By VINO

BVI suffered their first loss of the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Men’s Championships when Barbados beat them 77-76. Photo: Kevin Dawson

The BVI failed in an epic come back attempt last night, Wednesday June 17, 2015 at the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Men’s Championships when they lost 77-76 to Barbados to suffer their first loss of the tournament in the Multi Purpose Sports Complex.

Up 14-9 at the end of the first quarter, behind 45-32 at the half, and down by 15 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, the host nation got some inspiration from Bjorn Caleb, who struck back to back two’s to shift the momentum of the game.

Franklyn Penn Junior then brought the crowd to their feet with a two and a big shot from down town to make it a 10-point game. Kennedy H. Bass also went in from long range to bring the scores even closer and the BVI went ahead, 73-71, on another three from Kilven Samuel with 1:50 left on the clock.

Barbados went back into the lead on a series of free throws and a three from Keefe Birkett to make the score 77-76 with less than a minute to play

The BVI then missed a series of good chances to net the winner, with three attempts to score all going abegging until the buzzer sounded.

Randy ‘Chino’ George finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds, Penn Junior 15 points, Samuel 12 with 7 rebounds and Steve E. Parillon 11

For Barbados, Birkett finished with 31 points and David Gill, 16.

Bermuda beat Guyana
Earlier, Bermuda, after briefly giving up the lead in the second half, upped its preliminary round record to 1-1 at the 2015 Caribbean Basketball Confederation Men’s Championship with a 74-65 victory over Guyana.

Bermuda led 15-9 after the first quarter and, after a Keron McKenzie three-pointer tied it for Guyana at 4:08 mark of the second, closed out the half on a 9-2 run to lead 32-23 at halftime.
Gordon James then gave Guyana its first lead since midway through the first quarter with a three-point play to make it 38-36 with 5:06 left in the third. But Bermuda went on a 5-0 run of its own to retake the lead. A three-pointer by Jason Simons, with :40 left in the third, stretched the lead to seven before the quarter ended with Bermuda up 50-45.

James got his team to within two with another three-point play at the 7:01 mark of the fourth, making the score 52-50, and then to within four at 61-57 with 4:19 to play, but Guyana would get no closer, scoring just two points over the next 2:19 minutes.

Sullivan Philips led Bermuda with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Christopher Crumpler scored 16, and Yusef Riley added 11. James led Guyana with 22 points. Akeem Kanhai pulled down 12 rebounds.

By Tortola2015.com
Bahamas remains undefeated with a win over Suriname 72-57
Eugene Bain led the way with 11 points and 9 rebounds, Torrington Cox, Michael Bain Jr, Leon Cooper and Magnun Rolle pitched in with 10 points respectively.

Despite a nice  start by both teams at the end of the first half Bahamas saw it’s team going into the locker rooms ahead 39-28.

For Suriname Bruce Mawuli Zamuel led the way with 11, Bahamas was able to hold of the fourth quarter charge by Suriname in the final 3:50 minutes of play with an 11- 5 run.

By VINO

The BVI cruised past the Cayman Islands, 92-78, Tuesday night, June 16, 2015 at the CBC Men’s Championship at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town. Photo: Kevin Dawson

Led by 15 points each from Kennedy H. Bass and Kelvin Samuel, BVI cruised past the Cayman Islands, 92-78, Tuesday night, June 16, 2015 at the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Men’s Championship at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town, Tortola.

The BVI sharp shooters were on fire as they went 32/63 from the field, which proved crucial as the Cayman Island’s had better luck from both the free throw line and from long range efforts.

However, the BVI, who out rebounded their opponents 53-24, were more disciplined in giving away fouls and picked up more second chance points 19-9.

Apart from Bass and Samuel, the BVI also got double digit efforts from Halstead ‘JR’ Chiverton (13), Norville ‘Banana’ Carey (11) and Randy George (10).

Bass also picked up 9 Rebounds, while Samuel and Leslee J. Smith both had 8 and Carey 7.
Samuel O’Garro led the Cayman Islands with 25 points.

Antigua & Barbuda make light work of Suriname
Antigua and Barbuda moved to 2-0 in preliminary round play at the 2015 Caribbean Basketball Confederation Championships with a convincing 85-50 win over Suriname. Having jumped out to a 16-5 lead on a Kurt Looby alley-hoop with 5:44 to play in the first quarter, Antigua never looked back.

