Imhotep dazzles on national stage by winning Florida’s City of Palms Classic

The charter of champions could also be dubbed the house of highlights after Imhotep Charter’s impressive run at the City of Palms Classic in Ft. Myers, Fla. this week.

On Sunday, senior guard Rahmir Barno — named the tournament’s MVP — hit a game-winning layup just before time expired, giving the Panthers a 2-point, come-from-behind victory in the quarterfinal.

By Tuesday’s semifinal, Imhotep, a perennial Public League power, knocked off Wheeler [Ga.] and its highly ranked recruits.

» READ MORE: Imhotep's Justin Edwards and Rahmir Barno sign national letters of intent

The Panthers capped the week Wednesday, beating Columbus (Fla.) and the talented twin sons of former NBA player Carlos Boozer to claim the crown and make history at the 49th annual tournament.

“We’ve had a lot of teams go down there, but no team from the state of Pennsylvania had ever won the City of Palms,” said Imhotep coach Andre Noble on Friday via phone.

The Panthers [6-0], who have won 10 Pub titles since 2004, had previously lost in the City of Palms finale during the 2018 season.

“So to actually win it and be the first team from our state to win it,” he added, “against some of the best teams in the country, was big for the Panthers.”

Senior Baasil Saunders even won the tournament’s dunk contest.

Barno’s game-winner dispatched Archbishop Stepinac [N.Y.], MaxPreps’ No. 26-ranked team, 46-44. The Panthers then beat No. 5 Wheeler, 61-52, holding seniors Isaiah Collier and Arrinten Page — both headed to USC — to just 8-for-28 from the field. Collier, a 6-foot-3 guard, is currently ranked No. 4 in the nation by 247sports.

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In the finale, Imhotep, the No. 3 team, clobbered Columbus, the No. 4 team, 61-44, holding sophomore’s Cameron and Cayden Boozer to just 11-for-26 shooting from the field.

“I really think we grew down there,” Noble said. “I was really happy with our progress.”

Part of that growth, he added, began when Barno and Justin Edwards were freshmen starters.

Next season, Barno will play at Florida Gulf Coast, which is in Fort Myers. Some of his future coaches and teammates were in attendance throughout the week. Edwards, the No. 2 player in the nation according to ESPN, is headed to Kentucky.

In 2020, however, both were just freshmen learning how to win.

“That 2020 year we got smacked a couple times when we went to play national games, because we were really young and inexperienced,” Noble said.

Those experiences, however, taught them how to win, he added.

In the final, Edwards played exceptional defense on Cameron Boozer, considered the No. 1 sophomore in the nation. During the semifinal, Imhotep junior wing Ahmad Nowell led the Panthers with 21 points. The 6-2 guard also played stingy defense on Collier, who shot just 6-for-17 overall. Barno averaged 15 points, four rebounds, and three assists during the four-game tournament. He led all scorers with 21 points in the championship game.

“[Barno] was really good in the whole tournament,” Noble said. “Then in the final he was just really special. Really happy for him … to have that moment on that kind of stage, where he’s going to play college basketball, that was really cool.”