Led by centre Ashton Demurrell and guard Sadiki Guerra, Straker Nets sealed its second straight win in the Men’s Premier Division of the Barry Stewart Invitational Basketball League at the Central Regional Indoor Sports Arena in Chaguanas on Sunday.
Demurrell scored 13 and Guerra netted 12 to help Straker comfortably defeat Defence Force 68-48 in the final match of six matches played on the day.
Action in the first quarter was balanced with Defence Force, playing without star player Steven “Lighter” Lewis due to injury, keeping on par offensively with Straker as the scores stayed tied at 22 at the end of the opening period.
In the second quarter, Defence Force despite the efforts of forward Kyeon Joseph (10) and guard Jamille King (10) fell behind by five (36-31) points at the half-way mark.
On the resumption, the Straker-unit came out much more aggressive on offence and lifted its defence to limit the army/coast guard combination team’s chances at the basket. This helped Starker gain a 48-36 lead heading into the fourth session.
Not much changed in the final quarter as Straker also boosted by guard Joel Hinds (9) and Triston Benjamin (9), outplayed Defence Force to seal the 20-point victory.
Similarly in the two matches played in the women’s division earlier turned out to be lopsided as well.
Six-footer post-player Jameela McCarthy played a major role in Straker Nets huge 83-59 victory over Enterprise, notching a match-high 24 points. Her teammates forward Crystal-Ann George added 20 and point guard Sue Lin Tang netted 17 for the winner.
Carissa Ramdial scored a team-high 18, Breanna Charles poured in 13 and Jamika Knight netted 13, in a losing effort.
The other match saw Ezita Best produce a match-high 22 points to pilot Brian Chase Academy to a massive 76-14 win over newcomer, the University of the West Indies (UWI), who had no player reaching double-figures.
There were more one-sided matches in the lower division with Brian Chase Academy led by Esan Babb with 25, getting a 30-point (77-47) win over 500 Hawks in the Under-19 Division.
In the U-15 category which is allowed to use female players up to the age of 17, Maloney Pacers crushed Grande Young Stars, 91-23 after leading 47-9 at the half and 500 Hawks beat Enterprise 56-37. Uthman Bilal starred for Hawks with a grand 31-point performance.
RESULTS
Men’s Premier Div
Straker Nets (36) 68 (Ashton DeMurrell 13, Sadiki Guerra 12, Joel Hinds 9, Triston Benjamin 9) vs Defence Force (31) 48 (Kyeon Joseph 10, Jamille King 10).
Women’s Div
Straker Nets (37) 83 (Jameela McCarthy 24, Crystal-Ann George 20, Sue Lin Tang 17) vs Enterprise (18) 59 (Carissa Ramdial 18, Breanna Charles 13, Jamika Knight 13).
UWI (12) 14 (Aneicia Baptiste 4) vs Brian Chase Academy (38) 76 (Ezita Best 22, Allison Young 19, Stephanie Isaac 10).
U-19 Div
Brian Chase Academy (42) 77 (Esan Babb 25, Johnathan Thomas 18, Ezekiel Humphrey 16) vs 500 Hawks (24) 47 (Stephan Auguste 14, Jaheim Badal 11, Uthman Bilal 8).
U-15 Div
500 Hawks (21) 56 (Uthman Bilal 31, Nathaniel Phillip 14, Kelvin Wellington 8) vs Enterprise (18) 37 (Jamika Knights 6, Negus Moore 6, Andy Neblett 6).
Grande Young Stars (9) 47 (Chekee Valere 8, Malik Williams 8, Michale Lucthmayi 6) vs Maloney Pacers (23) 91 (Jael Lewis 22, Christian Zoe 15, Jelani Blackett 12).