The Bulldogs led after the first quarter 29-13, and at halftime 51-22.

The onslaught continued in the second half, as Antigua opened up a 44-point fourth-quarter lead at 76-32 on a basket by Lennox McCoy. Aside from a 7-0 run in the fourth by Suriname (0-1), Antigua dominated in every phase of the game.

Looby led Antigua with 13 points. Jerome Richardson, Ernest Scott and Sharife Sergeant each had 11. Yves Goedschalk led Suriname with 11 points.

SVG overcome Barbados
Sean Baptiste put his stamp on the second game  for St Vincent and the Grenadines with 6 fourth quarter points in a 70-63 win over Barbados (0-1). Baptiste was the leading scorer with 21 points. Alexis Foyle tallied 19 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists, and Shawn King added 10 points and 16 boards. Nyika Williams provided the spark off the bench with 10 points, 4 steals and 4 assists.

St Vincent started off hot with a 25-9 run at the end of the first period and kept the lead 40-26 heading into halftime.

Barbados jumped out with a 17-4 run in the third quarter to cut the deficit to single digits at the end of three. John Jones and Akeem Marsh netted 14 points, with Marsh pulling 11 rebounds. Keefe Birkett joined in with 11 points.

Bahamas keep Guyana winless
Defending champions, Bahamas (2-0) won convincingly against Guyana (0-2) 89-69 in Group B preliminary play, using a 15-4 run that was ignited by a Kentwan Smith three-pointer at the 6:12 mark in the first quarter. Bahamas were able to control the game after that. Smith finished with 18 points on a perfect 7-7 FG and 3-3 from downtown.

Guyana’s efforts were aided by a strong performance by Dave Causway who had a game-high 19 points, including 11 of his team’s 13 in the third quarter.

Bahamas play Suriname tomorrow at 4:15pm while Guyana take on Bermuda at 2:00pm.

By VINO

Darier Malone of the BVI beats her marker to advance to the basket during semi finals of the CBC Championship. Photo: Charlie E. Jackson/VINO

For a team playing in its first-ever international competition, the British Virgin Islands’ Women’s team looked like a seasoned club after coming back from a double-digit second-half deficit and nearly pulling off a stunning comeback win over St Vincent and the Grenadines when the CBC Women’s Championship continued on Thursday June 11, 2015.

The stirring, crowd pleasing comeback, was cut short, however, as St Vincent and the Grenadines just made more plays in the final two minutes and came away with a thrilling 71-67 win at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town.

“The two point guards did a good job for them and it was their night, that’s Basketball,” commented BVI Coach, Brian “Bash” Brewley. “Free Throws can win games and that’s something we will have to work on going forward, even in the NBA they sometimes miss and we had chances to win the game.“

BVI held a lead after the first period, 18-17, but SVG used a 16-2 run to take a 35-27 lead at the half.

SVG swelled the lead to 12 in the third quarter at 48-36 and looked to be cruising, until Tiffany Jennings and Shauliqua Fahie hit back-to-back three-pointers to cut the lead to 50-47 after three.

BVI finally tied the game at 56 with a Tamara Philip layup with 5:13 to play in the fourth. The two teams traded the lead until Philip hit a pair of free throws to put BVI up 65-61 with 2:35 to play. But Sheldeen Joseph tied the game with two free throws of her own at the 1:39 mark, and Lorna Caesar gave SVG the lead for good with another pair from the stripe with 1:04 to play.

Vasha Adams scored 22 points and hauled in 14 rebounds for SVG, while Joseph added 21 and grabbed 13 boards.  Tamara Philip had a game high 27 and had 29 rebounds for BVI. Jennings added 18.

Bahamas turns around for narrow win over Barbados
The semi-finals were also contested during play on Thursday, with Barbados suffering an astonishing last quarter loss to the Bahamas.

The undefeated Bahamas had placed first in group A and took on the second place finisher Barbados in group B. Bahamas won 57-53. Philicia Kelly led the way for Bahamas with 10 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists, accompanied by Sha-Londa Neely with 13 points and 15 boards.

