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Mackeson Mecca III Super Eight begins tomorrow
-Three remaining Linden clubs bounce into action
By Edison Jefford
Eight teams have survived a gruelling first round of the National Basketball Championships: The Mackeson
Dwayne Roberts
Road to Mecca III, earning the right to bounce into the Super Eight Playoffs, which is set for tomorrow and Saturday nights at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall.
With just one scare, which came when they played Rockers from New Amsterdam last weekend, Victory Valley Royals will play the higher ranked Retrieve Raiders in the first quarterfinal game tomorrow night from 7pm.
Royals was without their national shooting guard, Chris Williams and forward, Orlando Glasgow when they played Rockers in the first round; they will need both players against Retrieve Raiders – a team that is loaded with senior national players, including Dwayne Roberts, Marvin Hartman, Neil Marks, Jason Alonzo and recently minted national guard, Keon Cameron.
Raiders, according to a Linden Amateur Basketball Association (LABA) points system, overtook Half Mile Bulls for the number one spot following a recent win in Linden. Raiders are also ranked higher than Royals according to the Guyana Amateur Basketball Federation. These made Royals the underdogs in tomorrow’s battle for a Final Four place.
The second game features a humdinger between two familiar foes; Pacesetters from Georgetown and Half Mile Bulls at 9pm. Pacesetters admitted that it have scores to settle from last year August when Bulls knocked them out of the Forbes Burnham Memorial Championship.
Both teams had convincing first round wins, both scoring over 80 points and limiting oppositions to between
Travis Burnett
60-70 points. This reflects a robust offence and a balanced defence. Bulls will need to go one better to beat Pacesetters twice in as many meetings.
Bulls’ offence revolves around guard, Terron Welch, who dropped 39 points in their initial game and forward, Michael Turner; the team needs to improve that two-man rotation to beat defending champions, Pacesetters and its bevy of quality players.
Pacesetters have asked senior guard, Travis Burnett to play a facilitating roll, which was evident in his nine assists that he dished last Sunday night while scoring just 12 points; the plan is clearly to unleash the two junior guards on its roster in an up-tempo formation.
In addition, Pacesetters’ guard, Stephon Gillis, and forwards Royston Siland, Randy Richardson and Jermaine Hamilton will need containment. In that regard, Bulls’ Travin Dryden alone cannot do the work on the inside. Bulls need all horns against Pacesetters.
All the games will feature halftime entertainment with models, cheerleaders and artistes that also includes giveaways for patrons. Kirk ‘Chow Pow’ Jardine has been the host. The winning team will pocket $500,000 while second place will go home with $250 000, third $150,000 and fourth $100 000 respectively.
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