MIDDLEBURG - After back-to-back 10-win seasons, Middleburg High boys basketball coach Sean Sweeney is feeling pretty good about his 2023 start at eight wins and just one loss.
"People around here remember when this team was 0-10 and nobody came to our games," said Sweeney, now 8-1 after a come-from-behind 54-53 win over a tough Suwannee High team on a Saturday matinee contest at Middleburg High. "These guys are scrappy and, in this game, turned it on when they needed it for the win."
Sweeney noted that the Broncos had four games in five days; wins over Interlachen on Tuesday, Baker County on Thursday and West Nassau on Friday. Middleburg's last winning season was a 15-11 finish under coach Travis Tipton in 2019 with Michael Harrison winning 16 games in 2011 and 2012.
With Suwannee winning a fifth straight "W" for the Middleburg, Sweeney nodded to the banners in the Carrie Prewitt gym that all of a sudden have state champions written on them; softball and volleyball.
"There is a feel in the hallways that the Middleburg programs have turned a corner and we want to be part of that," said Sweeney. "It is a driving force to get our banner up there one day."
Against Suwannee, the Broncos opened with three-pointers from Aidan Farber, Jacob Lohse and Camren Burns building to a 19-8 first-quarter lead, it seemed the Broncos were easily on their way to their eighth win.
Wrong.
Both teams managed to miss the net throughout the stanza and the halftime score was just 25-16; a 6-8 scoring spree.
"Thank God they were just as bad as we were for the quarter," said Sweeney. "At the half, I told them every one is telling them how great they are playing and that now is the time to show it."
In the third, both teams tightened up on defense and forced plenty of sloppy turnovers with Middleburg staying cold and Suwannee using drives to the bucket to create points to end the quarter at 37-36 with the Bulldogs hitting a three-pointer with 16 seconds to go to take the lead. Middleburg got another three from Farber and a jumper with Nate Lowery adding a jumper.
Suwannee rolled ahead to a 44-38 lead before a layup and free throw from guard Jarren Rozier closed the gap to 44-41 with Farber hitting a jumper and center Landon Seago snaring a follow-up rebound to chop the gap to 46-45.
A Suwannee three-pointer dashed the momentum before Farber cashed in twice; one off a no-look pass from Chico Ally to tie the game at 49-49 with 2:13 to go.
"We just had to do what we had to do to get the win," said Farber. "We knew the shooting would come back."
In the final two minutes, Farber again made the key plays with a jumper, and a steal to a layup by Rozier putting Middleburg up 53-51 before a Suwannee layup to tie.
In the final 12 seconds, a scuffle under the basket got two free throws to Rozier for the win.
Middleburg has games with Florida Deaf, Baldwin to end the pre-Christmas slate and then Yulee on  January 4.