BABA U-16 Summer Jam starts smoothly
THE Barbados Amateur Basketball Association (BABA) Summer Jam U-16 competition began without a hitch with three games on Sunday afternoon at the Police Sports Club courts in Bay Street.
The first matchup was between the Kolij Lions and the Next Generation Blue Birds. It was a tough battle for Blue Birds as they were obviously the weaker side, but a good effort was made by all the players in the 76-15 defeat at the hands of the Lions. The scores stood at 23-5, 41-5 and 63-10 after the first three quarters with Lions having no trouble getting the ball into the hoop. Brandon Ruck had a game-high 23 points while Miguel Gibson had 16. For the Blue Birds, the top scorer was Brandon Walters with four points while Simon Hinds had three.
Pinelands took on the Lakers Sports Club at 5:30 p.m. in the second game of the afternoon and dispatched them by 15 points, 66-51. Pinelands got off to a 13-6 first quarter lead and never looked back. At the half, the score was 33-14, a 19-point lead and 47-31 at the end of the third. Twenty points in the last quarter by the Lakers ensured that the losing margin did not grow any further, making the end of the game a fast-paced and competitive performance by both sides. It was a three-pronged attack by Pinelands with Michael Tannis leading all scorers with 27 points, Deroni Hurley had 25 and Romario Cattoy finishing with 16. Lakers were led by Godfrey July with 21 points and Dijohn Hunte scored 11.
The final game of the day’s competition was the closest as the Next Generation Green Monkeys took on the YMCA Wildcats. The Green Monkeys led from start to finish with a 13-9 first quarter and 18-14 lead at half-time. Wildcats cut the lead to 2, 34-32 with a 12-point burst by Jayden Walker in the third. Unfortunately, Walker was unable to score in the final quarter and the Next Gen Green Monkeys were able to hold on for the three-point win. Kurt Carter top scored in the game with 16 points for the Green Monkeys and Antoine Maynard finished with nine. Walker led the Wildcats with 14 points.
The competition continues today at the Clapham courts with another three games, starting at 5 p.m. (AS)