COLTS solidified themselves as the City’s top basketball club, when they eased past Plaisance Guardians 93-86 in game three of their ‘Best of Three’ finals to win the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) on Wednesday evening at Burnham Court.
It was a showdown of the point guards with both teams being equipped with two of the country’s top back court players and they did not disappoint.
However, when the dust settled, it was Shelroy Thomas who won the duel with an impressive game-high 29 points for the Colts, while Nikkoli Smith in a losing cause for the Guardians poured in 26 points in a sensational performance.
Dave Causeway and Stanton Rose finished the night with 17 and 14 points respectively for the Colts and Marlon Chesney assisted Smith with 12 points.
With the two teams splitting their previous games, it was clear that Wednesday’s game would have been a humdinger and the crowd at Burnham basketball court were satisfied.
Colts, with Thomas, Rose and Causeway in their back court, they outmatched the Plaisance Guardians, but, Smith and Chesney were determined not to be out-done.
Both teams ended the first quarter tied at 21 points, but it was in the second period that Guardians began to fly away from the Colts, thanks to Smith. Guardians outscored the Colts 29-21 in the second quarter to end the half up by eight points (50-42).
However, upon the resumption of the third period, Thomas went into overdrive and ran riot on the Guardians’ front court, much to the dismay of the Plaisance supporters.
Colts outscored the Guardians 31-7 in the third and coasted to their largest lead in the game (16 points) to close the penultimate period up 73-57.
Defensively, veteran Dane Kendall (10) and centre Shane Webster (10) made things difficult for the Guardians, as the two players manned the paint with authority, despite Smith’s fearlessness to get the rim.
The athletic point guard, whose game mimics that of Oklahoma City Thunder’s Russell Westbrook, sparked a run that seem to have lifted the spirit of his team, bringing the game to as close as one point with just about two minutes to play.
But even though the Guardians came close, racing to a 29-20 fourth quarter, the Colts held on, sinking their late free throws to clutch the winning trophy at the end of the night.
It was an astonishing season for the Colts basketball club with Michael Singh at the helm, with the team also claiming the GABA U-23 and Second Division titles.
