Basketball fans who yearn for the 1980s when the likes of Dwight Rouse, Charles “Silky” Gill, Alfred Alleyne and Cosmo Edwards set the YMCA ablaze, missed a golden opportunity when the National Sports Council staged a celebrity match on Sunday night at the Barbados Community College to raise funds for the juniors who are heading to Tennessee in the United States.
The fact that the White Team led 19-16 and 30-23, before fading 39-42 to lose 43-48, was almost insignificant as the fans present, particularly the younger ones, got a chance to see some of those legendary moves by the vintage players.
The teams were:
White – Rouse, Gill, James Mr Impossible Phillips, Trevor Boycott Small, Roger Gerald B Williams, Zahir Motara, Ryan Holford, Kirk Brown along with Mark Seale and Justin Marville.
Black – Edwards, Junior Rock, Alleyne, Adrian Stewart, Patrick Tannis, Carl Fingers Thorpe, Timmy, Troy Special, Andrew Pilgrim and Philip 7.
The White Team gained an early lead thanks to Gill, whose smooth moves to the basket suggested that he still had it. However, after racking up nine points and tormenting the Black Team, Gill retired to the bench for the rest of the game.
Small’s 13 points came from some reminiscent drives to the baskets as the former Pine player showed he is still as fit as ever.
At the other end, Stewart was raking in the points to lead the Blacks with a match-high 24 points including the only slam of the game. Philip 7 was active while Troy showed he was Special with ten points.
The dribbling and ball handling of Motara and Edwards showcased talents of two different generations, and a fantastic dish from Motara saw Phillips sinking a trey from downtown, but Seale, who ended with four points, definitely needed a teleprompter to read some of Motara’s passes which went abegging.
There was no problem reading Marville’s passes as the guard never attempted to go beyond the half-line with the ball. Marville was also taken to school by Edwards, who dribbled through the journalist’s legs – much to the delight of the fans.
However, Edwards’ feared shooting was not on as he missed two free throws and then tried to make amends with an attempted three-pointer that hit nothing but air.
An injunction by Pilgrim on Seale, which led to a lay-up by Philip 7 at the other end, encapsulated what was an entertaining night of vintage play at the BCC Gym. (KB)
