Lakewood’s basketball coach takes a road trip steeped in tradition | Tampa Bay Times

CORAL GABLES — It is well past midnight when the school bus reaches Lakewood High’s campus. Spartans boys basketball coach Anthony Lawrence Sr. heads home to get a few hours of sleep, then he’s back up at 5:30 a.m., ready for another road trip. But this one is not for his team.

For the past four years, Lawrence Sr. went through a parental predicament coaching Lakewood’s basketball program, as well as his son, a star on the team.

Now that Anthony Lawrence Jr. is a freshman on the University of Miami’s basketball team, his dad goes through another delicate balance. He juggles his coaching schedule while trying to attend as many Miami home games as possible. As long as the high school team is not playing, Lawrence Sr. is there.

Even if that means sacrificing a little sleep.