The Tribune

By JONATHAN BURROWS

Tribune Sports Reporter

jburrows@tribunemedia.net

THE fifth edition of Caribbean Hoopfest wrapped up over the weekend at the Kendal G L Isaacs Gymnasium with championships decided in three divisions and organisers already looking toward expanding the tournament next year.

The Bahamas National Team 18U, Buddy Hield 16U and Team NYC captured the Varsity, Next Wave and Future Stars championships respectively in a weekend that brought together teams from The Bahamas and New York.

The Bahamas National Team 18U successfully defended its Varsity championship, defeating Team NYC 18U 79-54 in the final.

The Bahamas established control from the opening quarter, taking a 19-11 lead before extending its advantage to 35-20 at halftime. The national team continued to pull away in the second half, outscoring Team NYC 25-17 in the third quarter before closing out the game 19-17 in the fourth.

Head coach Jay Philippe said the plan was to apply pressure from the opening tip, particularly with Team NYC playing its third game of the day.

“We wanted to go there and pressure them, full court, man to man, also press defence, knowing that we’ll be able to break them down eventually in the game,” Philippe said.

The defensive pressure helped The Bahamas force difficult shots and turnovers, allowing the team to get into transition and build an early lead.

“We wanted to get out to a quick start,” Philippe said. “The guys understood the assignment today. First quarter, got off to a quick start, wanted to discourage the New York team from early on in the game.”

Philippe credited team captain Nathan Rolle for his leadership throughout the tournament and said the team was motivated by the opportunity to defend the title it won last year. “It’s always rewarding,” Philippe said. “It's a great feeling to come out here and defend our title.”

The Bahamas finished the two-day tournament 5-0.

In the Next Wave 16U division, Buddy Hield 16U edged the Falcons 65-63 in the championship game.

Falcons led 17-16 after the first quarter, but team Buddy Hield took control in the second period, outscoring the Falcons 20-14 to take a 36-31 halftime lead.

The Falcons continued to battle in the second half, but Buddy Hield held on for the two-point victory.

Head coach Ramon “Shaky” Dames said the championship came down to defence and making the right decisions when the game was on the line.

“All the guys just played hard on defence,” James said. “Offensively, they’re all good. They’re here because they’re the best on each island they came from. So it all came down to defence at the end of the day. Who wanted it more?”

A late turnover by the Falcons gave team Buddy Hield an opportunity to secure the victory, and James said he reminded his players to remain composed.

“I just told them, we shouldn’t turn the ball over now. Take care of it and make the right decision,” he said.

The title was James’ first as a coach at Caribbean Hoopfest.

“It feels pretty good because this is my first time coaching in this tournament and there’s a lot of the boys here, this is their first time playing in this tournament,” he said. “So to win it is a good look, especially for the Buddy Buckets organisation.”

James said the Buddy Hield Foundation’s programme continues to grow, with players coming from several islands including Grand Bahama, Nassau, Abaco and Bimini.

Team NYC won the Future Stars 13U championship, defeating Net Breaking Basketball Club 63-45.

Team NYC jumped out to a 22-6 lead in the opening quarter and carried a 37-19 advantage into halftime. Net Breaking cut into the deficit in the third quarter, but Team NYC closed out the game with a 15-10 fourth quarter.

Team NYC head coach Malik Batine said rebounding and pushing the pace were the keys to the victory.

“The game plan was just rebound and push the pace,” Batine said. “That’s it. Rebound and push the pace.”

Team NYC also took advantage of its size inside.

“We started off slow. We started off settling for threes, but once we started feeding our bigs, it changed the whole game plan,” Batine said.

Batine said winning the championship was the primary objective coming into the tournament.

“It felt wonderful,” he said. “That was my goal coming out here, to win the championship. And we did it.”

The level of talent on display was one of the main reasons Francois said he continues to bring Caribbean Hoopfest to The Bahamas.

“I’m one of the scouts of one of the top high schools in New York, and there’s really some good talent here,” Francois said.

He said the tournament is designed in part to identify and expose young players who could follow the path of Bahamian NBA players such as Valdez “VJ” Edgecombe and Chavano “Buddy” Hield.

“The reason why we do it is that we’re fascinated with the talent here,” Francois said. “You have VJ, you have Buddy here, and we’re just here to try to see the new talent, like those guys who went on to the NBA.”

Francois said the tournament’s international component is important because it gives young Bahamian players an opportunity to test themselves against competition from outside the country.

The Bahamas has now hosted Caribbean Hoopfest for five years, following an additional five years in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Francois said the plan is to continue expanding the tournament, with potential participation from girls’ teams and additional teams from outside the region.

“Next year we’re going to expand, maybe do some girls, more teams from Florida, Canada,” Francois said. “Trinidad has committed, and just keep on building this and making this a hotbed for the Caribbean, where people can come in and play good games.”

The fifth edition ended with three champions, but for Francois, the larger objective remains building Caribbean Hoopfest into a regional basketball destination where young players can compete and develop.