Jamila Studer, Toni Atherley and Dale-Marie Cumberbatch each had 12 points for Barbados who took an early lead and went into the locker rooms at halftime leading 27-18.

Although Barbados’ starting point guard Ashlee Daniels fouled out of the game, they were able to hold the lead. It was a back and forth affair in the last three minutes of play in the final quarter as Bahamas, in a collective team effort, made their free throws and plays down the stretch, edging out Barbados in the final minute for the victory.

Jamaica overcome USVI
Defending Champions Jamaica also reached the final with a win against the US Virgin Islands (USVI).

Despite a spirited effort by the US Virgin Islands that saw them cut a 20-point lead down to 6 in the 4th quarter, Jamaica held on to win 61-52.

Jamaica started the game on a 7-0 run and led 16-4 after the 1st quarter. The Virgin Islands got as close as 6 with 7:06 remaining before back to back threes by Tarita Gordon kept the Jamaicans ahead for good.

The ‘Reggae Girls’ had strong performances by Yanique Gordon, who had 19 points and Tarita Gordon, who had 18 points, as well as Jennifer George who tallied 10 points and 14 rebounds.

By VINO

Jamaica defeated BVI 61-28 in the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Women’s Championship. Photo: Charlie E. Jackson / VINO

The BVI matched Jamaica for almost all of the first half on Wednesday June 10, 2015 before falling to a 61-28 defeat in the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Women’s Championship at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town.

The intensity and speed of the game kept the large crowd enthralled from the time Tamara Phillip opened the scoring with a 3-pointer and saw the BVI hold the lead 3 times. Tiffany Jennings also found early scoring touch, but by the buzzer Jamaica were ahead 14-13, after scores from Shennieka Smith, Jennifer George and Loretta Gordon.

It took over two minutes of the second quarter for either team to score and it was Jennings who found the basket to put the BVI back ahead and the same player also splashed another “3” to level the scores at 18’s with 3.37 minutes left in the half.

Gordon and Smith combined again to put Jamaica up by 7 at the break, 25-18 and then, in the third quarter, Jamaica took full advantage of the BVI rotation to race into a 46-19 lead and see out the game with a comfortable 61-28 score line.

The decision to rest his starters was a tough one by Coach Brian ‘Bash’ Brewley but it had been discussed in team meetings the previous night as a way to maximize chances of finishing higher in the overall rankings, as not even a victory against Jamaica would have secured the BVI’s passage into the medal rounds.

Jennings finished as the BVI’s top scorer with 10, adding 7 rebounds, whilst Tamara Phillip recorded 7 points with 13 rebounds.

For Jamaica, Dhanyel Johnson picked up 12 points with 12 rebounds and both Gordon and George scored 11.

USVI make light work of SVG
As the championship resumed in the afternoon, the United States Virgin Islands defeated St Vincent and the Grenadines in game three action with a final score of 62-29. The US Virgin Islands started out on an 11-1 run in the first quarter in the first six minutes of play and kept their feet on the gas pedal, ending the first half leading St Vincent 32-20.

Brittney Matthew led the US Virgin Islands with 19 points and 3 assists, Victoria Hamilton chipped in with her double-double of 13 points and 13 boards. Vasha Adams of St Vincent and the Grenadines had a game high 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Bahamas rout Antigua & Barbuda
The Bahamas exploded out of the gate with a 22-7 first quarter against Antigua and Barbuda and never looked back, moving to 3-0 in Group B preliminary round play with a 74-39 win.

The Bahamas kept up the assault in the second period, outscoring Antigua 15-4 and taking a 37-11 lead into the locker room at halftime. Antigua found some offense in the third quarter, but it was not enough to get back in the game, as the Bahamas ballooned the lead to 33 points at 50-17. The third quarter ended with Bahamas up 58-29.

Shanea Armbrister and Malesha Petterson each scored 12 points for the Bahamas, while Ashley Moss pulled down 12 rebounds. Arrianne Whyte scored 14 points and nabbed 13 boards for Antigua.

Barbados overpower Guyana
It’s a good thing the first game Wednesday at the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town, Tortola was illuminated by bright sunshine through the windows–because when the lights came on for the game between Guyana and Barbados, Dale-Marie Cumberbatch (BAR) shot them out, as Barbados came away with an impressive 81-61 win and a 2-1 final record in Group B play.

