck, the Wolverines head into the state semifinals with a 25-5 record and a chance to bring home the program’s first-ever state championship, which — considering how the season started for Windermere — shows just how far this team has come.

Act one: Eye-opener

From the outside, given the Wolverines came into the season without three of their top four players and more than half of their overall players from the 2023-24 team, it was easy to assume at the start of the year this group would lack the talent, chemistry or experience needed to make a real run, despite the addition of four quality transfer players in Gustavo Roca, A.J. Smith, Sean Owens and Korvontae Hatter.

Again, from the outside, the doubts that arose about this version of Wolverines basketball during the preseason began to become reality after a 50-46 season-opening loss to Lake Highland Prep. 

But from inside the Windermere locker room, all the doubt about how quickly this bunch could come together didn’t do anything but serve as fuel for the Wolverines’ ultimate goal.

“The Lake Highland game was a good eye-opener for us,” Griseck said. “Losing in the first game of the year kind of got us to think: ‘Hey, maybe we’re not as good as we think we are, and we should lock in and focus.’ Still, despite that thought, we knew that it wasn’t the end of the world … because we all knew that our goal this season wasn’t to go undefeated. The goal was to be playing in March.”

Windermere responded to that loss by rattling off 11 consecutive wins, some of which were against top teams in Florida — including a 38-point win over fellow 7A Final Four team Seminole High, an 18-point win over 6A Final Four team Evans High and a 15-point win over 2A state runners-up Santa Fe Catholic. 

“After we lost to Lake Highland at home at the start of the season, it felt like everyone counted us out,” Drain said. “That was fine. We weren’t looking for the approval of anyone outside this locker room. All we need is the buy-in from the guys inside our locker room … and that’s what we got after that first loss. No one in here was hanging their heads. We knew — especially because Coach Trey (Griseck) kept constantly reminding us that night and throughout the season — that our goal was not to go undefeated; it was to play in March. That first game, at that point in time, fueled us.”    

Act two: Confidence & Chemistry

That loss acted as the proverbial gas poured on the fire burning in the Windermere locker room. Those raging flames molded the weapons used by the Wolverines in their hardwood battles and forged their war-like mentality.

“We all had the same mindset going into practice after that loss,” Smith said. “We needed to approach each day like we were going to war — whether that was with each other in practice or by taking that same mindset into each game. It was a tough loss in the first game, but we didn’t let it define our season. We knew that our goal was to play in March and win the state championship. Our mindset is what’s got us here and what will help (us) win.”

This collective mentality is how the Wolverines began to develop the chemistry needed to form a championship-level identity. 

“Everybody bought into the team-first part of our program,” Griseck said. “They understood that, yes, we have a lot of talent on this team, but for us to win and reach our goal, everybody has to play their role — and that starts on the defensive end. I think our identity has really been focused on being a great defensive team, and this is probably one of the best defensive teams I’ve had here. That just comes with effort and doing the things you’re supposed to do.”

From Drain’s perspective, the results of the buy-in and mentality have been monumental to Windermere’s deep playoff run. 

“The way we have gelled has made it feel like we’ve been playing together for a long time,” Drain said. “Our chemistry has a lot to do with the success we’ve had as a team. When there’s no selfishness, no bickering at each other, that really brings a team together. … Regardless of where you were before, when you become a part of this team, this is your home. We really embraced the new members of the team and made sure not to treat anyone differently, no matter if you’ve been here for four years or if it’s your first year. We’re a family and we treat all of us as such. To me, that’s been a big part of how we were able to gel together so quickly.”

As the season progressed and its chemistry grew, so did its confidence. Griseck recalls two moments he saw his players start to believe.

“Two games this season really stood out to me, in terms of our guys realizing that we have a chance to be a special group,” he said. “The first was our road win over Evans right before Christmas. I thought, ‘Wow, we’ve got a really good chance this year.’ Obviously, beating a team like that — that’s also in the Final Four — is hard, and for us to win in the way we won just gave us a lot of confidence. The other game was the regional final against Oak Ridge. That was just a big moment for us as a program to finally get over that hurdle. They’re such a good team, such a good program, and they’ve knocked us out a couple of times in the last few years, so finally getting over that hump was a lot of fun and added to our confidence in a big way heading into the Final Four.” 

Act three: The summit

Now, just two wins away from winning a state title, Windermere has the chance to make school history by bringing home the program’s first state championship. Before the Wolverines can focus on that, however, they must first reach the title game by beating the Sarasota Sailors (28-2) on Friday, March 7.

“Right now, we’re focused on Sarasota,” Griseck said. “Every day we’re doing everything we can to prepare ourselves to play those guys and to better ourselves. The only game that’s important is the one on Friday. If we are lucky enough to get to play on Saturday, we’ll worry about it then.”

Waiting for the winner of Windermere/Sarasota will either be Central Florida school Seminole High or the No. 1-ranked team in the country, Columbus High, which is led by twin brothers Cameron and Cayden Boozer — both of whom are committed to play at Duke next season. Regardless of the opponent, Drain knows the only way the Wolverines will finish the season on top is to remain composed when things don’t go their way.

“Staying together as a team when we’re weathering the storms is the most important part of winning a championship,” he said. “This is basketball; there’s going to be runs, especially when you’re playing good teams. Our focus when those runs go the other way is to just stay together like we have all season and we’ll be good.”