East trample West in Linden All-Star duel

Aug 18, 2009 Sports

By Edison Jefford

The Eastern half of the Demerara River that flows through Linden proved that they really produce better ‘ballers’ when they overcame the Western half in an All–Star Basketball Showdown at the Mackenzie court Saturday night.

Louis James and Jason Alonzo both scored 13 points to lead the offensively ready East to bragging rights, a championship trophy and $100,000 in the event that Retrieve Raiders Club hosted to settle the ‘who’s the best’ dispute.

East disposed of West 61-53 after a close first half that saw them leading 35-31. It was as plain as day that the East had the better offence while West depended heavily on defence to keep them competitive in the well supported game.

Alonzo spent most of the second half on the bench after his effective first half against the potent Dwayne ‘Sugar’ Roberts.

He added five block shots and 12 rebounds to 13 points to complete his Most Valuable Player performance.

Roberts had 20 points for the West while Quincy Jones scored 12 points. The West had a chance to either equal or win the game on two occasions with the clock in its final minute but guard Kurleigh Austin could not finish the plays.

After a close first half, East raced to a 51-43 points lead in the final quarter leaving West to come up with more offensive options. Alonzo frustrated Roberts when he kept him off the boards and away from the basket on offence.

With Roberts not getting his inside game on, the West was forced to look for alternative scoring options, which they sadly did not find in Austin and guard Nevin Grenville, who misfired from beyond three-point range all night.

The West will be guilty of exposing a few inexperienced players down the homestretch of the game. There were moments when easy chances were created on fast breaks but those jittery players spoilt them with extra passes.

At the end of the night, if ‘Sugar’s’ and Jones’ contribution on offence is minus, the score would read 61-33 that gives the impression of 10 other players combining to score merely 21 points at an average of 2.1 points per player.

It was not a good night for West that comprises teams such as Wismar Pistons, Bulls and Victory Valley Royals. East had the backing of players from Kings, Jets and Raiders. The game could have had a pinch of All-Star salt.

Students thrashed Teachers 80-58 in the preceding game with Orin Rose, Jeffrey LaRose, Sheldon Noel and Akeem Kanhai coming up big with 21, 18, 16 and 12 points. Keith Bailey 19, Swain Ross 15 and Seon Nestor 13 were the scorers for Teachers.

MoneyGram was the primary sponsor of the event while Fantasia’s Comfort Zone Taxi Service, Corporate Supplies, ACVS, McRae’s Supermarket and Bobby Noel’s General Store also supported the inaugural event.

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East trample West in Linden All-Star duel

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