Ravens and Kwakwani secured a 1-0 lead in their best of three playoff series against Pacesetters and Mambas, respectively, when the inaugural edition of the ‘One Guyana’ Basketball Premier League resumed on Saturday evening at the National Gymnasium, Mandela Avenue.
Ravens bested fierce rival Pacesetters 74-65. Dominic Vicente scored the most with 20 points in the win, with emerging star Jude Corlette adding 17 points. For the loser, Zion Grey tallied 20 points, while Troy David recorded 20 points.
Leading 16-14 at the start of the first quartet, Ravens stormed ahead in the second stanza, scoring 26 points, while restricting Pacesetters once more to 14 points to enter the halftime interval ahead at 42-28.
Pacesetters mounted the possibility of a comeback in the pivotal third period, outscoring Ravens 18-12 to reduce the deficit to 46-54. However, any hopes of a Pacesetters comeback were extinguished in the fourth period, as the Ravens unit out-hustled their foe 20-19.
Meanwhile, dark-horse Kwakwani defeated a dogged Mambas unit 70-64. Domair Gladstone led all scorers in the win with 37 points. He was assisted by Jamal Gilkes and Royan Shortt, who scored 15 and eight points apiece. For the losers, Samuel Thompson and Dillon Pellew scored 14 and 12 points each.
Trailing 10-15 at the end of the first quarter, Kwakwani levelled proceedings at 34-34 heading into the halftime interval after outscoring Mambas 24-19.
Mambas then seized a marginal lead at the end of the third stanza, scoring 17 points, while restricting Mambas to 10 points to enter the final stanza ahead at 51-44. The win was then realised for Kwakwani in the fourth period, as Mambas failed to overturn the deficit after only outscoring their opponent 20-19.
The event continues on January 20th at the same venue as the Jaguar Conference. The #2 seed Bounty Colts will match skills with the #3-positioned Kobras at 19:00hrs, while the #1 seed Eagles will face off against the #4-placed UG Trojans at 21:00hrs.
The tournament, which is a collaboration between the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sport (MCY&S) and G-Boats Incorporated, forms part of the National Sports Academy. The regular season featured 14 teams divided into two zones, which are the Harpy Eagles and Jaguars Conferences, respectively.
A minimum of 56 fixtures and a maximum of 63 matches are projected for the competition, which concludes in March 2024. The winner of the tournament will pocket $1,000,000, while the loser will receive $500,000.
