The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

MARIO Bowleg will return to the sidelines to coach the Bahamas Basketball Federation men’s national basketball team when they travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico, to take on the United States of America and Puerto Rico in the third and final leg of the FIBA 2020 AmeriCup Qualifier.

Bowleg, the president of the federation, will be assisted by Perry Thompson Jr and Moses Johnson. The BBF released the list of players named to the team that will travel on February 15 for the two matches to be played on February 19 and 21. The list comprises of Travis Munnings, Aaron Levarity, Tavario Miller, David Nesbitt, Domnick Bridgewater, Jaron Cornish, Godfrey Rolle III, L.J. Rose, Mychal Thompson, Nashad Mackey, Michael Carey Jr, D’shon Taylor and Kentwan Smith.

“I think the team is going to be a team that I definitely think can compete,” Bowleg said. “I think this team will give ourselves a great chance to move onto the next level.

“Not withstanding the fact that there were one or two players that we wanted to go, but because of the US President’s proclamation that individuls have to be quaratined after traveling with certain countries.”

With a few players overseas playing professional basketball being left of the final list, Bowleg said they still have put together a quality team that should have a great chance to advance to AmeriCup 2020.

‘I have no doubts about that,” he stated. “The team will be well prepared and ready to go.”

The federation had hoped to bring in the majorirty of the players for a few workout sessions here at the Kerndal Isaacs Gymnasium, but Bowleg said because of the inavailability of the facility and no certainty that they could get access to the maakeshift court at BahaMar, their principl sponsors, they are looking at going into Puerto Rico ahead of time to prepare the team.

“I have not gotten any response from the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture in allowing us to use the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium,” Bowleg said. “There’s an opportunity for us to practice at BahaMar, but we have not gotten any response yet.

“So assistant coaches Perry Thompson Jr and Moses Johnson are making sure that the players are staying in physical shape.”

This week, Bowleg said Larry Barnes, who also will be working along with the team, will be implementing a system that they hope to utilize once they leave fror Puerto Rico on February 15 as they work on developing a cohesive unit once they are all assembled in San Juan.

“With the amount of players home, we had hoped to put on one or two scrammages before we leave the country,” Bowleg stressed. “That has always been our strength,

“Once we can get the core guys together prior to leaving, it has always been a great plus for us.”

With the players selected, Bowleg said the team will want to play “small ball,” which would allow their bigs (forwards and centers) to step out and shoot the ball.

“I think with have the guards that we wanted and our wing plyers have always been our strength,” he pointed out. “So I don’’t see much of a weakness, other than us having a cohesive unit right now.

“If I were to chose a weakness, it would be our cohesiveness and our ability to play together considering that we haven’t come together as a team as yet.”

The USA, still undefeated in the AmeriCup Qualifer, is a sure bet to advance, but the Bahamas will hqve to pull off the win over Puerto Rico if they have any chance of being one of the three teams to qualify out of Group D.

They are expected to be led by former NBA All-Star guards Isiah Thomas and Joe Johnson.

“The most important match is the game gainst Puerto Rico, That is a must win in order to give ourselves a chance to move on,” Bowleg noted. “If we can steal a win against the United States, we will take that also.

“It would put us in a much better position going into the game against Puerto Rico. But we will still have to win the game against Puerto Rico in order for us to advance.”

With Chris DeMarco, the assistaant coach for the Golden State Warriors, unavailable because of his duties in the National Basketball Assocation’s regular season and Grand Bahama’s assistant coach Norris Bain, unavailable for personal reasons, Bowleg said he was asked by the feration and the players to coach the team.

Prior to the start of the AmeriCup Qualifier in 2019, Bowleg had given up his coaching chores to concentrate on his role as the federation president But in the absence of DeMarco and Bain, he was the designated head coach and will resume that responibility once again.

This time, all the pressure is on him as the president and coach to deliver the Bahamas into the AmeriCup 2022, which will serve as a qualifier for the 2024 Olympic Games. AmeriCup is FIBA America Championship, The USA is the defending chmpions, having won the last tournament in 2017.

Coming off the second window that was played at the Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, the Bahamas was beaten 99-59 by the USA and 91-85 to Puerto Rico. That dropped the Bahamas’ record to 1-3 and into a tie with Puerto Rico.

In the final window in Puertio Rico, the Bahamas will take on the United States on February 18, followed by a February 20 matchup against Puerto Rico.

The Bahamas would need a win over Puerto Rico or two losses from Mexico to have an opportunity to qualify. The Bahamas holds the tiebreaker over Mexico by the aggregate score of the first window last February.