Cumberbatch shot 9-of-12 in the first half, including 5-of-6 on three-pointers, finishing the half with 24 points as her team took a 49-37 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Guyana (0-3), after scoring 23 points in the second period, struggled offensively in the second half, putting up a total of just 24 points as Ginelle Ifill sat out much of the game with foul trouble.

Cumberbatch sat much of the fourth quarter and finished with 29 points and 9 rebounds. Jamila Studer added 23 points for Barbados. Miriam McKenzie scored 25 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for Guyana.

The lineup today has the BVI playing St Vincent and the Grenadines at 2pm, followed by Guyana against Antigua and Barbuda at 4.15pm, Barbados against the Bahamas at 6.45pm and then Jamaica play the USVI at 9pm.

By VINO

Barbados takes the game from BVI 79-49 at the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Women’s Championship. Photo; Charlie E. Jackson / VINO

The BVI were brought down to earth with a bump on Tuesday June 9, 2015, with a 79-49 defeat to Barbados at the Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Women’s Championship in the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex in Road Town.

The BVI started the game looking nervous and tentative, despite the famous victory over Guyana the previous night. They soon found themselves in deep trouble, down 20-5 at the end of the first quarter.

Barbados went on a nine-point run to start the second quarter and it wasn’t until over half way through the period that first Joy Victor and then Tiffany Jennings began to put some smiles back on their team mates faces and those of a Spartan crowd. A big block by Tammy Phillip, followed by a quick interchange between Tyalia Nibbs and Jennings, brought further confidence of a resurgence, but with the Barbadians keeping the Phillip sisters out of the game offensively, it proved short lived.

The half time score of 38-21 became 55-37 at the end of the third and although there were some glimmers of hope during the 4th, including a Keithreece Smith “3”, it is back to the drawing board ahead of tonight’s crunch game against Jamaica.

Jennings was the top scorer for the BVI with 14, Tamara Phillip was held to just 8 with 11 Rebounds and Darier Malone finished with 6.

For Barbados, Toni Atherley scored 21 Points, Dale-Marie Cumberbatch 15 with 9 Rebounds and Astrid Alleyne 11 with 8 Rebounds.

Jamaica thrash Guyana
Earlier, Jamaica blew the game wide up in the second half to defeat Guyana 70-43 when they outscored them, 36-28, including not allowing a point until the 3:40 during the 4th quarter to run away with their second victory at the Championships.

They were lead by Tarika Gordon who finished with 23 points. Yanique Gordon was able to build off her game one performance with 15 points and 7 rebounds.

In a losing effort, Miriam Ruth McKenzie finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Guyana complete group play tomorrow against Barbados at 2:00 pm while Jamaica, the defending champs, look to sweep the group against the British Virgin Islands at 9:00 pm.

USVI hammer Antigua
After a tight first quarter, the United States Virgin Islands used a smothering pressure defense and an explosive offense to pull away from Antigua & Barbuda, 94-31. The USVI led by just three, 15-12, after one period. But Britney Matthew exploded for 17 first-half points as USVI outscored Antigua 22-4 in the second to take a 37-16 lead at halftime. The Virgin Islands’ defense held Antigua scoreless for the first 6:43 of the second period.

The exciting athleticism of the Virgin Islands continued to be on display in the second half as they continued their dominance, leading 64-26 after the third quarter.

Matthew led all scorers with 25 points. Quatica Johnson and Victoria Hamilton each added 13, while Natalie Day had 12 for the Virgin Islands(1-1). Dalia Clarke led Antigua (1-1) with 9.

Bahamas turns game around to beat SVG
Trailing by eleven to St Vincent and Grenadines at halftime in preliminary Group A play, the Bahamas found some motivation in the locker room from their head coach, Yolett McPhee.
“I told them that if they were serious about playing for their country and not for themselves, they would come out in the second half and show it,” McPhee said.

The team listened and responded, and came away with a 62-54 come-from-behind win over St Vincent and Grenadines, moving to 2-0 in preliminary round play. St Vincent and Grenadines (0-2) led 18-9 after one and 40-29 at half.

