… Federation hoping for great fan support

THE ultimate goal is to send the best possible team to represent Guyana at the 2014 Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Championships in July but for that to happen, the Guyana Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) would first have to see some of our best local prospects on show. 

Hence, the ‘Road to Mecca’ – a faceoff among 16 of the country’s top basketball clubs with the aim of putting together a team for the July 1-5 Championships which is set for the British Virgin Islands capital of Tortola.
The tournament which bounces off tomorrow at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall will fetch a $400 000 first prize and is being played on a ‘win or go home’ format. Four games are set for the opening night.
Game one, at 18:00hrs, Georgetown number seeded Colts come up against Rose Hall Jammers, followed by Linden’s Retrieve Raiders and Smythfield Rockers, then another city club Dyna’s Ravens face New Amsterdam Warriors.
The opening night’s curtain will come down with the clash between Linden’s number one club, Kings, and Georgetown’s number five-ranked team, Republic Bank Nets.
The tournament then continues on Sunday, where another four games would be played to close off the round of 16 matches.
Georgetown’s Sonics play Canje Knights in the day’s opener from 18:00hrs, wildcard qualifiers Plaisance Guardians will have to show their mettle against the formidable Victory Valley Royals of Linden in game two, after which, another club from the mining town; Amelia’s Ward Jets, will attempt to give Fyrish Black Sharks the boot.
And Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association’s (GABA) number one-ranked team Pacesetters certainly will be put to the test against Linden’s Half Mile Bulls.
“No team will go home empty-handed and our prize structure reflects that the GABF wants to make sure that all the teams are rewarded,” stated GABF president Nigel Hinds.
$200 000 will go to the second place team while the clubs that are knocked out at the semifinals stage will each receive $100 000.
Teams knocked out at the quarterfinals round will pocket $50 000 and for those who get the axe during the round-of-16, $16 000.
Asked about sponsorship for the tournament, Hinds pointed out “Most of this is coming from out-of-pocket and believe it, it’s not deep, but we are grateful for those who have so far come on board. Ronald Percival Construction Agency, National Hardware, ECV Vieira Investments and Vulkan Mining are few of the entities so far on board with us.”
He pointed out that several other companies have also made a commitment to come on board, including Gizmos and Gadgets, Church’s Chicken, Chetson’s Clarks Store, Gravity Lounge and Palm Court.
However, apart from getting back on the good side of corporate Guyana, the GABF is hoping to garner the support of the general public.
Over the past couple of years, the sport has suffered from poor attendance and while it cannot be explained why fans just simply turned away from one of the most popular sports in the world, the GABF is of the view that the ‘Road to Mecca’ tournament is a good enough brand to appeal to the basketball-loving public.

(By Rawle Toney)