The show is indeed going on.
Basketball will have its junior competition after all as tournament host Conscendo Group agreed to stage another summer tourney amidst rumours that the popular Under-21 event had met its end this season.
In a telephone interview, Conscendo director Terry Inniss confirmed the tournament will be bouncing off on Sunday, although the competition had to be reduced from eight teams to six following some initial constraints.
According to Inniss, the top six finishers from last year’s edition are being given first choice for spots even though defending champs City United are not expected to field a team this season.
The competition’s age limit is also being lowered from 20 to 19 in a move to have the summer tournament serve as an unofficial warm-up event for the National Sports Council’s senior school’s competition, which customarily starts in September.
It’s not the first time the junior summer competition has come under threat, as the Barbados Amateur Basketball Association (BABA) – the original tournament host – made a decision last season to scrap the competition in favour of an even younger version.
But the proposed under-14 tourney never came to fruition, and the Conscendo Group eventually picked up the junior competition under the patronage of sharp-shooting Miami Heat forward and NBA champion James Jones.
There is no word as yet as to whether the tournament will continue to be sponsored by Jones, who also founded the JHoops Live basketball camp for Barbados’ best junior players three years ago.
The opening round of the competition is set to be played on a round-robin basis five days a week before the league’s top four teams advance to the semi-finals – the winners of which will contest the title game.
