The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ALTHOUGH they fell short of last year’s success, head coach Ricardo Lees said he was still satisfied with the performances of his Lucayan Basketball Club at the three-day Super 6 Tournament in Orlando, Florida.

The club returned this week from its Easter tour from April 16-26 where they also got in a college tour of several schools, including Southeastern University, Rollins College and Tamp University, with the view of getting athletic scholarships for some of their players.

The Lucayans’ under-16 boys team won the title by 25 points, while their junior boys lost a nail-biter in the final, the senior ended up with the consolation third place finish and the senior finals fell short by one game of advancing to their championship.

Last year during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lucayan Basketball Club participated in the tournament where they won all of the boys divisions they competed in. This year, however, Lees said the competition was waiting for them to return.

“Our Easter tour was different this year because we were faced with obstacles and a lot of injuries,” Lees said. “Through it all, we want to thank God for the lessons learned. Our teams really pulled together and supported each other through this Easter Tournament.

“Our under-16 boys dominated during the championship game and really showed their strength even though a number of our players were injured. I want to thank God for giving us this opportunity to compete.”

Ian Porter, a member of the victorious under-16 boys team, best described it when he stated that this was by far their best trip because the competition was really tough, but they managed to persevere through the instructions from their coaches.

“This year, we knew the competition wasn’t going to be easy,” he stated.

“Everybody was coming out with their A game. We were target because last year we got the victory. A few of my teammates were hurt and so I had to step up and be the player coach expected me to be.

“I know I had to come out and play harder and encourage my teammates to play hard as well because everybody was out for us. But overall, we got the victory that we expected to get.”

Tamaro Butler, Lucayan’s co-founder with Lees and a coach for the Lady Lucayan team, said all of the teams did their best. “The boys performed exceptionally well. The girls did alright. There were a lot of obstacles and things that we had to overall,” he said.

“We had a lot of new players and not enough time to build the chemistry, but they performed as good as they can, given the circumstances.”

Butler said he felt that as a club, they learned a lot of things about each member and what they need to work on and improve upon as they gear up for their next trip.

But he noted that the trip was definitely a successful one.

Claire Ferguson, a member of the Lady Lucayans, said despite not winning, they gained a lot of exposure.

“I think our team did better than expected. The level of competition was high. It wasn’t what we expected. It may have been higher,” she stated. “I think I performed well, but I could have been smarter.”

She thanked God for providing her with the ability and talent to lead the team and the coaches and the club for providing them with the opportunity to travel and compete. As a result of what they experienced, she noted that whenever they return, their goal is to win the title.

And Franco Moncur, who coached the junior team, said the teams can hold their heads high because they did their best.

“We got close to achieving all of our goals,” he said. “We didn’t meet 100 percent of our goals, but we got three teams to the playoffs and championship level.

“They performed very well. We got to see where they are and every game was close. So I feel our level of preparation and our competition was right on target.”

Now that they are back home, Lees said Lucayan Basketball Club will now prepare for the upcoming Fox Foundation Lucayan All-Star game that will feature some of the best players from both the public and private schools.

A date and venue has not yet been determined for the event, but he promises that it will be an exciting one for the public to enjoy.

Following that, the Lucayan Volleyball Club will prepare to take their boys and girls teams off to Florida to compete in a series of volleyball tournaments during the summer.