Union Island Secondary wins basketball title in dramatic fashion

The Union Island Secondary scraped home by the narrowest of margins last Sunday night at the New Montrose hard court, to take the male division of the secondary schools’ basketball competition.{{more}}

In high drama, it took the students from the Southern Grenadines until the last two free throws of the match to forge ahead of the Northern Grenadines representative – the Bequia Community High, in an action filled championship match.

Union Island led 22-19 at the end of the first quarter; it was 37 a piece at the end of the second and 57 at the buzzer to end the third quarter. Union Island prevailed 70-69 in a nervy run in to the final whistle.

Nimron Laborde sank 16 for the victors, while Xavaughn Dennie scored 16 for the Bequia Community High.

Dennie also poured in the most points overall in the competition.

Abdon Whyte, coach of the UISS, told SEARCHLIGHT that it was a reward for the efforts they have put in, having been in training since early in 2012, when the competition did not materialize.

“We are excited, overjoyed, everything”, Whyte said in a hoarse voice, last Sunday night.

Whyte said going into the last quarter of the match, he told his players to dig deeper than before.

Whyte apportioned the close run-in to the title, to the fact that some of his key players found themselves in foul trouble and had to be managed carefully, with two eventually fouling out in the last quarter.

But Whyte also commended the Bequia Community High for what they brought to the final.

“Bequia has a good team; they have inside presence, which we don’t have… We have mostly shooters and they have post players and were killing us on the post, but we fought through”, Whyte noted.

Union Island Secondary’s Dario Glasgow was adjudged Player of the Final.

The other individual award, which went the champion’s way, was secured by Tarique Ollivierre, who scored the most three-pointers.

Buccament Bay Secondary wins lopsided female final. In contrast, in the female final, which preceded the male showdown – the Buccament Bay Secondary overcame a first quarter deficit of 4, to lace the Bishop’s College Kingstown 77 – 37.

Bishop’s had taken the first quarter 16-12, but Buccament took over, winning the second at 38- 24, the third at 51-29 and continued in the last quarter to finish the contest, which turned out to be almost one-way traffic to the hoops.

Brean Gloster, the division’s leading scorer, had 49 points for Buccament and Danielle Patterson – 20 for Bishop’s College Kingstown.

Naomi Williams of Buccament Secondary was voted the Player of the Final, with her teammate Lindesha Lewis – the Most Improved Player.

The George Stephens Secondary claimed third place in both female and male divisions. (RT)