The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ONE day after missing out on an opportunity to climb up the ladder, the Bahamas national team made sure that they didn’t end up at the bottom of the pile of the FIBA Americas Under-16 Championship in Maldonado, Uruguay.

On the final day of the four-day tournament that served as a qualifier for the 2014 FIBA World Championships, guard Daejour Adderley canned a pair of throws in the winding seconds to lift the Bahamas past Mexico 60-58 to finish in seventh place.

The tournament was won by the United States of America who claimed their third title in three editions with a 94-48 victory over Argentina, while Canada won 62-50 for third place over Puerto Rico that was fourth. All

four teams qualified for the 2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship.

Malik Newman of the USA was selected as the most valuable player.

The Bahamas, coached by Quinton ‘Three Ounce’ Hall, Chevvy Simmons, Stephen ‘S’ Brown and Neville ‘Manny’ Adderley, relied on their fast paced offense with lots of penetration to deal with an inconsistent Mexican team that began with many turnovers.

The Bahamas had the lead throughout the game, taking a 12-10 margin at the end of the first quarter that they extended to 33-23 at the half.

Although they were outscored 15-9, the Bahamas still managed to level the end of the third quarter at 42-42.

Mexico went up for the first time in the fourth quarter, 44-43, with some incredible long distance shots. But after tying the score 47-47 with four minutes left in the game, the two teams traded the lead over the remaining four minutes until Adderley sunk his pair of game winning charity shots.

Adderley, who was 12-for-15 from the foul line, finished with 24 points in 32 minutes. He was also 3-for-11 from the field and 2-for-11 from behind the three-point line. And he added six rebounds, four steals and two assists to his ledger.

Qyemah Gibson was the only other player in double figures with 12 points on 4-of-8 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line in 31 minutes. He also had 10 rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist. Sebastian Gray had nine points, eight rebounds, three steals and three assists. It was the second victory in the tournament for the Bahamas over Mexico.

The Bahamas won 77-54 in their second game played during the round robin in Group A. The Bahamas lost its opener 74-53 to Argentina and its final game 121-52 to the USA.

In their crossover playoff game on Friday, the Bahamas suffered a 72-66 defeat at the hands of Uruguay that eliminated them from securing a higher placing. Their final win over Mexico gave the team a 2-3 record overall.

Adderley led the Bahamas with a total of 116 points. Gibson was the next best scorer with 49 points followed by Deondre Wilmar with 59. Sebastian Gray had 48 and Shamar Burrows 38. Gibson led a total of 46 rebounds and six block shots, while Adderley and Burrows both had 15 assists.

The Bahamas qualified for the tournament after placing third in the 2012 Centrobasket Under-15 Championship in El Salvador behind Puerto Rico and Mexico. In the tournament in Uruguay, the Bahamas was limited by its size and had to utilise its speed.