Rain forces rural basketball finals to GC Foster

After several weather-related delays, the ISSA Rural Basketball U16 and U19 finals are set to resume today at GC Foster College in St Catherine, with both divisions poised for decisive showdowns.

In the U16 contest, Herbert Morrison Technical High (HMTHS), eager to claim the title, will take on defending champions Manchester High at 1 p.m. in a winner-takes-all clash. The best-of-three series is locked at 1-1.

In the U19 match-up at 2:45 p.m., first-time finalists Holmwood Technical face a must-win situation against a confident Manchester High squad, who lead the series 1-0.

Damon Sullivan, coach of Manchester, told The Gleaner that despite the challenges, team morale remains high, with players eager to conclude the season after an extended training period.

“The mood in the camp is good, but the only issue right now is that we struggled to get time to train because of the weather. Apart from that, the boys are in good spirits, kind of anxious to get this over with, it being kind of drawn out over the course of three weeks to a month,” said Sullivan.

“With the mentality of the boys, it’s just to keep them positive. Things should be okay for today playing inside, because the weather won’t hamper the games.”

The under-19 final was postponed for the second time due to inclement weather.

Manchester’s under-19s cruised to a 102-61 win against Holmwood in the first game, but that hasn’t dampened the spirit of their opponents.

Andre Brown, the coach of Holmwood, said despite the setback, the team is more motivated than ever, using the extra preparation time to improve.

“It’s been a long and drawn-out finals, a lot of setbacks, but we’re focused mentally. We regained our focus. And as it relates to being hungry to lift the trophy, we’re still hungry; and we’re even more hungry now, because we got a little bit more time to prepare,” Brown said

“We just need to go out there and execute, and do what we’re supposed to do to force a game three,” added Brown.

In a decisive under-16 game, the Montego Bay-based HMTHS, who suffered their first loss of the season in Game Two, are coming today ready to rebound in the series decider.

Manchester edged Herbert Morrison 56-45 at home to make the series interesting.

Levar Rose, coach of HMTHS, emphasised the importance of the ‘win or go home’ mentality.

“You will not understand that mentality until the game day, until you see how they execute and how hard they play. They will have to leave it all on the court, and I can only hope everything I say resonates with them, and they’re locked in,” said Rose.

Today’s Matches

U16 - Herbert Morrison vs Manchester – 1 p.m.

U19 - Holmwood vs Manchester - 2:45 p.m.

Both games to be played at G.C. Foster College