Jackson’s first play-off

BASKETBALL FANS have been up in arms since the Premier League playoff schedule was released a week ago.The stands of the Wildey Gymnasium are too far removed from the action they say.That might’ve been a concern for Jackson too – had they not went out and got front row seats.They couldn’t have left it any later but British American Insurance Jackson booked their first ever trip to the post-season nonetheless, edging Pinelands for the final play-off spot by beating them 79-60 in Tuesday’s do-or-die regular season finale at the Wildey Gym.Mere postseason spectators in the past, Jackson’s historic run couldn’t have been scripted any better, coming down to a last-day victory over a team that was also fighting for their play-off life.But the biggest regular season finale in recent memory didn’t live up to its huge billing, not after the Pine meekly surrendered in the final four minutes, allowing their opponents to finish the contest on a 23-4 run.Pinelands never acted as if the playoffs were at stake, settling for eight ill-advised three-pointers in that span while reigning MVP Peter Alleyne, Javid Beckles and Julian Grant converted each ensuing, long rebound into points in transition. Worse yet, the baskets came almost unchallenged, as the trio often encountered just a single defender during their foray to the hoop.It wasn’t the likely conclusion to a game that was previously close contested right up until the four minute mark, when Charles Vanderpool’s thunderous two-handed dunk in the lane locked the scores at 56.However, forward Kevin Austin responded with one of his trademark long-range bankers before hitting a face-up triple, sandwiching an Alleyne layup that started the game-changing spree.Vanderpool tried to keep the run in check via a subsequent left-hand hook, but efforts were rendered futile with Kirk Patrick and Ramon Simmons quite content to settle for needless treys in midst of the onslaught.Austin finished with a game-high 24 points, Alleyne scored 23, while Beckles and Grant chipped in with 14 and ten points respectively. For the Pine, Vanderpool top-scored with 17, Patrick had 15 and Simmons and Kurtis Elias both added 11 points each.Jackson open their first-round series tonight against the top-seeded Lakers at the same venue at 6:30 p.m., while defending league champs Station Hill Cavaliers play Game 1 of their series with Warriors in the night cap.