By David Pascal
The Dennery Basketball Invitational got underway Sunday with a ball-o-rama at the Dennery Multi-Purpose Sports Complex. The competition is sponsored in part by Digicel.There was exciting basketball action, however, rain did interrupt play. The competition started on time (1pm,) which is rare for just about any sporting event here. The teams taking part were: St Lucia Fire Services, Coca-Cola Magics, Vieux Fort All Stars, Micoud, Mon Repos, Garnd Riviere, Lady Sonics and the hosts Dennery Dolphins.
The competition is organized by the Mr Magic Basketball Academy under the direction of Morgan George. He feels there is a need for tournaments like this not only in Castries, but island-wide. "When you love something you tend to want to be with it," said George. "Of late there is not much happening with basketball. There are little ball-o-ramas here and there that don’t make sense. You need to have something more serious and more competitive."
George figures he has been sitting on the sidelines way too long, waiting for the St Lucia Basketball Federation to get their act together and feels something has to be done to get basketball going again. Based on the rules of the ball-o-rama teams play two 10-minute halfs and players are allowed just three fouls per game.
Fire Services led by Jerry Charles were the hottest team Sunday winning all their games for a 3-0 won loss record. Vieux Fort All Stars and Mon Repos have identical 2-1 records. The Coca-Cola Magics lie in third position at 1-2 with Dennery Dolphins pulling up the rear.
In the junior division, Micoud lead 1-0 while the crowd thrilling Lady Sonics are at 0-1. The remaining games will continue at a date to be announced. So far, Digicel is a major sponsor but others are expected to jump on board. The main competition began Wednesday at 7 pm with Fire Services taking on Vieux Fort. On Saturday Lady Sonics come up against Micoud and Coca-Cola Magics entertain Mon Repos. Due to the absence of the local officials who will be away for FIBA re-certification, the games will continue on May 21 when Coca-Cola Magics and Dennery Dolphins meet.