The defending champions, Flyers Basketball, have made a promising start in the best of five Division 1 Playoff Final against their rivals, Northside Stingerz. They secured a narrow victory in game one of the Antigua and Barbuda Basketball Association (ABBA) competition, winning by just three points on Thursday at the JSC basketball complex.
Flyers dominated the opening quarter, outscoring Stingerz 28-18. Although Stingerz fought back to win the second and third quarters, Flyers emerged victorious in the final quarter to secure a 78-75 victory.
Xavier Meade led the scoring for Flyers with 19 points and five rebounds, supported by David Hernandez with 14 points off the bench and Selassie Brathwaite with 11 points and six rebounds. On the other side, Joshua Minner led the way for Stingerz with 22 points and five rebounds, with Kareem Edwards and Keroi Lee both contributing 17 points and six rebounds each.
The second game of the playoff final is scheduled to take place on Sunday at 8:30 pm.
In a separate Division 2 matchup, Ottos Clippers managed to secure a narrow 78-76 win over Court Martials in Thursday night’s opener. The lead switched hands on several occasions, with Ottos Clippers taking the first quarter 23-12, before Court Martials rallied to win the second, third, and fourth quarters.
Amare Browne led the scoring for Clippers with 29 points, supported by Jules Frederick with 16 points off the bench and Antoine Browne with 13 points and seven rebounds. For Court Martials, De-Lornge Jules was the top performer with 29 points and eight rebounds, while Baldwin Anthony Jr chipped in with 17 points and 21 rebounds.
The matchups in both divisions have set the stage for an exciting series of games, and fans are eagerly anticipating the outcome of the upcoming contests.