Lodge-Meadowbrook moved one step closer to qualifying for the knockout stages when they defeated Buxton 73-44 in the group round of the Mackeson-sponsored Trinity Grid Pacesetters Inter-ward basketball tourney on Wednesday.
Contested at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall on Homestretch Avenue, Pellam Dorris marshalled
the victors as he collected 16 points, five assists and four boards.
Mortimer Williams assisted the cause as he grabbed 15 points, six rebounds and three steals whilst Hodayah Stewart and Shawn Blair netted 10 and seven points correspondingly.
Ewart Smith and Loshol Secisor led the East Coast side with 11 and eight points respectively.
The opening period began in a very scrappy fashion as both sides struggled for fluency and offence rhythm. Lodge/Meadowbrook got into early foul trouble as the Buxtonians jumped into the lead at the close of the period 11-7.
Quarterbacking the offence, Doris imposed his will in the second period as he displayed a measure of poise and control to score 12 vital points. With his side, trailing 21-17, a clutch three point dagger was converted at the top of the key to ignite his resulting offence.
He quickly followed that up with a three-point play after being fouled while driving to the rim and scoring.
The lanky guard also showed his worth on the defensive end as he intercepted a dangerous pass only to finish with a drive to the basket to take his side into the half leading 32-27.
A combination of poor shot selection and dogged defending by the Georgetown side plagued the Buxtonians in the third period. The resulting pressure led to the East Coast side scoring a paltry five points in the period.
Lodge/Meadowbrook however continued to ride the momentum of the second period as they extended their lead. Shooting guard Williams in combination with diminutive guard Stewart also got into the act as they combined well to push the Georgetown side ahead.
Taking over from Doris at the point, Stewart netted six points in the half as he continuously penetrated the paint with his nimble footwork while Stewart found his shooting touch as he buried a few mid-range jumpers as the period ended with the scores at 51-35.
The fourth would prove to be another dominant quarter for the Georgetown side as they netted a total of 22 points. Entering into the fray for the first time, Blair scored all of his seven points as he led the offensive push through fast break points.
Buxton’s offensive troubles would continue as the East Coast side struggled to muster any significant output, scoring only nine points as the fixture concluded.
In the group ‘A’ mid-card encounter, East Bank unit McDoom-Diamond defeated Alberttown-Bourda 69-56. Travis Burnett led the East Bank with 24 points while Tyrone Hamid netted 10 points.
Yannick December collected 18 points and three rebounds in the loss while Jaime Maiyers scored 10 points.
East Coast side Plaisance-Vryheid Lust blew out East-West Ruimveldt 121-53 in their group ‘B’ fixture.
Nikkoloi Smith led the way with 22 points, three steals and as many assists while Nicholas Cascius, Enoc Matthews, Hugh Arthur and Shelroy Thomas contributed 16, 13, 13 and 12 points respectively.
Dwan Walters led the losers with 17 points and eight boards while Albert Grant scored 14 points.
