Cavs, Bulls KO final

NO JAMILA STUDER. No Ria Phillips.These Mpact lady Cavs apparently have no competition either. Astrid Alleyne had 14of her game-high 23 points in the third quarter as the just crowned ten-time women’s basketball league champs survived the absence of two starters by routing Combined Schools Hoopsters 74-50 in Tuesday’s knock-out semis at the YMCA.The latest win put Cavaliers in line for their eighth double and another title fight with Clapham, who they beat in last week’s league final for the third year running.But the undermanned Cavs were the ones nearly run off the floor, having trailed by as many as nine in the first half after starting the game with only five players.Absent were the pair of Studer and Phillips, nor the tardy Alleyne, who came midway through the second quarter to find her side down 24-15 in the midst of an open court onslaught from Hoopsters.If only the schoolgirls knew of the true assault to come.Alleyne accounted for three of her team’s first four baskets to open the half and ten points of the side’s initial 16, as the Cavs started the third on an 8-0 run before outscoring the schoolgirls 27-8 in the period.This was after the inform Cavs veteran had successive three-point plays to end the second quarter scoring the side’s last six points to pull the champs within five (31-26) by the break.The fourth provided no further solace for Hoopsters, who watched a 51-39 deficit become a 61-41 thumping after failing to score during the first three minutes of the quarter.Wanda Agard-Belgrave added 19 points and Tamisha Flatts chipped in with 11 for the Cavs, who are going after their eighth knockout title on Tuesday. Jalicia Thorington was the lone Hoopster in double digits with ten, after scoring six of those in the first quarter.In the night cap, prolific combo guard Toni Atherley exploded for 36 points as Act II Popcorn Clapham Bulls are set to renew their Cavs rivalry in another final following a 69-41 thrashing of Roll-A-Way St John’s Sonics.Unlike their Station Hill counterparts, Bulls never trailed in this one, having raced out to a quick 14-4 advantage early in the first six minutes.Atherley then erupted for 16 second-quarter points on a series of lay-ups and a pair of treys, helping Clapham to extend the lead to 42-18.The margin would have been more drastic had it not been for Tiffany Husbands’ hot hand from the perimeter, which accounted for just about half of the team’s total.Husbands finished with 21 points and her younger sister Chantal, had ten, while Antonia Baptiste and Ruth Gill scored 12 and 11 respectively, for Clapham.