Senior men start defence of Carib title

Robert Bailey, Gleaner Writer

Jamaica's senior men team start their defence of the Caribbean basketball title when they oppose Antigua and Barbuda in today's opening match in The Bahamas starting at 9 p.m.

The Jamaican team, which won the title in 2009, has been boosted by the inclusion of overseas players Patrick Ewing Jr, son of the former New York Knicks star Patrick Ewing, and Ryan Reid. Richard Polack, assistant coach of the team, said the players are ready and raring to go.

"We are fairly confident because the mood in the team is good, high energy and there is a lot of good vibes among players," said Polack. "Everyone is looking forward to the championship with the hope of making Jamaica very proud by retaining our title."

However, Polack added that they have suffered a setback as the likes of Cleveland Cavaliers' forward Samardo Samuels and Europe-based centre Jerome Jordan have both been ruled out of the tournament because of injuries.

strong team

Despite this, Polack stated that they still have a very strong team and they were looking forward to today's clash against Antigua and Barbuda.

"Antigua are usually a tough team, but I have not seen them since 2006, and so we really don't know much about them. We are just going out there to ensure that we get a victory in this opening game," Polack stated. Head coach Sam Vincent is scheduled to join up with the team today in The Bahamas.

Both sides are contesting Group A of the competition, which also features the United States Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The top three teams will advance to the Centro Basket Championship, which is contested between the top eight countries in the Central American and Caribbean region.

At the end of the Centro Basket Championship, the top four teams in the men's competition will secure berths in the FIBA Americas Zone Championships.

From the Zone Championships, the top three teams will go on to the World Championships or the Olympics, whichever is held first at the completion of the latter event.

The full squad: Patrick Ewing Jr, Ryan Reid, Andre Smith, Michael Coburn, Lynford Brown, Akeem Scott, Michael Rogers, Andrew Whilby, Terrell Christie, Garfield Blair, Javon Bailey and Brian Grant.