The Bahamas outscored St Vincent and Grenadines 20-7 in the third to take a 49-47 lead heading into the final period, taking their first lead at 45-44 with 1:30 to play in the third.

A Shanea Armbrister three-pointer built the lead to eight at 59-51 with 3:43 to play, but a three-pointer by Sheldeen Joseph with 2:55 to play cut the lead back to five. Armbrister answered a moment later, however, with another three, and SVG was never able to get any closer.

Action continues at 2pm with Guyana against Barbados, then at 4pm Bahamas play Antigua and Barbuda before the USVI play St Vincent and the Grenadines at 6.00pm.

Group play concludes at 9m with the BVI facing Jamaica.

By the BVI Basketball Federation

Spartans in 2014 Basketball Summer League action. Photo: Charlie Jackson

The BVI Basketball Federation has confirmed the staging of the 2015 BVIBF Summer League which now has been rescheduled to start on May 16.

Rosters can be collected from members of the Federation. The deadline for submission with full payment of fees is May 11.

The age limit for the Junior Division is up to 19 years old (to qualify, a player cannot turn 20 in  2015). The entry fee for the Junior Division is $225 per team. The Senior Division is open and the entry fee is $300.00 per team.

Due to the hosting of the Caribbean Basketball Confederation Tournaments which start on June 8, this will be another “short and sweet” league which limits the number of teams that can participate to 12 teams for the Junior Division and 10 teams for the Senior Division.

A Coaches and Managers meeting is scheduled for Wednesday,  May 13 at the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports Conference Room at 5:30 p.m. and all Coaches and Managers are being asked to make a special effort to attend this important meeting.

Any questions or requests for rosters can be sent directly to the Federation’s email address, bvibasket14@gmail.com. Completed rosters with relevant fees must be delivered to the Treasurer, Clayton O’Neal or Assistant Treasurer, Judith Harrigan on or before the deadline.

By BVI Platinum

2014 CBC Championships. Photo: BVIOC

The Virgin Islands is gearing up to host the 2015 Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Championships for men and women at the Multipurpose Sports Complex from June 8-21.

Officials from FIBA spent last weekend examining facilities and ensuring that the BVI can deliver a world class event similar to last year’s CBC tournament which was also hosted on Tortola.

“We know that the BVI, not only the Government, but the people are very hospitable; they come out and watch the championships,” said Mr. Glyne Clarke, President of CBC at a press conference to launch the tournament yesterday, April 20.

Group A of the men’s tournament features Barbados, BVI, Cayman Islands, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the USVI. Group B sees Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Bermuda, Guyana and Suriname.

On the women’s side, Group A features Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and USVI, while Group B includes BVI, Jamaica, Barbados and Guyana.

Clarke explained that their visit this year is more cosmetic.

“We had an intense session yesterday [Sunday] with the local organizing committee where we reviewed all the requirements and ensured that everything was discussed point by point. We had some concerns, just minor concerns from last year’s championships and the local organizing committee had some concerns from last year’s championship as well. All in all, I think we are set to have a fantastic and successful tournament free of any incidents,” Clarke explained.

The tournament qualifies the three teams from the championships for the next round of the competition, Centrobasket. From the Centrobasket tournament, four teams will qualify to play for the Americas Cup.

Mrs. Dawn Crabbe-Herbert, Director of Play 2 Win Limited is the producer for the tournament for the second consecutive year.

She told BVI Platinum News that this is a major financial undertaking.

“What makes it unique is that we were able to go out and get media rights company to buy in. We have sold those rights to pull off this tournament of this magnitude. We are happy that because we did such a good job, we were able to partner with entities that saw it fitting to be able to assist in the financing of such a venture,” Crabbe-Herbert explained.

Speaking about last year’s dismal turnout from fans, she said that the organizing committee has made adjustments.

“Last year, one of the issues and the complaints were financing. I think we have rectified that this year. This year the game will be $5 to come to the game. We want the public to come out and support their countries. We don’t want funding to be the reason why persons would not be available to come out. We have thrown out the great big profit and we are focusing on building and structuring of the togetherness of the community. For $5, come out and support your countries. During the morning games we will be opening it free of cost to all the schools,” Crabbe-Herbert stated.